Before we talk about how you can start to change the appearance of your skintoday, (less wrinkles, less fine lines, tighter, and more glow-sound good?!)...let megive you some foundation, and no, not the base of your makeup. I'm talkingto youabout why you age.Why you start to develop fine lines, then deeper wrinkles andfinally there is NO hope to look youthful without a facelift to reverse the damagedone.
Wrinkles, fine lines, dullness, altered pigmentation-OH MY! It'sso easy to spot aging skin these days! What are the causes ofskin aging and are there ways to reverse or at least stop theeffects and appearance of it?
Your skin is an amazing, multilayered organ, protected by a couple of barriers.These layers moisten, nourish, shield and protect your skin from the constantbombardment of toxins and environmental factors which lead to premature aging.
The coating of your skinis an acid mantle, which keeps your skin slightly acidic at arelative level of pH 4 to 5. This level ofacidity keeps away hosts of bacteria whilesupporting good flora,making it hard forinfection and bacteria to penetrate andthrive.
The lipid layer is a thin layer of fatty oils secreted by the sebaceous glands,protecting your skin by maintaining moisture so you don't dry out-showing off anyfine lines or wrinkles.
These layers are kept in prime condition through specific nutrients, minerals,vitamins and hydration.
But as time goes by, your skin undergoes biological, chronical and internal changes.Lifestyle is also a large factor in your cellular integrity which can directly attributeto whether you start to age prematurely or not.
Although there are a variety of known causes and factors that contributeto aging,two main schools of thought standout:intrinsic and extrinsic factors. These twoclassifications canexplain darkage spots, fine lines, and deep set wrinkles,discoloration of your pigmentation,and pretty much anything else that has to dowith aging.
Intrinsic factors are primarily genetically determined. They take into considerationthe integrity of your immune system, genetics and biological changes that naturallyoccur over time. You are able to somewhat influencethe intrinsic rate of skin andcellular degradation with proper nutrition, mitigating your exposure to harmful UVraysand other damaging environmental factors.
The extrinsic classification is comprised of environmental factors and lifestylechoices. These are not genetically determined. Extrinsic factors include everythingthat you expose yourself to like: alcohol consumption, stress, poor nutrition,overeating,chemicals (lotion, cleaners), pollution anddangerous UV rays. UV rays(from sun exposure) has been reported to contribute up to 80% of ourenvironmental factors that attribute to aging.
The extrinsic factors are what we do have the greatest control overallowing us tomodify the speed in which aging takes grasp of our skin and appearance.
Over time,with constant exposure to damaging environmental agents and poor(er)lifestyle choices, damage-based aging occurs. This aging process is a slow build upover time. Many scientists believe this damage begins upon conception.
A major cause of this damage-based aging is a metabolic process called, “oxidativestress.” This is damage to DNA, proteins, fats and membranes caused by highlyreactive substances containing oxygen. These oxidants are produced normallywhen we breathe but also are a result from inflammation, infection, and consumingtoxins. One byproduct of this metabolic process isfree radicals.
So what are these free radicals that you've probably heard about more than a fewtimes? And how do they impact aging?
Free radicals are byproducts of cellular metabolism that attack otherwise healthycells in an effort to create their own stability.They steal electrons from any othermolecule they come across in an effort to achieve stability for themselves. Bystealing another electron, this event can cause cascading effects resulting in thedamage and mutation of a living and healthy cell.
Consider damage to be like an accumulation of toxic build up throughout your life.Whenyour body is endlessly bombarded by toxins it willeventually lead to themutation of enough cells. The damaged DNA can lead to errors in proteins whichbuild-up over time, causing more errors in transcription. This creates a loop thatwill ultimately kill the cell, potentially leading to failure of the system. This can beseen as failure of a critical organ, like the integrity of your largest organ, skin.
Although most of usdon't want to kill our healthy cells nor do we intentionallyconsume or use toxic products, we unknowingly do by the products we choose.These nasty agents of age are everywhere. Lotions, cleaning supplies, commercialfacewashes, shampoos, conditioners-you name a product you can buy over thecounter and it more than likely has more toxins than the Goslings have kids.
