Skin Care 101

We all want youthful-looking skin. But working against us is Father Time. As we age, the innocence of youth gradually gets replaced with the stressors of day-to-day living. So we spend billions of dollars annually on over-the-counter skin creams, facials, chemical peels, even facelifts, in an effort to keep aging at bay.

But alas, death and taxes are the only real certainties in life. Collagen, the essential protein that gives our skin its youthful glow, gradually decreases as we age. That’s not something we can change. But there are ways you can wake up your face and rejuvenate it, temporarily slowing the aging process. Plenty of clinics and spas in town can help you achieve a better you, and many who use their services will tell you, it’s well worth the investment.

“I wasn’t aging well and it just bugged me,” says Bridget. (This Memphian spoke about her procedures and face lift on the condition of anonymity.) “It wasn’t that I used to be a beauty. It was that I looked so droopy. People would ask why I was sad or if I was tired.” And those kinds of comments were wearing her down, she says. “I would see my reflection in the mirror as I passed by a store window and it bothered me.” So she decided to do something about it.

What are the best strategies for skin care as you age? Here’s what the experts tell us you can do from your 30s onward to put your best face forward.

Best bets in your 30s and 40s

At this time in life, we’re usually our most active. Between demanding careers and a busy home life, we’re on the go 24/7. Relaxing at the beach or enjoying outdoor activities like biking or running can be rejuvenating — and a good way to de-stress — but it’s also easy to overexpose your skin to the sun. Too much focus on tanning can cause long-term damage and promote wrinkles that will surface later in life. Make a habit of using sunscreen every day to protect your face and skin.

Botox, of course, may be the biggest bang for your buck. The injection of this botulism toxin helps to paralyze tiny facial muscles, easing those pesky frown lines between the brow that start to appear. Medical aesthetician Denise LaForce with Dermatology Realm began using Botox injections when it was first introduced to the market 30 years ago. “Botox really does keep wrinkles at bay,” she says. And she’s been using it for her patients ever since. The treatment lasts three to six months.

Research indicates that microneedling can also be an effective way of treating wrinkles as well as scars left by acne or an injury. Microneedling involves the use of tiny needles that prick the skin to promote collagen production. The American Academy of Dermatologists has stated that the use of microneedling reduces the “appearance of large pores, fine lines and wrinkles, scars and stretch marks.”

LaForce says the 40s can also be a good time to begin the use of Retin-A to lessen wrinkles, although she recommends not making it a daily practice. “You can see improvement with medical-grade skin care,” versus over-the-counter products, she says. This form of Vitamin A (typically used to treat acne) promotes the growth of skin cells. But it will also dry the skin, which is why moderation is best.

Best bets in your 50s

The joys of living are beginning to surface on our face at this time in life, with tiny crow’s feet around the eyes and marionette lines between the cheeks and mouth becoming more apparent. Of course, it’s best to consider these signs of a life well-lived, but there are ways to gently turn back the clock.

Consider having an annual chemical peel, says nurse practitioner Carol Langsdon with the Langsdon Clinic. This procedure rejuvenates by removing the top layer of dead skin and generating collagen production. The skin will appear red and ruddy for a few days before results bloom. “It depends on how bad wrinkles are as to how much improvement you’ll see,” says Langsdon. “But you will see the skin looking brighter and more glowing.”

Dermatologists also use laser skin resurfacing to reduce skin irregularities. This is a less aggressive way to help tighten sagging skin around cheeks and jowls. This procedure helps to stimulate new, healthy skin growth. Langsdon notes that laser treatments you receive in a clinical setting will generally be more aggressive than those offered at day spas. Broadband light is another procedure that targets redness and wrinkles and shrinks pores, says LaForce. Both procedures help to give the skin a plumper appearance while lessening dark spots.

Fillers are injections containing hyaluronic acid into lines on the face, typically the creases that appear as commas on either side of the mouth, to help plump and fill them. They are also used to treat hollowness under the eyes. Hyaluronic acid is another natural essence you lose as you age — it helps to keep tissue moist — and injecting it into wrinkles effectively fills them, says LaForce. The net result? Skin that feels more supple.

Best bets in your 60s and beyond

By the time you’ve reached your 60s, hormones are waning. Age spots, a dark pigmentation of the skin, mysteriously begin to appear on places like the tops of your hands and cheekbones. And those frown lines on your brow can give you a look of permanent concern. What to do?

The good news is that age spots, while not terribly attractive, are neither painful nor dangerous. They are usually caused by the sun. A dermatologist can use creams to lighten these but laser treatments, which pulse an intense light laser onto the melanin to effectively break it up, is also effective, says LaForce.

She also recommends Ulthera, an ultrasound treatment that goes deeper than lasers to tighten muscles in the face. “It’s one of the most aggressive forms of treatment for clients who don’t want a facelift,” LaForce says. As it can be customized, she can target areas in the cheeks or jowls. “It can be painful because it goes deep but it’s tolerable,” she says. The treatment is also an effective procedure to use earlier, during the early 50s, depending on what patients want to achieve.

At this stage of life, maintenance is key. Be sure to use moisturizer and sunblock to keep skin soft and drink plenty of water to keep it supple.

Don’t start procedures too soon

In this age of social media and smartphones, posting selfies that have been altered to enhance one’s appearance is a common practice. But that routine tweaking can lead to what doctors call “Snapchat dysmorphia.” People who use filters to improve pictures of themselves before posting to Snapchat or Instagram may begin to obsess over minor or nonexistent flaws in their looks. Fixing perceived imperfections so patients will appear more like the filtered version of themselves can mean needless trips to aestheticians or plastic surgeons and is not a healthy practice.

“It’s an epidemic problem right now,” says Langsdon, who has seen an uptick of women (as well as some men) in their 20s coming in with requests for procedures they simply don’t need. “We try to help them be realistic and understand the difference between the reality versus a distorted image.”

If you’re considering cosmetic surgery

Surgical procedures, such as a facelift, brow-lift, or eyelid-lift, can help tighten sagging skin, ultimately providing a more youthful appearance that lasts for years. The work is often done endoscopically, with smaller incisions strategically placed in hard-to-spot sites such as behind the ears. Start by asking for a consultation with a reputable clinic and meet with several medical professionals to talk about what you envision and to learn what is involved. Some consults are free; others charge a fee.

“There are ways we can get improvements with a facelift and the recovery can take less time, with less bruising and the down time is less,” says Dr. Phillip R. Langsdon, who operates the only clinic in this area that specializes in plastic surgery of the face.

Langsdon strives to achieve a natural appearance for his patients. He also assesses his client’s objectives carefully to make sure what is recommended aligns with the client’s needs and desires. “We do a psychological evaluation to ensure they have realistic expectations,” says Langsdon.

Come prepared with questions about what to expect, both during the surgery and in post-op care. Ask to meet with one or two clients who have had the same procedure you want to have done so you can ask them questions directly and see the results in person. “When I met with another woman who’d had her face lifted, she brought along pre- and post-op pictures for me to look at during our meeting,” says Bridget.

As for her own surgery, one thing Bridget didn’t anticipate was the recovery time. She found it took her body about nine months to bounce back from the four-hour procedure. She was 68 at the time. But looking back on the experience several years later, she remains satisfied. “I look better,” she says. “I am still pleased with the results.”

Prevention is the key to healthy skin

You can start taking better care of your skin today with these steps. Remember, it’s never too late to create a routine that includes proper skin care.

◗ Use sunscreen daily. Before leaving the house, apply a product with a SPF (sun protection factor) of 30 or 35 to guard against both UVA (aging) and UVB (burning) rays. Together, these rays can lead to sunburns and wrinkles later in life. Limit your time outdoors from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. when the sun’s rays are strongest. And wear a hat or visor to further protect your face. “I can’t stress enough the importance of sunscreen and avoiding sun exposure,” says nurse practitioner Carol Langsdon.

◗ Moisturize at night. Wash your face with soap and water, then use a good moisturizer. Even inexpensive products available at the drugstore can improve the health of your skin, such as Oil of Olay or Neutrogena.

◗ Drink plenty of water every day. This will help your skin stay fully hydrated. Don’t like the taste (or lack of it)? Try a spritz of lime juice in warm water and drink it like tea. Not only will this flavor the water, but citric acid is good for the body’s digestive system as it helps to activate and flush your gastrointestinal tract.

◗ Make exercise a priority. Our bodies are made to move. Elevating your heart rate every day by walking, running, or doing other forms of exercise gets your heart pumping and circulates the blood, which can give the skin a healthier glow. “Exercise also stimulates anti-aging growth hormones,” says Denise LaForce, a medical aesthetician with Dermatology Realm.

◗ Eat fresh, unprocessed food. What you put in your body is reflected in your skin. Too much sugar can aggravate skin conditions like acne and eczema.

◗ Get quality sleep every night. Getting less than seven to nine hours of sleep can rob your skin of its health. Sleep is the time your skin repairs itself by producing collagen. Inflammation quiets, too, which can help conditions like acne and eczema. Researchers at University Hospitals Case Medical Center in Cleveland found that women from 30 to 49 who slept fitfully had poorer skin health, resulting in more fine lines, uneven skin tones, and reduced skin elasticity than those who slept for seven hours a night.

◗ Avoid smoking and drink in moderation.. These lifestyle choices can age your skin more than anything else.

◗ Live your best life. Finally, try to keep life’s stressors to a minimum and practice acts of gratitude and kindness. Having a positive outlook on life can do wonders for your overall well-being.