When you notice a new wrinkle, a dark spot, gray hair, or saggy skin, do you wish you could reverse it?
Aging gracefully is something most of us worry about when we notice new imperfections on our skin that weren’t there before.
Sadly, there’s no magic trick that will guarantee you youthful and firm skin as you age.
Despite the countless anti-aging creams, oils, and treatments on the market, you won’t ever find the answer in a single or even a bunch of those products.
However, there’s no need to panic!
The secret to aging gracefully lies in many little changes and habits that have a big impact on your skin.
Aging is inevitable, but there’s a lot you can do to keep a beautiful skin no matter your age.
Instead of wasting money on dozens of creams that promise but don’t deliver, adjust your skincare routine and habits and you’ll be able to enjoy glowing and beautiful skin at any stage of your life.
Don’t listen to marketing claims, listen to what experts have to say.
Today I’ll share with you 11 proven anti-aging tips that will guarantee you a healthier, clearer and young-looking skin.
Use Safe Cosmetics On Your Face
Let’s start with the prevention of aging signs.
The first thing you should do to preserve your skin is to make sure that everything you put on your face and body is safe.
Most women use dozens of skincare and beauty products on their skin every day, including foundation, concealer, bronzer, primer, mascara, lipstick, blush, highlight, eyeliner, eye shadow, moisturizers, toners, face creams, perfumes, body mist, cleansers, masks, and scrubs.
Even the shampoo and conditioner you use on your hair comes in contact with your skin.
It’s easy to see we put a lot of products on our skin, which is why we should be extra careful with the ingredients they contain.
Most commercial makeup and skincare products contain a significant amount of chemicals that serve as preservatives, colorants, stabilizers, and fragrances.
Some of these chemicals can damage your skin because they contain irritants, it triggers allergies, creates free radical damage, clogs your pores, and over dry your skin.
According to Safe Cosmetics, you should avoid any products that contain the following ingredients:
- Nitrosamines
- Polyacrylamide
- Polytetrafluoroethylene
- P-Phenylenediamine
- Resorcinol
- Retinol
- Fragrance
- Hydroquinone
- Octinoxate
- Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA)
- Hydroxytoluene (BHT)
- Methylisothiazolinone (MIT)
That’s a long list! And there are still a lot more chemicals to avoid.
To stay safe, read labels and choose brands and products that are made with natural and safe ingredients you recognize. In addition, you should also consider red light therapy > red light therapy pros
Protect Your Skin From U.V. Damage
One of the biggest threats for your skin is U.V. damage.
Excessive sun exposure triggers the formation of free radicals in your skin, which are molecules that damage healthy skin cells in your body and lead to early signs of aging.
This free radical damage also increases the risk of skin cancer and skin complications.
For example, when you burn your skin for being out in the sun for too long, that means U.V. rays already created damage in your skin cells, and you don’t want that!
If you expose your unprotected skin to the sun frequently, you put your skin at risk of more pronounced wrinkles, red patches, and uneven skin tone and texture.
This how you can protect your skin from U.V. damage (also called photoaging):
- Wear sunscreen when you’re going out: Sunscreen is a must even when you’re not at the beach. Wear it every time you’re going out to avoid putting your skin at risk. Remember to reapply every two hours on average.
- Use sunglasses whenever possible: The skin around your eyes is also important. Wearing sunglasses diminishes the damage to both the delicate skin surrounding the eyes and the eyes themselves.
- Wear hats and caps: If you’re at the beach, wear a sun hat to protect your face from direct sunlight. In the city, start wearing caps more often!
- Don’t stand in direct sunlight for long periods of time: Soaking up some sunlight feels good, but don’t stay longer than 10 minutes in direct sunlight, U.V. radiation starts to burn your skin after that time. However, if you’re wearing sunscreen, it will protect you for a longer period.
Make Sleep A Priority
Beauty sleep is not a myth.
Sleeping well every night might be more effective at fighting aging than any expensive treatment.
During sleeping, your body goes through a process of cell regeneration and repair that gets rid of dead cells, triggers the growth of new cells, and helps your skin produce more collagen, which keeps it tight and firm.
Sleeping well also helps to reverse some of the damage your skin might have received during the day.
Poor sleep has the opposite effect. It makes your skin look dull, saggy, and lifeless.
A study published in Clinical and Experimental Dermatology showed that good sleepers had fewer signs of aging and an improved skin function while poor sleepers had more noticeable signs of aging.
According to the study:
“Chronic poor sleep quality is associated with increased signs of intrinsic aging, diminished skin barrier function and lower satisfaction with appearance.
Good sleepers had significantly lower intrinsic skin aging scores. Good sleepers also reported a significantly better perception of their appearance and physical attractiveness compared with poor sleepers.”
Reduce Stress
Stress and anxiety have a significant impact on your skin’s health.
Stress can trigger and worsen skin conditions, damage cells, and speed up cellular aging.
A study found that chronic stress can alter the permeability of the skin, increase water loss through the skin, decrease water retention on the skin, and impair the protective barrier of your skin.
This means that stress can make your skin more vulnerable to external damage and decrease its ability to remain hydrated and plump.
Stress and anxiety can also delay wound healing. According to the study: “The negative impact of stress on wound healing was first observed clinically in human when caregivers of demented relatives need 20% more time for complete dermal wound healing. Anxiety and depression are also associated with delayed healing in chronic wounds. It was found that perceived stress and elevated cortisol level are among the contributing factors.”
To handle your stress, I recommend:
- Meditation. This 10 minutes guided meditation will instantly soothe you.
- Exercise. Exercising helps your body release hormones that regulate your mood and make you feel better.
- Doing more of what you love. Whether it’s listening to music, writing, drawing, or dancing, make time to enjoy the things you love.
- Yoga. Yoga is calming for your body and mind.
Moisturize With Natural Oils
Instead of buying store-bought moisturizers, use natural oils.
Carrier and Essential Oils have many anti-aging, healing and rejuvenating properties that will help to balance your skin, hydrate it, and keep it healthy.
Oils are rich in fatty acids that help to diminish wrinkles, fine lines, age spots, and skin conditions.
Any skin type can use oils as a moisturizer (yes, even oily skin!).
These are some of the best carrier oils for each skin type:
Dry skin: Coconut oil, avocado oil, flaxseed oil, olive oil.
Combination skin: Jojoba oil, sunflower oil, sweet almond oil, carrot seed oil.
Oily skin: Grapeseed oil, aloe vera oil, pumpkin seed oil, safflower oil.
There are also essential oils – oils you need to dilute in carrier oils because they’re extremely concentrated – with powerful anti-aging properties, like:
- Rosehip oil
- Argan oil
- Geranium oil
- Tea tree oil
Drink Plenty Of Water
Hydration is important to optimize every function and system in your body, including aging!
Your skin looks supple and plump only when your skin cells have plenty of water.
When you’re young, your skin can absorb and store water easily, but as you age, your skin begins to lose its ability to retain moisture, leading to the dry and dull-looking skin.
Drinking plenty of water every day helps to counter balance the loss of moisture retention as you age.
The more hydrated you are, the younger your skin will feel and look. It’s the easiest and cheapest skincare trick!
The recommended amount of water you should drink is 2 to 2.5 liters per day, including fluids from foods.
Eat Collagen Producing Foods
One of the factors involved in aging is the natural loss of collagen.
This study suggests that the natural deficiency in estrogens and androgens that we experience as we grow old is responsible for collagen degradation, dryness, loss of elasticity, epidermal atrophy and wrinkling of the skin.
Collagen is a component of your skin that helps to keep it tight, glowing and soft.
Baby skin is so beautiful because it’s full of collagen! As we age, those collagen levels go down because of hormonal changes.
We can’t alter the rate at which our hormones naturally decrease, but we can eat foods that help to keep collagen levels up as we age.
Some of the best foods that help to produce collagen are:
- Dark leafy greens – spinach, kale, mustard greens, cabbage.
- Vitamin C rich foods – Papaya, guava, kiwi, orange, grapefruit.
- Omega 3 rich foods – Eggs,Flaxseed, walnuts, coconut oil, tuna, salmon, nuts.
- Fermented soy products – Tofu, tempeh, miso.
Eat Zinc-Rich Foods
Zinc is a micronutrient vital for your skin health.
Studies show that lack of enough zinc in your diet will cause skin imbalances that can trigger different skin conditions like dermatitis, acne, and rosacea.
Skin imbalances make your skin vulnerable to oxidative damage, dehydration, and scars, all which can make your skin look older than it really is.
To optimize the function of your skin cells, make sure to add enough zinc to your diet.
The richest sources of dietary zinc include sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, lentils, garbanzo beans, cashews, turkey, quinoa and shrimp.
Exercise
If you want to slow down the effects of natural aging, move your body.
Exercise is not only good for your internal organs; it will help you keep a youthful skin as well.
Exercise improves circulation, which helps your skin cells do their job much better. This lets you enjoy beautiful and vibrant skin.
The circulatory benefits of exercise also help to remove waste from the cells much faster, which prevents damage.
If that was not enough, exercise also helps to relieve stress (like I told you before), so it will diminish skin reactions that are triggered by stress or anxiety.
Stop Eating Processed Food
Processed food is filled with ingredients that wreak havoc on your body.
Not only is processed food not giving your body the nutrients it needs to fight free radicals and keep a healthy body, but it also contributes to obesity, weight gain, high blood pressure, cardiovascular problems, and skin imbalances.
This accelerates aging and damage in several organs in your body.
You should eat the exact opposite: Whole foods packed with all the vitamins and minerals your body needs to age gracefully and beautifully. Check out more info on look 10 years younger diet here
Have A Morning And Night Skin Routine
A morning and night routine are necessary to give your skin the attention it needs.
Morning Routine:
We usually don’t have much time in the mornings, but it’s important to make time to prepare your skin for the day. Make sure your morning skin routine includes at least these steps:
- Dry brush your skin before showering.
- Shower with lukewarm water, preferably with alternating splashes of cold and lukewarm water.
- Clean your face with a gentle cleanser. Try cleansing your face with Manuka honey.
- Moisturize right after you come out of the shower. Try using coconut oil!
- Put sunscreen on your face, neck and cleavage.
- Put on safe makeup products (if you have to wear make-up).
Night Routine:
At night, you need to give your skin a chance to recover from the day. Follow these steps:
- Remove all your makeup (never sleep with makeup on!)
- Wash your face with a gentle cleanser.
- Moisturize again if necessary.
Aging is a natural process, but it doesn’t mean you cannot go through it gracefully! Try all these tips to improve your skin and maintain that youthful glow for a long time.
Tell us which is your favorite tip in the comments below!
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