Weve all heard about anti-aging tips: stay out of the sun, dont smoke, keep fit. And thats good advice. But here are some other smart strategies you might not have heard about:
Dont try to be super-thin. Being skinny when youre over 50 can cause you to look tired and gaunt, and that wont look appealing even if youre a size 2. Loss of facial fat causes sagging, Mary Lupo, M.D., chief professor of dermatology at Tulane University, told Lifescript.com. In addition, yo-yo dieting, Lupo says, makes your skin sag. Solution: maintain a normal weight.
Stop focusing on wrinkles. Uneven coloring and dark spots can give you an aged appearance. Jeannine Downie told Lifescript that discoloration can add ten years to a womans appearance. Although there are some over-the-counter products to fight discoloration, your best bet is probably getting professional treatmentfrom a physician, not a spa. The same goes for discolored skin on your neck and hands.
Avoid anti-aging ingredients in a facial cleanser. Dee Ann Glaser, professor of dermatology at St. Louis University, told Lifescript that those ingredients usually arent in a high enough concentrations or in contact with your skin long enough to provide significant results. Some experts recommend using only water on your face, but if thats too extreme, opt for a gentle soap-free cleanser.
Dont expect makeup to shield you from the sun. Glaser says that most makeup with an SPF label protects against UVB rays, but not UVA raysand those are the ones that cause wrinkles. Plus, youd need to slather on a lot of makeup for it to be effective as a sunscreen. Instead, apply sunscreen under your makeup.
Remember your sunglasses. You need them all year round (the sun in winter is especially harsh) to minimize squinting, which leads to wrinkles.
