Wrinkle-fighters, skin firmers, lifters, anti-agers, fine line reducers, face-lifts in a bottle – we are bombarded by products that promise to give us our youths back. Despite the fact that we all know that there’s nothing wrong with natural aging process, let’s be honest, it would’ve been wonderful if we were able to get rid of all our wrinkles just by slathering the beloved moisturizer couple of times a day. But unfortunately we all learned by now that neither creams nor serums are able to get our skin back to smooth baby-bottom condition. But (another ‘but’, although I like it more than the previous one), if we adjust our expectations to the fact that miracles in a jar don’t exist, we may find ourselves satisfied with benefits that these creams can provide us with. Simply put, it’s all about the ingredients.
Provided that we’ve already established that we are going to get wrinklier no matter what (rolling eyes), there are ways to make our skin look better and relatively firmer. I’m not going to preach healthy diets and lifestyle here. All of it matters of course, but we are concentrating on our beauty regiments at the moment. So, if we stick to proper active ingredients in our creams, most likely we’ll be satisfied with results they produce, as anti-aging creams work only if we have right expectations about them.
Ingredients to look for:
Retinol – a vitamin A compound that neutralizes free radicals that break down skin cells and cause wrinkles.
Coenzyme Q-10 – a nutrient that regulates production of energy in skin cells. Also may help protect us against sun damage.
Peptides – proteins that stimulate new cell growth, hydrate skin and help it heal.
AHAs (alpha-hydroxy acids) – exfoliate skin, allowing for faster cell turnover.
Antioxidants - fight cell damage from free radicals and inflammation.
Kinetin - a plant growth factor that helps skin retain moisture, stimulates production of collagen and evens out skin tone.
Green Tea Extract – has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
If you are already busy slathering a cream with all those good-for-your-skin components from head to toe, here’s good and bad news for you summed up in the same short sentence: That’s all you can do. Unless, of course, you have an appointment with a plastic surgeon. Oh, and also use sunscreen every day on your wrinkles, at least it’ll save you from cancer.
That’s a good list. I also find that a lot of experts say that grape seed oil also helps.
Hey Aleya, you are 100% correct about grape seed oil. Thanks for pointing it out.
I totally agree with you, when it comes to anti-aging products people expect way too much then what they can really get. I have also heard a lot of goodies about Goji berries. Take care!