Youthful, radiant skin is something we all want, right? But how do you achieve it? Healthy skin comes from within, and what is good for healthy internal organs such as the heart and brain is also good for your skin.
To preserve your natural beauty, it’s essential that you practice sensible daily maintenance, including proper skin care, a healthy diet, regular exercise and sun protection. To help you understand skin changes, let’s first review the anatomy of the skin.
The skin’s outmost layer is called the epidermis, and it’s made of skin cells that are at the end of their life cycle. Over time, changes in the epidermis lead to loss of smoothness and variability in skin pigmentation, such as brown or white spots.The layer of skin underneath the epidermis is called the dermis, and its key components are collagen, elastin and healthy ground substance. The skin’s structural fiber, collagen is responsible for the skin’s firmness and elasticity.
Finally, the subcutaneous tissue beneath the dermis is where volume loss or gain takes place. As we age, collagen production slows down along with the skin’s natural self-repair functions. This breakdown of collagen is what leads to visible signs of aging such as wrinkles, fine lines and folds in the skin.
The skin surrounding the eyes and mouth is especially delicate, and thus more likely to show signs of aging first. Collagen reduction can also be accelerated by long-term sun exposure and smoking.
Fortunately, maintaining youthful skin isn’t as hard as you think or something you have to have “the right genes” to do. There are a variety of effective skin care products that are vitamin-enriched and contain collagen-building proteins, among other beneficial active ingredients. There are also several medical procedures that can help rejuvenate the skin.