Who is that old looking woman in the mirror?
Have you ever asked yourself this? I have. I feel younger than the woman looking back at me in my mirror. I'll bet you do too. Let's examine what we do to age our skin without meaning to.
1. Forgetting to cleanse skin every night
While it's tempting to fall into bed after a busy day—or a late night on the town—without cleansing our skin, skipping cleansing at night can lead to breakouts and an invasion of your pores. I'm always surprised to hear how many women don't cleanse their skin every night. Tip: cleanse your skin immediately after dinner, before getting too tired or forgetting.
2. Pollution - what you don't know can hurt you
We can't control pollution, and while we know many types of pollution are harmful when inhaled, recently we've learned more about how pollution interacts with our skin. A handful of newer studieshave shown that pollution is linked to skin allergies, aging, and slower recovery from damage.
"Air pollutants damage the skin by inducing oxidative stress. Although human skin acts as a biological shield against pro‑oxidative chemicals and physical air pollutants, prolonged or repetitive exposure to high levels of these pollutants may have profound negative effects on the skin. Exposure to ultraviolet radiation has been associated with extrinsic skin aging and skin cancers." reported in Effects of air pollution on the skin: A review, ReseachGate.com.
What can we do?
If you live in the city, you may be asking, what can I do to protect my skin from pollution?
a) Cleanse your skin regularly as mentioned earlier. Every night, at the very least, with a good cleanser and exfoliating polish (2-3 times per week) to remove excess oil or sebum, dirt and pollution.
b) Be sure your skin care products are rich in antioxidants, those wonderful free-radical fighters! Look for products high in ingredients like Niacinamide, Hyaluronic Acid, and Vitamin C.
Why? These ingredients have protective anti-inflammatory and cytoprotective (cell-protecting) properties which help slow collagen breakdown. They assist with cell turnover and trigger natural production of collagen, elastin and other "youth-proteins."
3. Ditching products too quickly before giving them a chance to work
If you’re frustrated that your new anti-aging moisturizer isn’t doing its job, stick with it longer before switching. Bouncing from product to product may leave you with the impression that nothing works for your skin. Give a new product at least 6-8 weeks to produce a change in your complexion. One skin cycle takes approximately 30 days (for new cells to reach top layer of skin), so in order to see a real difference in texture, tone, and clarity, you need to use them for more than a month. For anti-aging products, it may take longer. Your skin takes four months to regenerate collagen and elastin. Give those products a chance!
4. Eating too many inflammatory foods
Vegetable oils, margarine, red meat, white bread, or sugary, processed foods, can age your skin faster than it should age. These foods can cause inflammation in your body, which may accelerate wrinkle formation.
To prevent premature aging, stock up on foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids and alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) such as flaxseeds, flaxseed oil, avocados, trout, or salmon, and nuts. These foods will help your skin maintain its soft and supple look.
Be sure to load up on fruits and veggies, too. Fresh produce is aundant in zinc, selenium, vitamin C, and beta-carotene, all of which are key players in the body's production of collagen (which keeps skin firm), as well as protecting against free radicals. Red bell peppers, carrots, broccoli are great options, all loaded with Vitamin C.
Make sure you're getting enough protein too. Studies show that an insufficient amount of protein can cause wrinkles and cracks in your skin. Aim to get at least one protein-containing food (for example, eggs, poultry, beans) at each meal.
