7 Things that Prematurely Age Your Skin
Our skin ages naturally, and there is nothing to be ashamed of about wrinkling, changing texture, or other changes that occur over time. But there are some things that can prematurely age our skin – meaning it is showing signs of age not just because of time passing, but because of how we’re treating it.
We find that Adorn Aesthetics clients want to keep their skin on the smooth, even, and bright side for as long as possible, so we’ve rounded up 7 things to avoid to make sure your skin is not aging prematurely.
1. Skipping the moisturizer
Moisturizer is essential for keeping the skin healthy. Without good moisture, the cells in the skin that keep it smooth – known as collagen – will break down faster and leave skin looking wrinkled and sagging. Depending on your skin type, you want to use a moisturizer either in the morning and evening (for dry or normal skin types) or just in the evenings (for oily skin types).
2. Skipping the sunscreen
Even on the cloudiest, darkest days, UV rays from the sun still damage our skin and cause it to form uneven spots, lose collagen, and start wrinkling. Apply a sunscreen of at least SPF 30 to your face and neck every day. On days when you’ll be out in the sun a lot, make sure to reapply your sunscreen every few hours and bring along a hat or other shade protection.
3. Tanning
A tanning bed can be like exposing your skin directly to the sun’s rays with no cloud cover in the middle of the desert – in other words, it’s bad. Even getting a tan outside will ultimately damage the skin and cause sun spots, wrinkles, and uneven texture to show up. If you must get that summertime glow, self-tanners are your friend: consider Jergens or other moisturizing tanning products.
4. Smoking
There are so many reasons to quit smoking, chief among them being your overall health and length of life. But smoking nicotine in any form also causes skin to become extremely wrinkled, have “drained” or “sallow” coloring, and sag from the face. Talk to your doctor (or your OB/GYN provider at Summit Women’s Health) about ways to make the quitting process more doable if you are thinking about quitting smoking.
5. Aggressive cleansing
Some people get into a routine of using lots of exfoliators, brushes, and other hard scrubbing products on their skin. You might think that these approaches will be getting rid of the dead skin cells, letting your fresh, new skin shine through. Though this is true for using exfoliation in moderation, your everyday cleanse should be gentle.
Use a cleanser that definitely wipes off the “gunk” of the day, but doesn’t make your skin feel “stripped” or stinging. Also use gentle, circular motions to apply the cleanser; harsh pushing and pulling movements on the skin can also cause wrinkles.
6. Skipping the cleanser
Another cause of premature age signs is forgetting to cleanse. We all know that feeling at the end of a long day where we think, “What if I just didn’t wash my face and went straight to bed?” But skipping the cleansing step in the morning or evening can leave harmful materials that our skin was naturally exposed to sitting on the surface, and those harmful materials will cause wrinkling, uneven complexion, and sagging skin if left there to sink in.
7. Poor diet & exercise
Again, there are plenty of good reasons to work more vegetables and vitamins into our diets and have a healthy, active exercise routine. But just one of them is that your skin will thank you: the vitamins and minerals you get from a well-balanced diet will keep skin looking bright and young much longer than junk food and high-sugar diets. Exercise has also consistently shown to improve circulation and immune health, both of which can help skin look younger and smoother.
By avoiding these 7 habits, you will do your skin an amazing favor: you’ll allow it to age at its own pace, in its natural way. Anytime you have questions about bringing out the best in your skin and appearance, your Adorn Aesthetics team is here to help.