You respect anyone who wants to get Botox or other injectables but you’re not there yet. Maybe you’ll never be there because you can’t fathom needles or their price tag makes these wrinkle-reducing options out of your budget
Luckily, there are other things you can do for your skin to minimize the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
Here are some to consider:
Use Sunscreen, the Holy Grail Anti-Aging Product
Believe it or not, but you have to wear sunscreen every day, whether sunny or stormy. “Sunscreen is the most important anti-aging product you can use. Ninety percent of the aging on our skin is from the sun,” says Dr Dianne Quibell Medical Director of MD TLC with over 20 years’ experience combining internal medicine with medical aesthetics.
And while prevention is the best strategy when it comes to aging, daily SPF does something more. After applying a broad-spectrum SPF 30 sunscreen daily for a year, before-and-after photos of participant’s complexions showed that skin texture, clarity, and hyperpigmentation improved up to 52 percent, per a study published in December 2016 in Dermatologic Surgery.
Try Retinoids, the Ultimate Skin-Plumping and Firming Superheroes
Among all the available products, if there’s one you buy, make it a retinoid.
Now that you’re fully on team sunscreen, let’s talk retinoids. Retinoids are vitamin A derivatives that can increase collagen, the protein that makes up skin’s supportive structure. This protein can lessen the look of fine lines and wrinkles. “They also increase the number of cells that make collagen (called fibroblasts) in our skin, keeping it plump and firm,” says Dr. Quibell.
Schedule an In-Office Laser Treatment, a Needle-Free Way to De-Age Your Skin
You want to go beyond topicals, but you don’t want to go for a needle. Ask your dermatologist whether one of the many lasers available would be right for your skin needs. “Resurfacing lasers do so many things, including reducing brown spots and blood vessels, remodeling collagen, and increasing collagen production,” says Professor Peter Bjerring.
While lasers of yesterday used to leave skin angry and fiery red, they’re now more sophisticated and can mildly resurface while causing minimal injury to the skin, he says.
Use Dietary Supplements, Which May Help Fight Wrinkles
Along with sun protection and dermatology procedures, there are some skin supplements that have research-backed benefits. For example, in a double-blind placebo-controlled study published in the July 2019 issue of the Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology, participants who took a morning and nightly multivitamin saw a significant reduction in wrinkle appearance compared with a placebo group after three months
That said, there isn’t a wealth of human research on collagen supplements, are more studies are needed before they’re recommended.
Follow a Healthy Diet and Lifestyle, Two Musts for Good Skin
When it comes to smart skin-care habits, there’s no replacement for a healthy diet and lifestyle. In the fight to keep lines and wrinkles at bay, your daily habits matter. Smoking, inactivity, and a diet high in sugary foods were linked to increased markers of advanced glycation end products (AGEs), per a study published in March 2018 in the Journal of International Medical Research. Higher levels of AGEs are associated with older age and are a factor in skin aging and collagen breakdown, noted a review published in November 2015 in Skin Therapy Letter, so make sure to continue to regularly exercise, eat a balanced diet, and stay away from smoking or quit if you’ve developed the habit.
Another study, published in May 2019 in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, showed that eating fruit, yellow vegetables (these contain powerful antioxidants called carotenoids), and soy, and staying away from red meat led to less wrinkling over time for women. Staying active, on the other hand, may help lessen the risk of obesity and diabetes, as well as decrease stress, all factors that can help keep aging AGEs at bay, according to the March 2018 study.
Another to-do: Get adequate and quality sleep. For adults, that would be seven to nine hours of sleep per night, according to the National Sleep Foundation. In a study published in January 2015 in Clinical and Experimental Dermatology on Caucasian women, those who were characterized as “good sleepers” had less skin aging, and their skin was better able to recover after sun exposure. What’s more, they thought they looked more youthful too. And who can argue with that?
