Your Skin Tells The Story Of Your Life
Instead of words and punctuation, the story is written with every line and circle, that both express and reveal the days in the sun; the smiles. Your skin shows your concerns and worries. It’s a storyboard of the meals with friends, and a myriad of other micro-moments that turn into memories that you celebrate while others are allowed to slip away and be forgotten.
Having beautiful, radiant skin at all ages, is in large part, a function of how successful you are at allowing time to be light on your face. The skin conditions we experience in each area of our face, and at each age, can be prevented and maintained with a strategy that includes specialized skincare that works specifically and dynamically on counteracting the effects of life.
Our Most Vulnerable Organ
The largest and most vulnerable system of our body that protects us from harsh elements, unfriendly bacteria, viral invaders, and infections.
Our integumentary system is directly responsible for temperature regulation, elimination of waste and reception of sensory messages; in other words, we are directly exposed to our environment via our skin and it is exquisitely designed for experiencing the world.
In the quest for healthy, beautiful skin, it’s vital to identify the areas of your body that require specialized attention and the stages of our lives that tend to reveal the damage first.
Skin Care
Up until recently, when making a skincare purchase, options were limited to general facial creams and liquids, leaving a lot to be desired in terms of performance and results. In today’s market, we have innovations in ingredient technology and formulation, creating specialized products to address each area of our face and body, and every condition wherein.
Using a specialized skincare product to target specific conditions and concerns, takes your skincare game to the next level, and increases the performance and quality of results.
Knowing which ages to concentrate on prevention and maintenance, and which ingredients to star in your show, will make you an expert director of your lifetime movie.
As We Age
The intrinsic and extrinsic causes of damage and wear begin to show as uneven and dark spots on our skin, crepiness and laxity. Collagen begins to weaken and sun damage begins to become visible. Glycation from nutritional deficits begins, and the telomeres of our DNA begin to fray and weaken causing cell replication to slow down, mutate and eventually die. This expresses as skin that eventually shows its “age”.
Prevention: Age Well
It’s imperative to have a strategy for maintenance and prevention for each area of your face. The three pillars of a prevention strategy include: investing in specialized products; monthly professional treatments; and a weekly self care session that includes massage and mindfulness. This is an investment that will pay dividends for the rest of your life.
Eyes: Twenties And Up
The eye area is, in every way, the focus of our faces, and commonly the first area we see changes in our skin. Our eyes are often the first area of our faces to warrant purchasing a speciality skincare product, and eye cream is the undisputed star in most people’s skincare #shelfie. Look for gels for puffiness and dark circles, and heavier cream formulas for wrinkle repair.
????Puffiness: Green tea/Cucumber
????Fine Lines and Wrinkles: Niacinamide/Peptides
????Dark Circles: Caffeine/Kojic Acid
Hands: Thirties And Up
This is hands down ( ;)) the most vulnerable area to show signs of aging, and to tell our chronological age. Exposure while driving and during everyday life, leaves our hands bearing the majority of our sun damage, loss of elasticity and loss of volume. Hands are our tools, and as such, they need special attention and care. The best products for hands are creams and balms containing dna repairing amino acids and AHAs. Daily sunscreen is of course, a must.
????????Glycation: Anti-oxidants/Hyaluronic acid
????????Hyperpigmentation: Azelaic acid/Vitamin C
????????Crepiness: Lactic Acid/Retinol/Peptides
Neck and Decollete: Thirties And UP
A survey of professional Estheticians revealed this area as being a top concern amongst women aged 35 and above. Increased exposure to the elements and lack of consistent product application can create accelerated aging in this area. Consider the neck and decollete area to be the same delicate skin as around around our eyes, and treat accordingly.
Look for mid-weight products that contain growth factors and maximum antioxidants to neutralize environmental damage, and strengthen elasticity.
????????♀️Glycation: Marine amino acids/carnosine
????????♀️Hyper/Hypopigmentation: Kojic Acid/Bilberry
????????♀️Deep Creases: Silicone Patch/ Retinol/Growth Factors
Lips: All Ages
Our lip area counts as one of the most important in the quest for agelessness. Lips don’t make pigment, have sebaceous (oil) glands, or have hair follicles! This leaves our lips vulnerable to dryness, dehydration and fine lines.
Sugar scrubs can gently dissolve dead and dry skin cells and are great for gentle exfoliation, while balms create a protective barrier to nourish and protect from loss of hydration.
????Chapped: Squalene/Shea butter
????Dry: Beeswax/Vitamin E
????Vertical Lines: Hyaluronic acid/Sodium PCA
Aging well is an art form that can be easily perfected when you find products that will help you address the issues that begin to appear as you navigate your 20’s, 30’s, 40’s, 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. Finding a love of your reflection in the mirror is the true fountain of youth, but a little eye cream never hurt anyone.
Amy Wall
Amy Wall is an award winning esthetician, inner beauty expert, and brand consultant. Her signature line of skin care products are formulated with clean, natural bases and concentrated, performance ingredients for skin that radiates and glows. Read More…