Top tips for healthy skin post 40

It’s inevitable, we all age. This doesn’t have to be seen as a negative process, rather a constant shift/change in our life. Lines on our skin tell stories of our emotions, of our past and what has shaped us to be who we are now. 

But this doesn’t mean we can’t give our skin some extra TLC to slow down this process and age in style.

How to look after you’re skin once you turn 40

The ageing process of our skin starts being visible around the age of twenty five, but it is around the forties that the “signs” are more evident. In most cases it is a natural process (chronological ageing) but external factors such as our lifestyle, food habits and the environment can reduce or speed up this process.

The skin starts loosing hydration, small micro-wrinkles appear especially around mouth, eyes and forehead (expression lines). Our skin elasticity diminishes and sun/age spots can start to appear.  The skin becomes more vulnerable to UVB radiation because melanin production drops; the synthesis of collagen and elastin reduce, making the skin less elastic as well as the production of sebum (fat layer) making the skin drier.

To those factors other external factors can influence the ageing process: alcohol, cigarettes, pollution, lack of exercise, junk food, and refined sugars increase the number free radicals in the body system damaging the DNA, proteins and lipids.

What to do:

There is a lot that can be done:

-The 2 most important things from a cosmetic point of you are:
moisturisers and anti-oxidant.
-Balms: these are ‘rich’ and create a delicate barrier of oil on the skin which stop the inner water from being lost through perspiration (with age water from within evaporates easily and can leave skin dry).
Essential Fatty Acids and Vitamins (E, A) which are anti-oxidant are then kept inside.

-Choose carefully: remember anything you put on your skin is absorbed and will manifest on your skin in some way or another. Read the labels and try to choose organic skin care products. Oil based, ones will enrich your skin from precious nutrients that will work to reduce the signs of “time” and the ageing process.

-Don’t forget to drink plenty of pure, fresh water or even better juice regularly. Juicing will cleanse you from the inside. Introduce fruits and vegetables rich in vitamins and anti-oxidant.

Extra Tip: add the one of following to your juices/smoothies for an extra healthy boost:

-A teaspoon of organic bee pollen grains
-A teaspoon of organic barley grass.

These super-foods contain rare trace of minerals and enzymes to give your skin a healthy glow.

Reduce alcohol, don’t smoke, walk or run weekly, laugh with your friends, be positive and love others: the energy coming from all these attitudes will enrich your spirit and will relax your skin, making it looking glowing and younger…

DR M Spiezia