Blame genetics if you want, but doctors say it’s also how you’ve treated your skin. We enlisted Michal Roizen, M. D., internist, and author of the Real Age books, to quantify the effect your habits have had. The quiz is designed with a 28-year-old in mind. Damage is cumulative, so if you’re older or Younger than 28, the numbers on the right would be slightly higher or lower.
Take your age and add the number of years listed on the right for every ‘’yes’’ answer.
Have you had more than 1o bad sunburns in your life? + 2,5 years
Do you have red, itchy eyes from allergies? + 2,5 years
Are you a regular smoker? + 2 years
Do you live in a highly polluted city? + 2,5 years
Now subtract the number of years on the right for every ‘’yes’’ answer.
Do you cleanse your skin every day? -1,5 years
Do you get seven to nine hours of sleep each night? -1,5 years
Do you wear sunscreen regularly? -1 years
Do you have a dark brown skin tone? -1 year
Do you regularly wear moisturizer? -1 year
FIVE Sneaky things that make you look older
Nope not wrinkles. That would be obvious. Lots of other skin woes can age even a Yonge woman before her time. Here’s how to fight back!
A Dull Complexion
Sure, sure by now you probably know that skipping your daily skincare routine can make you zitty, but can it also make you look older? Unfortunately, yes. ‘’If you, re not cleansing your skin on the regular basis, dead skin cells start to accumulate on the surface’’, says Diane Berson, M.D., assistant professor of dermatology at Weill Medical College at Cornell University. All those unploughed cells block the work of moisturizers and anti-aging creams and make your skin look lackluster, according to Rolanda Johnson, Ph. D. And if that’s not skeevy enough, ‘’research has shown that free radicals in the environment can react with remaining dirt and oil to damage and age skin over time’’, says Johnson.
Solution: Take your skincare as seriously as your pedicure colors. If you don’t have time to wash your face in the morning, do at least a quick sweep of toner. And after a long day,’’ you definitely need to wash your face, whether you wore makeup or not,’’ says Jody Alpert Levine, M.D., a New York City dermatologist. “There is always sebum produced and outside pollutants to wash off” Don’t stop there: Gentle exfoliation a couple of times a week is a must for Yonge, healthy skin. E. Tanzini, M.D., co-director of the Washington Institute of Dermatologic Laser Surgery in Washington, gives these guidelines to de-gunk pores:” For sensitive skin, just rub a wet washcloth over your face in a circular motion for a minute or two; a couple of times a week is enough. Oily skin types can use a glycolic exfoliator on a daily basis, and normal skin can use one up to three times a week.
Major Dryness
Chilly weather is brutal on the skin. The cold air and arid indoor heat break down your skin’s protective barrier, making it blotchy, flaky, older-seeming. ‘’A youthful glow is all about luminosity’’, says Dr. Levine. Dry, rough, scaly skin stops light in tracks.”
Solution: For dewy, I-just-got a-facial skin year-round, get a good moisturizer that’s right for you. “ If you have normal to acne-prone skin, look for light, noncomedogenic lotion,” says Dr. Tanzi. Oily skin types can get away with just swiping on serum. For those with super-dry complexions, Tanzi recommends rich hydration with shea butter, petrolatum, or dimethicone. And don’t forget to hydrate at night, too. Before bed, smear on anti-aging night moisturizer to do double duty.
If you,re already religious about face cream but still suffer from parched skin, your diet could be to blame. Overloading on carbohydrates and sweets can add years to skin’s appearance. “Excess sugar binds to proteins, which results in damage to elastin and collagen,” says Dr. Levine. “That makes your skin dry, brittle, and less springy.” So instead of that third cupcake..munch on skin-protecting antioxidants like those found in green tea, berries, and dark-colored vegetables such as kale, beets, and broccoli.
Dark Spots
The most likely cause of brown spots is our good old friend -the sun. UV rays can trigger an overproduction of melanin in the skin, and the effect on your appearance is every bit as aging as wrinkles. Shockingly a 2009 study done on facial aging in identical twins found that different amounts of sun exposure made the more sun-damaged sibling look as much as 10 years older! “A lot of what we call aging is actually photo-aging from the sun”, says Dr. Berson. But first of all, what does a sunspot look like? Basically, it,s a big freckle that’s symmetrical and all one color, as opposed to skin cancers, which generally have asymmetry, irregular borders, color changes, and a diameter larger than six millimeters, or about a quarter of an inch.
Solution: Sunscreen! And there are ways to deal with the damage you already have, too. “Once you’re in your thirties, everybody has some pigmentation that shows up from sun damage that happened before you were 18. It’s easy to add a toner to your daily routine. Look for lightening agents like kojic acid, salicylic acid, arbutin or hydroquinone, which can even out your skin tone ”says Dr. Levine. Using a dark -spot treatment will do the trick too.
TWO THINGS THAT MAKE EWERY WOMAN LOOK OLDER
All the doctors we spoke with named the sun and smoking as the biggest agers- they cause all sorts of skin issues or worsen the ones you’ve already got. Both cause free radical damage to skin’s structure, making it look leathery, sallow, and dry. And their effects are cumulative over time. “At age 35, you can look 5 to 10 years older from sun damage,” says Dr. Roizen. “But at 50, you could look 80-the process accelerates.” So pick up the SPF, put down the ciggies and give your skin-and person it’s attached to! -the TLC it deserves.
Puffy Eye Bags
You might not experience these till your forties or beyond- but in this world, many women get them earlier, and they can make you look older than you are.
Solution: “Getting at least seven hours of sleep a night would be fantastic. Two or three nights of good sleep can make a huge difference, but even one night is helpful.” The way you snooze also impacts puffiness. If you sleep on your stomach or on your side, fluid can accumulate under the skin around the eyes”, says Dr.Berson.” Try to sleep on your back with your head elevated on an extra pillow to draine any excess.”It’s worth a shot- the more often you do it, the easier it is for gravity to work. Try an eye treatment with a rollerball applicator to help the product sink in deeper. It mimics the action of patting on cream with your finger, but does it faster, says Dr. Tanzi. So what if you’re doing everything right and getting good sleep, and you still look puffy? It’s most likely allergies, our experts agree. After two years your pillow is 80 percent dust mite poop.” Another less gross possible irritant: sensitivity to your eye cream or make up.
Dark Circles
While your skin is doing the whole growing -old-gracefully thing, the under-eye area slowly darkens from a natural loss of fat stores. Eventually, that leads to hollowness a shadowy effect. But in your twenties and thirties, dark circles can be attributed to three things: genetics, allergies, or dieting.
Solution: First, rule out genetics. “Certain ethnicities, like those from India or the Middle East, have increased pigment under the eye”, says Dr. Tanzi. “In these cases, laser procedures can help, but they come with a recovery period of weeks or even months.” “ If genetics isn’t the issue, allergies may again be the culprit. If you have them, resist the urge to rub when your eyes get itchy. “ Skin builds up the pigment in response to rubbing,” says Dr. Levine. Minimize dark circles from allergies in the same way you’d treat under-eye bags- with cold compresses, antihistamines, and allergen-reducing pillow covers.
Dark circles could be due to dramatic weight shifts from dieting. “Fat loss on the face can make you look drawn and older,” says Dr. Berson. Also, rapid weight gain or loss can have a bad impact on your skin overall, leading to a decrease in elasticity that ages you noticeably. Keep weight loss to a sane pace of one to two pounds a week, cut back on late nights, curb your sweet tooth and stick with your daily skincare ritual, no matter how tired you are!