Are you looking for a way to slow down the effects of aging? Signs of aging may
be more visible on the face than any other area of the body. If you want to
really make a difference in how you’ll look years from now, what you do today
can really make an impact.
The years from 35 to 55 are the transition years. Pores become larger, skin
develops lines, and age spots begin to show. The face starts to lose volume,
which enhances the lines of a maturing face. This is the time when early action
will make a lifetime of difference!
How can we slow down the changes that time brings, but do it in a way that
allows us to still look like ourselves? The answers lie in three facets of our
system: Protect, Repair and Restore.
PROTECT
There are many facets of skin protection, but none of them are as important as
protection from ultraviolet light. Although there seems to be as many sun
protection products as there are stars in the night sky, many of them are
inadequate for the serious consumer. Both women and men should seek out a
product that doesn’t leave the skin white, blocks both ultraviolet spectra, and
is a relatively good value.
Skinceuticals makes excellent, elegant sun blocks with a competitive price
point.
Ultraviolet light is our worst enemy. Ultraviolet A and Ultraviolet B age the
skin and cause many of the skin cancers that affect us later in life. A perfect
sun block should block both, without significantly affecting our appearance.
Amazingly, though, if the muscles around the eyes and mouth are relaxed, the
etched-in lines tend to diminish, and even disappear! The only FDA-approved
method of relaxing lines between the brows is
Botox Cosmetic® a safe
and effective treatment that has been used in recent years to relax not only the
glabellar lines between the brows, but also around the eyes, the forehead, and
the lower face around the mouth. Botox can also be used in the next area to help
prevent the "neck bands" that often form in later years.
REPAIR
The accumulated damage from years of exposure to lights, toxic and irritating
chemicals and the wear and tear of daily living takes its toll. You can,
however, help reverse the changes by using the newest generation of
antioxidants on the
market. They help repair oxidative damage and enhance the natural healing
mechanisms we already have in place.
The product that we like the most as it is at the cutting edge of reparative
chemistry is
SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic. It works with the body’s own repair mechanisms to
fix the skin at the cellular level.
Beyond repairing the oxidative damage with anti-oxidants, another significant
thing one can do is to add a retinoid to the regimen. Retinoids, of which
Retin-A and Renova are the most well known examples, help rejuvenate the skin by
increasing collagen formation in the layer just below the epidermis. This new
collagen helps cut down on bruising later in life, makes the skin more
resilient, and makes the skin look younger. We happen to like
Tri-Luma, the
best if a patient also has brown spots on the skin, as it combines a retinoid
with hydroquinone, an ingredient that lightens hyperpigmentation. Tri-Luma is a
prescription product available in our office.
Additionally, retinoids provide modest defense against the formation of skin
cancers. If you can tolerate a retinoid (they are irritating to some patients),
you should use one. If toleration is a concern, we dispense
LaRoche-Possay Retinol
so you can benefit from the retinoid effect with less irritation. Why not look
younger and have more healthy skin in the bargain?
RESTORE
Science has done wondrous things over the past ten years. Ten years ago, the
only way to achieve loss of wrinkles, improvement of dark spots and rejuvenation
of the texture of the skin was to use a laser that destroyed the top layer of
the skin. The result was raw, oozing skin for up to two weeks, and pink, shiny
skin for up to two months and skin that was often abnormally light forever. All
that has forever changed.
Now, we have the
Palomar Starlux Photofacial System for rejuvenation of mild to moderate sun
and age spots, as well as the redness and tiny blood vessels that develop with
time. This system also is fantastic for the “age spots” that develop on the
hands over time.
For those looking for renewed collagen and treatment of the texture changes,
there is no treatment that is more effective than the
Reliant Fraxel 1500(also
referred to as the Fraxel II or Fraxel restore). This laser has very important
advantages: it does not cause the raw, oozing skin, the prolonged “down time”,
the residual white spots nor the abnormally shiny skin that the old lasers could
cause. The Fraxel 1500 makes skin appear younger, “dewier” and much more even in
color, all with only a day or two of down time! It also treats the crepe paper
appearance of the aging neck, chest, and hands. For optimal results, it is in
your best interest to have a board-certified dermatologist, knowledgeable in the
science of the skin, operate this laser on you. For patients who want to look
their very best, Fraxel has been a home run.
Finally, there is a better way to escape the effects gravity places on the face
as we mature. When we were younger, our faces resembled an inverted triangle. As
we mature, the triangle slowly descends, until the triangle is no longer
inverted. There are a whole
new generation of
fillers that mimic a naturally occurring substance in the skin called
hyaluronic acid, which gives young skin the plump, firm look and can help
restore the fullness to cheeks and upper face. The two most well known are
Juvéderm and Restylane. And if those weren’t enough, there is a new long lasting
filler called Radiesse that helps fill in the deep furrows along the side of the
chin and mouth, as well as augment the cheeks to restore the sagging
architecture of the face. At last, you don’t have to take what nature and
gravity are giving you for birthday presents! Ask your cosmetic dermatology team
which filler would be right for you.
In conclusion, it is now possible to look as good as you feel, no matter what
your age!