Your skin changes as you age. This means that your skin’s needs change, too! Read on to find out how to help keep it healthy at any age—as well as how to prevent it from aging too fast!
Eat Omega 3-enriched foods, which can help prevent the release of enzymes that break down collagen in the skin …
20’s
Calling this the “most important decade” for your skin would be an understatement—how you take care of your skin in your 20’s will determine how it will look the rest of your life! Your skin during your 20’s is still churning out enough collagen to help you look healthy and supple. Your biggest fret is adult acne, which can be caused by pollution, hormones, and your bad diet choices (potato chips for lunch, anyone?)
RX: Your 20’s is all about prevention, not treatment. Taking care of your skin now will result in less skin problems in the future. Wash your face twice a day with a facial wash formulated for your skin type—if you have dry skin, use a cream wash. If you have oily skin, consider using an acne-controlling cleanser. And slather on the sunscreen to block off harmful UVA and UVB rays! Invest in make-up and moisturizers infused with SPF. If you’re going to the beach, or staying outdoors for a long period of time, wear sunscreen with an SPF of 30 and above. Make sure to remove all traces of make-up at night! You can use a night cream if you want, but it’s not a necessity at this age: using a toner after you wash your face, followed by a light moisturizer, should suffice.
30’s
This is the time when you’ll notice fine lines and wrinkles on your face, mostly around the eyes and mouth. You may start to have slight discoloration on your skin, and find areas where the color is uneven. Collagen production and skin cell turnover are starting to slow down, giving you thinner, finer skin.
RX: Women in their 30s must still be diligent about using sunscreen and SPF-infused products to protect their skin from UVA and UVB rays—both which contain free radicals that attack healthy skin cells. Use a moisturizer that’s packed with antioxidants like green tea and Vitamin C, which help protect your skin from free radicals. Eat Omega 3-enriched foods like salmon, which can help prevent the release of enzymes that break down collagen in the skin. Got dull skin? Exfoliate with a retinoid at night, and use a cleanser with alpha hydroxyl acids (AHA).
40s
Whoever said “40 is the new 30” must have been very diligent when it came to slathering on the sunscreen in their 20’s and 30’s. This is the decade when you’ll most definitely notice the effects of all that sun worshipping you did in your youth, as blotchiness and red spots appear on your skin. You’ll also notice an obvious decrease in collagen production, as your skin loses its elasticity and begins to sag. Retaining moisture in the skin also becomes a problem, which results in losing that “glow” you once had. Chin up! You’re far from looking like a zombie on The Walking Dead!
RX: With so many things to take care of during the day (family, career, and Netflix marathons), it’s easy to make sleep your last priority. But sleep is when your skin repairs itself, so make sure to clock in at least seven to eight hours a night. Ease up on the coffee and vodka, as caffeine and alcohol are diuretics that rob your body of moisture. Use day creams that contain SPF 15 to 30, and use a moisturizer with peptides and coenzyme Q10, which pump up skin’s resiliency. If you suffer from any hyperpigmentation, talk to your doctor about using products with AHA—they might be too strong for your already thinning skin, so it’s important to get the right dosage.
50’s
Welcome to the golden years! This decade greets you with dry, sensitive skin, thanks to the deceleration of sebaceous glands. Fine lines don’t disappear even after you’ve squinted or laughed, spider veins become more noticeable, and your pores become much, much more visible. It doesn’t help that you’re going through menopause, which means a fluctuation in hormones that can cause extreme dryness, acne, and rosacea.
RX: The objective now is to retain as much moisture in the skin. Pick cleansers with ceramides, which are natural lipids that “glue” surface skin cells together—helping lock in moisture. Stop using soap on your face, which can strip moisture and oil from the skin. Instead, use creamy, foamy cleaners that are gentle on the skin. Don’t forget to give a little extra TLC to the skin around the eyes: this area tends to look more hollow, thanks to collagen depletion and fat loss. Use a gentle eye cream to help keep the areas around your eyes from getting too dry. You should also opt for serums with Vitamin C, as the skin compared to creams and lotions easily absorbs serums. And of course, keep using a moisturizer with SPF!
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