Wrinkles. Ageing and delicate skin. Anti-ageing.
It is easy to fall into the trap of believing that the goal of mature skin care is to make you look younger. Exaggerated promises, such as “look 10 years younger overnight” or “quickly reduce all signs of ageing”, sound too good to be true. Looking healthy and the best you can for your age is a much more sensible and achievable goal.
A similar regime applies for both youthful and mature skin: cleanse, tone, exfoliate, nourish etc. However, alter your beauty regime to accommodate the changes in your skin according to your age, for example, pay closer attention to areas of wrinkles and delicate skin. Choose products with ingredients that have a high content of vitamins A and E, antioxidants, omega fatty acids, collagen-boosting properties, and peptides, as these have all been proven to help reduce wrinkles and other signs of ageing.
Base both your diet and skin-cream regime on antioxidant-rich plant extracts and anti-inflammatory omega-rich plant oils, and choose skin-care products that have proven benefits. For example, frankincense essential oil, rosehip seed oil, avocado oil, white or green tea. Helpful anti-ageing supplements are vitamin C, E and D, CoQ-10, selenium, and zinc. In addition, protect your skin from excessive expose to the sun. Free radicals caused by sun damage can damage the skin and cause it to age prematurely.
Your skin is the first organ in the body to show the signs of ageing. Ageing skin is prone to dryness around the forehead, eyes, cheeks, and neck. Age spots, also known as liver spots, are common on the cheeks and forehead. Age spots are tan or dark brown patches that are signs of mature skin’s greater susceptibility to UV radiation.
As a general rule, the more sensibly you care for your skin and your overall health throughout your life, the better you can withstand the ageing process. As we age, our skin undergoes changes – the collage fibers that are the underlying support structure of the skin become twisted and matted, causing wrinkles and lines. Puffiness and bags are also common around the jawline, neck, eyes, and forehead. There are some measures you can take to help slow down this inevitable process, the earlier you start, the better your skin will appear later in life:
- Do not smoke as it increases free-radical damage that cause premature skin ageing.
- Do not drink too much alcohol because it can dry the skin and hasten the appearance of spider veins.
- Do not use harsh cleanser to remove make-up or clean your skin.
- Use natural skin care products free from parabens and other harmful chemicals.
Fight free radicals. They are unstable molecules that attach to skin cells and are the main cause of premature skin ageing. The body produces them but pollution and synthetic chemicals increase expose. Antioxidants help to neutralize free radicals. Check my post on free radicals and antioxidants.
Every day cleanse and tone your skin, apply serum, moisturiser and night cream.
Cleanse. Choose a light, gentle cleanser to remove make-up and grime. A good cleanser will leave the skin clean and soft.
Tone. Refresh skin, refine pores, and remove residue with a toner that prepares the face fore nourishing treatment. A slightly astringent toner has a non-drying, anti-wrinkle effect.
Apply serum. Serums provide collagen-boosting peptides and antioxidant botanicals. They penetrate more deeply than moisturiser. Apply before your moisturiser or make-up. A serum should absorb quickly, without tingling.
Moisturiser. Choose antioxidant and collagen-boosting cream with anti-ageing-botanicals to protect and rejuvenate your skin. Use a light but nourishing cream, leaving your skin feeling soft, not oily or tacky.
Use night cream. Choose ingredients that nourish the skin and work overnight to boost collagen and reduce wrinkles, antioxidants help repair the skin from sun damage and ageing, and peptides will boost collagen. A suitable night cream should be nourishing and moisturising but should not feel too heavy.
Every week apply a mask. Nourish and cleanse the skin with a mask that removes grime. An anti-ageing mask should be rich in nutrients and supply antioxidants to the skin. A suitable mask leaves your skin feeling smooth, nourished, and clear.
Check out my posts for DIY all-natural recipes for mature skin, such as frankincense toner, argan moisturiser, wild rose moisturiser and frankincense day cream.
