These tips could shave a few years off your actual age
Whether you’re a skincare fiend or are blessed with naturally good skin without even trying (lucky you!), there’s one thing that most women can’t avoid: the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines. They make you look tired, older than you actually are, and are universally disliked by everyone we know—so it’s only natural we come up with the best ways to avoid them.
There are many steps you can take to avoid, or reduce the appearance of this pesky skincare woe. Let’s get down to the nitty-gritty.
Firstly, what causes fine lines and wrinkles?
While age is often blamed as the likeliest cause of the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, women tend to incur these problem signs when frequently exposed to the sun, free radicals through pollution or smoke (especially prominent in a bustling, modern city like Singapore), as well as the loss of collagen in your skin. Even genes play a part in inheriting fine lines and wrinkles!
How do you reduce or slow down their appearance?
1. We can’t stress this enough—be diligent about SPF
In an interview with Health.com, Joshua Zeichner, MD, a dermatologist in New York City, says that wearing sunscreen of at least SPF 30 or higher every single day, regardless of weather, helps to effectively block out UV rays that break down collagen in your skin. Remember, collagen breakdown leads to deep lines forming! Plus, most sunscreen don’t just help you avoid fine lines and wrinkles but are also formulated to smoothen the skin and improve overall skin texture.
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2. Don’t rub your eyes or face
While it may be satisfying to rub away an itch or vigorously dry your face with a towel after cleansing, you could be causing more damage than you know. According to The Klog, the skin around your eyes is the thinnest and most delicate on your face. If you have the tendency to rub your eyes a little too hard or tug too hard at your eye when removing eye makeup, you’re causing the skin around your eyes to thin out and wear down over time. You can imagine what happens next—your skin gets weaker and naturally more susceptible to wrinkles. Oh, and did we mention rubbing your eyes could also possibly lead to breaking the capillaries around your eyes, aka increased dark circles?
The same goes for your face! Rough handling like rubbing too hard or rubbing in your skincare will cause the skin to stretch, thin, and eventually cause fine lines to permanently be etched on your face.
Eye-Care Tip: Use an alcohol-free toner, such as The Moisturizers Co. Glow Renew Essence Toner that contains Green Tea, Panthenol, and Sodium PCA which can help to refresh and hydrate the delicate skin around your eyes while reducing dark circles and puffiness. Follow up with the R.N.A Radical Anti-Ageing & Retexturing Face and Eye Cream from Avant Skincare - blended with revolutionary ingredients including Glycolic Acid, Trelahose, and Jojoba Oil for dramatic skin renewal to reveal newer, fresher skin.
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3. Use a silk pillowcase, and try to avoid sleeping on either side of your face
Cotton pillowcases are common for most, but they tend to unknowingly suck moisture out of your hair and face overnight. A lack of moisture for your skin can cause existing fine lines or wrinkles to be more defined. To combat this, we recommend switching to a silk pillowcase—not only does it keep your skin soft and not strip it of hydration, but it’s incredibly soft and comfortable. And while this is a tough one—it’ll help to avoid sleeping on either side of your face, as this deepens wrinkles as well. We know, It’s easier said than done, but worth a shot!
4. Change your bad habits
Late nights, drinking copious amounts of alcohol on weekly girls’ night outs, indulging in way too much junk food—these are bad habits that can lead to the downfall of your skin. In an interview with Women’s Health, Joel Schlessinger, M.D., a board-certified dermatologist, and cosmetic surgeon, says that smoking is the most common cause of wrinkles. This is because the nicotine in cigarettes causes blood vessels in the outermost layers of your skin to greatly narrow. This in turn impairs blood flow to your skin, resulting in less oxygen and nutrients being transmitted to your skin. This ultimately causes your skin to sag and wrinkles to prematurely appear.
5. Moisturise day and night
Well-hydrated skin is plumper, which makes it virtually impossible for wrinkles and fine lines to be prominent. To really maximize the benefits of moisturising, make sure you’re using one that’s suitable for your skin type. The moisturisers from The Moisturizers Co. are fundamentally formulated with concentrated, rich actives and other ingredients that promote anti-aging while meeting different skin concerns like dullness, oily or sensitive skin, and more. Their moisturisers also include antioxidants like Resveratrol, Vitamin C, and E, which offer extra protection against UV-produced free radicals. Find one that’s suitable for you here or attempt the Skin Analysis to find one that's recommended for your unique skin type and needs.
While you embark on your quest for youthful, wrinkle-free skin, always remember that to embrace natural changes to your skin that come with age. Hollywood sweetheart Cameron Diaz once shared in an interview with Oprah on OWN,
“Women don’t allow other women to age gracefully. And we don’t give ourselves permission to age gracefully.
This is something we strongly believe in—that us women should always support each other regardless of “flaws” that we have, and that every complexion is a beautiful one!
About us: We are Skintelligence, a team focused on a 'skin-first' approach to beauty through artificial intelligence. We match products to you based on your unique skin type and needs. Results are highly accurate and personalized with AI and machine learning. It's fun, convenient, and it works. Try it here.
As featured in Her World, CLEO, FEMALE, Shape, Nuyou, Singapore Women’s Weekly, Daily Vanity, Layers of Skins.