We all know that aging is a natural process, but many people will go to great lengths to maintain a youthful appearance. We age due to genetic and other factors, many of which are beyond our control. But you can easily keep aging signs at bay by following a healthy lifestyle.
The sooner you begin following a healthy lifestyle and caring properly for your skin, the healthier your skin will be. Plus, it will delay signs of aging like fine lines, sagging skin, wrinkles, age spots and crow’s feet.
Aging is inevitable, but this does not mean that you cannot look younger than your age. There are many beauty secrets that can cut years off your appearance, particularly your face.
Here are the top 10 anti-aging beauty secrets.
1. Follow a Good Skin Care Regimen
Irrespective of your age, you need to follow a good skin care regimen for healthy skin. When your skin is healthy, it will not show early signs of aging.
Cleanse your face daily with a gentle cleanser, both in the morning and at night. This will keep your skin clean, soft and free of pore-clogging debris. When buying a cleanser, avoid those with high alcohol content and other drying agents.
Apply a good quality moisturizer over your entire face, neck, hands and legs twice daily. This will help prevent dry and aging skin.
Exfoliate your skin once a week with a gentle facial scrub. This will encourage skin cell renewal, making your skin look younger. It will also help get rid of dead skin cells and keep your skin smooth, healthy, bright and fresh.
2. Choose Skin Care Products Wisely
Many people make the mistake of using the wrong type of skin care products. This can cause tingling, itching, dryness and irritation. It’s easy to rectify or avoid this mistake.
Determine your skin type by analyzing your T-zone area and then choose suitable products to keep it healthy and young. Also, avoid using too many cosmetic products at the same time.
When you are past your mid-20s, use products with retinol, peptides and antioxidants. Retinol promotes an increase of collagen and elastic production. Peptides can stimulate collagen production and cell repair to help you get younger-looking skin. Antioxidants will protect your skin from the sun and speed up the natural skin repair system.
If you have any doubts, you can always consult a dermatologist for help find the right products for your skin care needs.
3. Wear Sunscreen Everyday
Sunscreen is the ultimate anti-aging tool recommended by beauty experts. Be it summer, winter, autumn or rainy days, you must not leave your home without applying a good quality sunscreen on any exposed body parts.
Too much exposure to the sun’s harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays can damage your skin, particularly its elastin, and cause a loss of collagen. This in turn can lead to sun spots, wrinkles, an uneven tone, dryness, rough skin and sunburn.
Apply an SPF 15 (or greater) sunscreen every day, even in the winter. For maximum anti-aging benefits, make sure to apply sunscreen on your ears, neck, legs and hands along with your face.
4. Get Your Beauty Sleep Daily
To stay looking young for years, get 7 to 8 hours of beauty sleep daily without fail. In fact, sleep is considered the most powerful rejuvenating treatment to maintain youthfulness.
When you sleep, adrenaline and corticosteroid levels drop and the body starts to produce growth hormone. During this time, the repair and growth process of cells occurs. If you don’t get enough sleep, this function is impaired and leads to inflammation that causes many signs of aging like wrinkles, dull complexion and fines lines.
A good night’s sleep also has many health benefits like better memory, mood, attention and concentration as well as a reduced risk of heart attack and stroke.
To improve your sleep, maintain a regular bedtime, avoid caffeinated beverages before bedtime, take a warm bath with a few drops of aromatherapy oil in the evening, and sleep on the right mattress and pillows.
5. Exercise Daily
Exercise is good for your body and mind. Regular exercise improves blood flow and keeps your skin healthy and vibrant. It also regulates your hormones and promotes proper sleep.
According to a study published in the journal Circulation, exercise has anti-inflammatory potential and decreases the risk of developing inflammatory diseases like heart disease and obesity.
Exercise also combats the loss of stamina, muscle strength, balance and bone density that increases with age.
Do some sort of physical activity for 20 to 30 minutes daily. Activities that can help slow down the aging process are running, walking, dancing, cycling, gardening and even housework. Aerobic exercise classes and yoga also help a lot.
6. Give Yourself a Break from Stress
Several studies have shown that stress causes physical changes in the body that can accelerate aging. When you are under stress, hormonal changes occur that can cause blood pressure to rise and the heart to beat faster.
Stress can even cause anxiety, depression, insomnia, weight gain, fatigue and many other conditions that will surely make you look older than your age.
First, you must try to control the level of stress in your life. If you are under stress, take steps to manage it with deep breathing, walking outside amid nature, practicing yoga, meditating or indulging in any other activity that can divert your thoughts from the stressful situation and help calm your mind.
If you have difficulty controlling or managing stress, consult a specialist or seek out a support group.
7. Eat Right
Healthy skin starts with healthy eating, so you need to think seriously about what you are eating on a daily basis. To slow down the aging process, follow these key tips.
*Include more antioxidant-rich foods in your diet. Antioxidants help increase cellular regeneration and protect collagen, thus keeping your skin firm and wrinkle-free.
*Ensure adequate intake of essential fatty acids, such as those found in flaxseed and fatty fish. These healthy fats help your skin function properly and aid in tissue repair. Plus, they help reduce inflammation in the body and improve mental health.
*Eat 5 servings of fruits and vegetables and 3 servings of whole grains daily. This will provide protein, calcium, vitamin D, iron, zinc and other essential minerals that your body needs to function properly.
8. Stay Hydrated
Water is the foundation of young-looking skin, hence you need to drink an ample amount of water throughout the day. It helps keep your skin hydrated and moisturized, making it look younger and healthier.
Plus, water also will aid digestion, improve your energy and concentration, and flush toxins from your body.
When you don’t drink enough water, your skin can become dry, dull and dehydrated, leading to issues like fine lines and wrinkles, and chapped lips.
To stay hydrated, drink 8 to 10 glasses of water each day. Along with water, you can drink green tea, fruit juices and vegetables juices, or eat fruits and vegetables rich in water content.
9. Limit Alcohol Consumption
Alcohol is one drink that you must avoid or drink less as it accelerates the aging process and affects mineral absorption in the body.
Plus, it makes your liver work harder to eliminate harmful toxins, which in turn makes your skin look dry and lifeless. Alcohol may even increase your risk for non-melanoma skin cancer, cause flare-ups of rosacea and skin irritation.
For younger-looking skin, drink alcohol in moderation or, for maximum benefits, stop drinking entirely.
10. Stop Smoking
Smoking tarnishes your skin and makes you look older than your actual age. Cigarette smoke contains more than 4,000 harmful toxins.
Some of these toxins cause the blood vessels in the top layers of the skin to constrict, in turn reducing the amount of oxygen in the blood. Plus, smoking reduces the production of collagen.
All these factors can lead to dull skin, sagging skin, dark lips, wrinkles around the mouth and eyes, deep lines in the cheeks, dull hair and discolored nails.
Also, smoking as well as second-hand smoke has adverse effects on your overall health. It can cause respiratory problems, high blood pressure, a weakened immune system, earlier menopause, and lung and other types of cancer.
Considering the ill effects of smoking on your skin and general health, it is essential to quit smoking as soon as possible.
Additional Tips
*Minimize chlorine exposure when swimming.
*Do not pop, pick or scratch pimples.
*Do not skip meals.
*Avoid going to bed with your make-up on.
*Do not take long, hot showers as it can cause dry and itchy skin.
*Avoid staying in an air-conditioned room throughout the day.
*Avoid pressing a phone against your cheek as it can cause breakouts.
*Clean your makeup brushes and tools on a regular basis.
*Get a body massage at least once a month.
*Add laughter to your life to stay and feel young.
*Have a fun, carefree attitude.
*Dress according to your age and body shape and choose bright colors.
*Get the right haircut to look younger.
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