Why You Should Start Using Anti-Aging Cream
You can grow old gracefully and still do what works to get healthy, younger-looking skin that makes you feel gorgeous. There are ways to look your best that don’t involve injections, nips, tucks, or laser light shows. It’s true that there’s a real tendency to go to the extremes these days. However, what most of us find aesthetically pleasing is simply natural, healthy, and supple-as-can-be skin. Sometimes it’s good to go back to basics and think about what you’re putting in and on your body. What are you eating, drinking, and what are you wearing…on your skin?
How do you address the inevitable changes that come with age? A simple way is to start incorporating anti-aging products into your skin care routine. Moisturizers can be the most important of the anti-aging products, so it’s important to know more about them. There are three categories into which moisturizing ingredients fall: humectants, emollients, and occlusives. Let’s look briefly at each once, since we’ll be referring back to this group of terms.
Emollients soften and condition skin when the oil droplets fill in gaps between skin cells. They’re a bit like glue that gives a supple elasticity to the skin. Since these oils and lipids are naturally present in the epidermis but are sometimes depleted, it’s important to reintroduce them via skin care products. In fact, it’s been found especially effective and replenishing when emollients like ceramides, cholesterols, and fatty acids are combined together and applied to the skin. Humectants, like hyaluronic acid and glycolic acid, draw water into the epidermis from the deeper layers of skin as well as from humidity in the environment. Occlusives – like petroleum jelly, lanolin, and mineral oil – form a physical barrier to block transepidermal water loss (TEWL) and lock in the moisture that humectants have helped bring in. When used individually or in combination, they all work to moisturize the skin in their own way.
Since the main function of an anti-aging cream is to moisturize, it will help with hydration and overall smoothness. That means it’s really something for skin of almost every age and type. But if you still need some more convincing, please peruse the following paragraphs with insights into getting skin that looks as young and healthy as you feel on the inside (on a good day!).
See Related: Best Hyaluronic Acid Moisturizer: Vitamin C Restoring ™ Serum
1. Alright stop what you’re doin’
‘Cause I’m about to ruin…that totally lackadaisical attitude you’ve had when it comes to hanging out in the sun. It never hurts to reiterate the guidelines around preparing yourself for going outdoors. Prevention is key when dealing with anti-aging issues, so if you’re still soaking up that sun like you’re seventeen and haven’t heard about science or SPF, then yes, I am about to ruin the image and the style that you’re used to (and that concludes your 90s flashback). It’s time to take responsibility for the effects that excessive sun exposure will inevitably have on your health.
Granted, getting some good old sunshine feels great and is actually essential as far as it being a life-sustaining force that also provides vitamin D, but the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays damage the skin, causing premature aging, and sometimes even skin cancer. It will form fine lines and could even take years off your life. So, sadly, sunshine is not all sunshine and rainbows. But let this information put a wrinkle in your routine.
In addition to seeking out shade and sporting a wide-brimmed hat, it’s as important as ever to apply sunscreen. Repeat after me: sunscreen, sunscreen, sunscreen. You can still receive some of the good stuff (vitamin D) while employing sun protection practices. Find a sunscreen to use that works with your skin type and make sure it has an SPF of at least 15, and use it daily. It’s much easier to prevent future wrinkles than erase the ones we’ve got, so stop yourself from doing further damage, as you start thinking about skin health and anti-aging products moving forward. Fight those fine lines and dry skin starting now by making sun protection a priority.
If you want to shop for sun-protective clothing, view this video that offers some suggestions:
2. Start sooner than later
Whatever age you are is a great age to start. Unless you’re a teen or in your early twenties still wrestling with oily skin and breakouts, then it’s a fine time to start using anti aging skin care. Some options may seem a little greasy, but there are plenty of products out there that go on light and easy and still get the job done. So read on to see what you might need (or want) to use in your daily routine. If you follow the leaders in skincare, you’ll find the best type of product to use that will combat lines and aging skin so you can be looking your best.
Moisturizers, and specifically anti-aging creams, provide many benefits to the skin. These products can start to be incorporated into your everyday routine to try to maintain that elasticity you have naturally. That’s why you’ll hear experts often recommend them. As mentioned above, most of these items contain ingredients that soften the skin, bring in a little extra hydration, and then keep it there with occlusives that stop TEWL (transepidermal water loss, just in case you aren’t taking notes). You want to encourage all of that, because if you weren’t already aware, (spoiler alert) some of these skin qualities start to fade with age.
3. Help your skin help you
By starting with anti-aging products earlier than you might have otherwise, you’ll give your skin a head start. These products provide nourishment and hydration for your face that aids in the ever important skin cell regeneration process. By staying hydrated way before those wrinkles even set in, you’ll be doing yourself a favor and encouraging the process that allows new healthy skin to come on in.
Many anti-aging skin care products contain natural exfoliants like retinol, retinyl palmitate or vitamin A which, when applied to the skin, helps slough off dead cells and make way for newer healthy layers of skin to be exposed. Retinol can be rather harsh on the skin and have harmful effects if there’s sun exposure involved, so see a dermatologist before going that route. And if you’re a sensitive skin type you’ll really want to proceed with caution before using a product with retinol. But certain amounts of vitamin A and retinyl palmitate can lead to a more youthful, lustrous, and dewy complexion. Retinyl palmitate also provides antioxidant protection and works to defeat total skin downers like dryness and flaky skin. And as if it needed one more thing to brag about, there’s evidence to suggest that retinyl palmitate can increase collagen content and epidermal thickening.
One excellent anti-aging option that contains retinyl palmitate is Viviane Woodard’s EyeRenue Complex Anti Aging Eye Cream. The area around our eyes is, of course, one of the places where aging ever so kindly makes its presence known. One reason is because there aren’t oil glands right around your eyes. It’s thinner and more vulnerable to irritation and dryness, so extra care is key. That’s why it’s great to have a product come to the rescue with ingredients like vitamin E, herbal extracts, and the aforementioned retinyl palmitate that packs that one, two, three punch of encouraging exfoliation, antioxidant awesomeness and increasing collagen. If you use it daily you’ll appreciate how all these assets add up after you look in the mirror and see soft skin and fewer fine lines and signs of aging.
See Related: Natural Exfoliator Skinodyssey™ with Glycolic Acid
4. Argireline the anti-wrinkle superhero
You may not have heard about this ingredient, but it’s been buzzing around beauty and skin care circles for a bit. Argireline is a synthetic peptide acclaimed for its anti-wrinkle reputation, and there’s even some science to lend credence to those claims. One article showed that argireline was effective in reducing the size and appearance of fine lines on the faces of participants who applied it around the eye area twice a day for four weeks. That’s exciting news, but what does it mean for those of us who don’t live in a lab or know how we can get our hands on some of that sweet argireline? Well, not surprisingly, it has been included in several anti-aging serums since these types of findings were first shared. And now you can experience some of these beauty benefits from a familiar line.
Vivian Woodard’s Advanced Anti-Aging Night Cream & Moisturizer is formulated with argireline, vitamins A and E, and other rich emollients and extracts. And all of that is in addition to matrixyl, which is another important wrinkle-fighting peptide that’s pretty important to mention. Matrixyl stimulates the skin’s collagen synthesis and repairs damages on a deeper level. People have seen long-lasting results in the reduction of wrinkles by using creams with this peptide regularly. Put all of these things together, and you’ve got a real hard-working product. It’s able to address the cause of oxidative damage and work to fix it while it softens and plumps up skin to make it super supple.
Leave it to the experts at Viviane Woodard to create yet another water-based, cruelty free cream that will make you feel refreshed when you smooth it on, and give you an extra nice feeling because you know that no one is testing the products on your furry friends. So go ahead and smile big and don’t even worry about those wrinkles. You’ve got argireline on your side, after all.
5. Collagen is queen
There’s a reason we describe soft and supple skin as baby-soft, and that’s because when we’re young our skin is a collagen and elastin-making machine. Both proteins give baby skin that bounce.
Elastin enables the skin to stretch and expand, but rebound back. Collagen is the protein that’s most abundant in our skin and provides it with structure, strength, and firmness. Unfortunately, each year we produce a little less collagen and elastin than we used to. However, even though the skin may make less, there are now more options than ever for getting these proteins back in the mix. Whether it’s a serum or spray or a lotion, there’s something for all skin types to use.
Look for anti-aging products like Viviane Woodard’s Nutri-Cell Complex, which boasts a blend of vitamin C, A and D, collagen, elastin, and more miracle-working wonders of science. This cream completely penetrates the skin to deliver all these elements essential for skin rejuvenation. It combats damaging environmental effects and free radicals as it nourishes and hydrates. Using high-quality skin care like this can make a difference in the appearance of your skin, and it seems to shave a few years off if you use it regularly, and in combination with making other healthy choices.
6. Maintain the moisture in multiple ways
Speaking of healthy choices, a lot of your appearance depends on what you do, and your specific lifestyle says a lot about how you’ll look and feel. Choices don’t account for everything, of course. There’s genetics and the passage of time, where we don’t have any decision-making power. Some days it may seem like there’s a lot of things we can’t control. For the most part, though, we still have a say when it comes to what we eat, drink, and do with our bodies. So let’s break it down a bit.
One thing that helps with both internal and external hydration and health is water. Drink plenty of water every day and decrease the amount of alcohol and caffeine you consume, if either are excessive. You don’t have to cancel all the cocktails, but maybe just cut back where you can to help yourself be more hydrated. And remember, skin is the largest organ.
Don’t forget to keep moving. Making sure you sweat and get that blood pumping. Both provide your body with processes needed to nourish the skin, like releasing toxins and bringing fresh oxygenated blood to where it needs to be. So ask your doctor if a dance party is right for you!
7. Because you deserve it!
Some people have no problem doing things for themselves, whether it’s making time for self-care, or to shop for something that doesn’t feel especially essential, but may spark a little joy. Other’s have a harder time justifying anything other than the bare basics and don’t live that lifestyle where they just get something because they want it. If you fall in the latter camp, you can consider an anti-aging cream an investment in how you look and feel today and in the future. Even if we can’t reverse the clock (and really, who wants to be back in middle school?), we can still look refreshed and rested. Getting enough sleep is obviously a key component of that equation, but using anti-aging creams and other products also plays a part.
So until that day far in the future (or maybe just in dystopian novels and movies) when our lifestyle involves uploading our consciences to the cloud, and we no longer need all this fleshy stuff, let’s take care of the skin we live in, and help it be the best skin it can be.
Well, you’ve just read a lot about some key ingredients in any effective anti-aging product. Hyaluronic acid, collagen, argireline, glycolic acid and vitamin C and A all provide vital functions for skin health and address the wear and tear that weather and time take on the skin. It’s important to find formulas that improve firmness and skin texture in order to reduce those signs of aging such as sagging or flaking and dryness. So stay on the lookout for these ingredients when you start using anti-aging products, and remember to take care of yourself, too!
Keep Reading: Enriched Water Based Moisturizer™
For over 60 years, Viviane Woodard has represented “The Purity of Skincare”. We are the leading beauty brand for water-based skin care products and promote the importance of good skin hydration. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest for skin care tips, product discounts and more.