Your Skin Changes with Aging. Your Anti Aging Skincare Routine Should Too
When it comes to skin, by now you’ve mastered the fundamentals. You’re well aware of your skin type (normal, dry, oily, combination, sensitive) and know that different skin types require different approaches to care. You’ve developed an easy-to-follow, three-step routine of cleansing, moisturizing, and sunscreening that treats your skin kindly morning and evening, day after day. You’ve come to terms with the fact that your body and your appearance will change as the years go by. The reality is, aging happens to us all. Below are anti aging skincare tips for all ages.
It’s what you do about the inevitability of aging that matters. That starts with realizing you’ll need to take ongoing adjustments to how your handle your anti aging skin care. Because what made you appear dewy and energetic in your 20s may leave you looking dried out and exhausted by the time your 50s and 60s come around.
Decade-by Decade Strategies for Maintaining Youthful Skin
Fortunately, we can influence many facets of appearance as they relate to the aging process, with anti aging skincare. We do that by staying attentive to changes as we grow older and making appropriate adjustments to our skincare routines. Such as our summer skincare or winter skincare.
Unlocking the Secrets of Anti-Aging: How to Maintain Youthful Skin at Any Age
This consideration of adjusting skin care to match your age is one of the several topics related to anti-aging we’re exploring over the course of several months. In addition to today’s discussion, watch this space for articles about common sense skincare basics, over-the-counter products that contribute to youthful-looking skin, and medical and dermatological procedures that treat symptoms of aging. Maintaining healthy, fresh-looking skin is possible and important to us all!
Skincare in your 20s
With taut structure, appealing smoothness, and supple glow, your twenties is the epitome of skin youthfulness and health. Teenage acne has likely cleared, and skin recovers quickly should any dullness or damage occur. This is the time for establishing a skincare routine that includes preventive practices and prepares skin for what lies ahead.
Experts recommend basing skin care on three primary steps: cleansing morning and evening using warm (not hot) water, fingertip application of a gentle product that does not irritate the natural moisture barrier protecting skin; moisturizing while skin is damp with a mild cream to keep skin hydrated; applying sunscreen year-round to block harmful UVA and UVB rays from the sun. Sun exposure (also tanning beds and sunlamps) is the single, most damaging cause of premature damage and skin aging. Skin cancer risk increases too.
Anti Aging Skincare in your 30s
This is a time of transition as early signs of aging begin to appear. Production of collagen (the building block of skin, bones, tendons, ligaments, and connective tissue, giving them structure and rigidity) and elastin (protein supporting elasticity of skin, lungs, blood vessels, and other tissues) falls off, leaving fine lines and wrinkles behind. Slower skin cell turnover leads to skin dullness and dryness. Volume loss in fat pads contributes to skin sagging and cheeks caving in.
In addition to maintaining established skincare routines, introducing anti-aging products is a smart move. These may include vitamin C or E to mitigate the effects of sun exposure and environmental pollutants, over-the-counter retinol or a prescription retinoid to counteract fine lines and wrinkles and improve skin texture, and hydrating skin with hyaluronic acid to boost elasticity. Botox injections or tissue filler may be an option for some, even at this early age.
Anti Aging Skincare in your 40s
Signs of aging accelerate in this decade; hormonal changes and accumulated sun exposure may be at fault. Reduced oil production means dryness is a problem, with loss of estrogen contributing to thinner, more brittle skin. The lymphatic system slows, allowing toxins to accumulate in the body; inflammation of skin is a common result. Skin firmness disappears, leaving behind wrinkles and sag. Anti aging skincare takes hold at this stage.
Given the many changes happening in the forties, dermatologists and other experts may suggest using two types of cleansers—a gentle exfoliating product and a mild, nourishing lotion to encourage both cell turnover and hydration. For moisture retention, a hyaluronic acid can be used twice daily, and a rich night cream containing glycerin, ceramides, or fatty lipids can encourage skin barrier repair. An anti-aging serum may also aid the cause. Staying physically active is an advantage since movement strengthens cardiac function and helps keep bone and muscle strong. Dermatological procedures (injectables, fillers, laser treatments) may be appealing for those seeking to turn back the clock.
Skincare in your 50s
Post-menopause our bodies experience hormonal shifts that very much affect the skin, which is thinner and less elastic; bone loss manifests as decreased volume concentrated in the middle of the face. Skin dryness and roughness are major concerns. Fine lines, wrinkles, sagging, inflammation, eye puffiness—all are here to stay.
Maintaining your skincare routine is important, albeit perhaps with different products. Peptides may boost collagen production and smooth fine lines, while a low-suds, milky cleanser is great for removing dirt and debris without stripping away all-important natural oils. Look for products designed for older users, and read labels carefully to make sure what you’re getting is age-appropriate for your needs. Talk to your skincare specialist about procedures appropriate to how you want to look and feel.
Skincare in your 60s, 70s, and beyond
It’s never too late to start anti-aging treatments; you also want to keep doing what’s been working for you all along. If products become less effective, seek alternatives appropriate to your age and changing skin. A vitamin C serum may be especially important, along with a thickening agent to counteract increasingly thin, damage-susceptible skin. A healthy lifestyle, wholesome diet, and regular activity are more important than ever to keep you feeling and looking good.
Be sure to stay in touch with your dermatologist throughout this era in your life. Anti-aging procedures may be an option you want to consider; your doctor can help you decide what’s appropriate and when. And be sure to ask for an annual skin check. Skin cancer increases as we grow older, and your skincare expert can identify and treat telltale signs and suspicious growths that signal trouble ahead.
Be True to Who You Are
Whatever your age now, remember that the past is behind you, and the priciest drugs and most sophisticated surgical procedures can never recapture your long-gone youth. Being comfortable with who you are and how you look now are fundamental to accepting yourself at whatever stage of life. None of us can stop the aging process and the fact that our bodies, our appearances, and yes, our faces, will change. But we can do plenty to understand why it’s happening and manage ourselves wisely. Adjusting skincare approaches to age and situation gives a sense of control over what’s happening to us and why.
