What to Do if Sagging Eyelids Block Your Vision
If your eyelids have started to sag and are blocking your vision, blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery) may be just the thing for you. Learn all about it here.
5 Common Habits That Accelerate Facial Aging
Our genes play a role in how we age, including when and how the lines and wrinkles appear on our face, neck, and hands. We have no control over this intrinsic aging.
On the other hand, we have extrinsic aging, where our environment and lifestyle choices cause our skin to age prematurely. These can be controlled to some extent. By being proactive about our skin care, we can slow the effects this type of aging has on our skin.
Dr. Dustin Heringer of Arizona Ocular & Facial Plastic Surgery in Scottsdale and Peoria, Arizona, understands how facial aging can be a deflating experience. That’s why he and our team want to talk about your habits that may be doing your skin no favors so you can adopt ones that will be more beneficial for your skin and your self-esteem.
5 common habits that accelerate facial aging and how you can turn them around
Here are five common habits to change:
1. Not protecting your skin from the sun
The sun is literally a life-giver, but too much exposure to its ultraviolet (UV) rays can prematurely age your skin, give you painful sunburn, and trigger changes in your DNA that may lead to cancer.
It’s okay to be a beach bunny, but you need to protect your delicate skin in any way you can. Seek out shade when you can, and dress appropriately. That means wearing a wide-brimmed hat, a lightweight long-sleeved shirt and pants, and sunglasses with UV protection.
It also means using a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30 that’s water-resistant. Wear it even on cloudy days, as ultraviolet can penetrate the clouds and wreak havoc on your skin.
And if you really want to get a tan, look at a spray-on version rather than lying in the sun for hours.
2. Making repeated but unnecessary facial expressions
Every time you make a facial expression, the underlying muscles contract. If you repeatedly make the same expression over a number of years, the skin can’t bounce back as quickly, and the lines etched on your face become permanent.
Obviously, we’re not telling you not to smile or blink your eyes. However, as an example, you can reduce the lines around your eyes, such as crow’s feet, if you wear sunglasses outside; that way you won’t have to squint as much from the glare, and the lines will take longer to develop.
3. Eating a poor diet
Consuming lots of sugar and other refined carbohydrates can accelerate facial skin aging. The process is called glycation. Sugar molecules attach to fats and proteins, decreasing elasticity in the skin while creating lines and dark spots. You may also see crosshatched lines from deceased collagen in places such as the upper lip.
Lack of sleep and stress both impair our tolerance of sugar, so it pays to get your beauty rest and find outlets, like yoga or meditation, for your stress if you continue your high sugar intake.
Consuming antioxidant-rich foods such as green tea, red grapes, and blueberries helps stimulate collagen production, filling in lines and furrows and keeping your skin blemish-free.
4. Drinking too much alcohol
Alcohol dehydrates the skin, and, in time, damages it beyond repair, making us look older. To plump up a pallid, droopy face, make sure to hydrate as much as possible. Our bodies are about three-quarters water, and water plumps up the skin, keeping it looking younger. It also has a beneficial effect on just about every organ system in your body.
5. Cleansing your skin vigorously
Many people think the harder they scrub their skin, the cleaner it will get. What it really does is irritate the skin and accelerate the process of aging. Gently wash your face to remove makeup and pollutants that have built up from the day using a skin-specific facial cleanser. You can ask the aesthetician for recommendations for your particular skin type.
Wash your face at least twice a day and after sweating a lot. Make sure to apply a moisturizer as a finishing touch to seal the water in.
Want more tips? Interested in our vast menu of treatment options for facial aging? Contact Arizona Ocular & Facial Plastic Surgery by calling our nearest office.
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