Understanding skin ageing
This is a really important question if you want to understand what we can do to slow the effects of time.
First of all, let’s thinks about what happens when we smile. We create a prominent line between the nose and the mouth (nasolabial line), we create wrinkles around the outer aspect of our eyes (crow’s feet), and we great a deeper line from the corners of our mouth, leading to marionette lines. When we are young, these creases are temporary, but as we age these lines become more and more permanent, even when we are not smiling. The repeated movements of facial expressions are one cause, but there are other factors:
In our 20’s our skin is subject to all sorts of environmental factors and lifestyle choices. UV exposure, smoking and alcohol all start to have an effect. With time, our skin cells don’t regenerate quite as quickly as they once did.
As we move into our 30’s we see a loss of collagen and elastin. Collagen gives our skin volume and firmness, elastin makes our skin bounce back into place. Gradually skin becomes slacker and can appear loose.
In our 40’s skin becomes thinner, can appear more dehydrated, and we start to get dark and dull patches. We also loose volume, this is most evident in the fat pads below the skin in the cheeks, temples and chin. Hormones start to play a part, and this continues into our 50’s and beyond. Lines become deeper, permanent, and we loose more volume.
We even start to loose bone mainly around the mouth and chin, adding to the appearance of volume loss. Other contributing factors are our sleep position, our weight, stress and pollution.
What can you do?
One of the biggest interventions we can make to help our skin from an early age is to protect it from sun damage. The sun’s UV light damages elastin, impacting on how well the skin can bounce back after being stretched. You should always apply a daily SPF to sun exposed areas, even if it isn’t sunny! I use SPF 50 every day under my makeup. Always choose a product with protection against UVA and UVB radiation, and remember SPF lip care products too.
Smoking, this slows down collagen production in addition to the natural ageing effects. There’s lots of support to stop smoking, and obviously never starting is a great was to avoid its effects.
If you’d like to come and discuss the treatments we offer, message me to book an appointment.