How To Limit The Effects Of Ageing On Your Skin

How To Limit The Effects Of Ageing On Your Skin. Hello everyone, I hope you are well. In today’s post, I will be sharing a guest post from Polly Clarke of Clinic Nutrition Ltd. Polly will explore seven science-backed ways to maintain healthy, young-looking skin as you age. Although genetics can undoubtedly play a part in the health and appearance of our skin, our lifestyle choices have a significantly more significant impact.

Factors such as diet, exercise, and skincare habits can all affect how our skin looks and feels. By making conscious choices to prioritize our skin health, we can improve its overall appearance and even prevent certain skin conditions. So, while we may not be able to control our genetics, we can certainly take control of our lifestyle choices to promote healthy, glowing skin.

How To Limit The Effects Of Ageing On Your Skin

Have you ever wondered why someone in their 60s can look younger than their 40-something counterpart? Your skin is usually the first thing people notice in you, and it is most people’s metric for estimating your age.

One cannot deny your genes’ role, but many lifestyle choices significantly affect how we look. After all, radiant skin comes from the inside. We may hide the fine lines under makeup, but you can tell when someone has healthy skin.

There are no “secrets” to youthful skin; what matters are the essential things like hydration, sleep, nutrition, and exercise. Unfortunately, many of us need help applying these tried-and-tested tips to our daily lives.

In this article, we dive deeper into the science behind skin health and provide actionable tips for keeping your skin looking and feeling its best.

What Is Your Skin Made Of, And Why Does It Matter?

Your skin is your body’s largest organ, weighing about eight pounds (3.6 kilograms). [1] This waterproof layer protects you against harmful chemicals and disease-causing microbes. It also helps regulate body temperature and allows you to feel touch, heat and cold.

Your skin is made of water, protein, fats and minerals. Understandably, taking care of your skin’s components as you age can help delay, reduce, or reverse ageing-associated skin changes.

Collagen and elastin are the two critical proteins of human skin. Type I collagen accounts for 80% to 90% of total skin collagen. [2] Type II collagen represents approximately 15% of skin collagen. Collagen is essential for preserving your skin’s firmness and elasticity. It has antioxidant and reparative properties, crucial for repairing damaged or wrinkled skin. Collagen production decreases by 1% every year after the age of 25.

Elastin, about 2% of skin protein, is essential for your skin to stretch and recoil. [3] The primary amino acids in elastin are glycine, proline, alanine, leucine, and valine. As you age, your body produces less elastin, which can result in common age-related skin issues, such as fine lines, sagging, and wrinkles. Studies show that the most severe damage to elastin occurs in photodamaged skin – that is, skin damaged by Ultraviolet sunlight, causing DNA changes at a cellular level.

Let’s look at the lifestyle factors that delay or accelerate skin ageing.

Sleep And Skin

Your skin cells produce collagen when you are asleep. Thus, chronic sleep deprivation is detrimental to your skin health. Good sleepers typically look younger than they might otherwise, while bad sleepers lose more water from their skin. Interestingly, those who get enough sleep daily also have a better perception of how they look. [4]

According to the National Institute on Aging, older adults need seven to nine hours of sleep each night. [5]

Hydration And Skin

Dry skin is notoriously prevalent in older adults. So, how can you keep your skin supple and hydrated? The NHS Eatwell Guide suggests drinking six to eight cups of water daily; others suggest two litres. However, your needs may vary depending on your overall health, the medications/supplements you take and your activity level.

Another way to improve your skin hydration is to apply a moisturizer. Moisturizers trap water in your skin’s outermost layer, giving it a youthful appearance. [6]

Exercise And Skin

Exercise nourishes your skin cells, clears toxins from the skin and reduces stress. Aerobic exercise has increased the skin’s collagen content in previously sedentary older adults. [7] Aerobic (endurance) exercise includes walking, jogging, swimming, biking and skipping.

Exercise keeps your skin youthful and can help improve or reverse the signs of ageing. That is even the case when you start exercising later in life. Engage in aerobic activity for 30 minutes daily to start looking younger; recommend experts at the U.S. Dermatology Partners. [8]

Alcohol And Skin Ageing

You will not be surprised to hear that alcohol increases inflammatory chemicals in the skin. Besides, drinking too much alcohol causes dry skin, as alcohol is a diuretic (i.e., a substance that increases urine output).

Consuming more than eight weekly drinks is associated with increased upper facial lines, under-eye puffiness, oral commissures, midface volume loss, and visible blood vessels. [9]

It is best to avoid drinking alcohol. However, if you want to indulge now and again, avoid going overboard. Click here to find out how much the NHS determines is too much.

Smoking And Skin Ageing

We all know that smoking carries risks, but maybe not that nicotine is the primary addictive substance in tobacco products. It promotes skin cell death and impairs blood flow to the skin. All these can negatively impact skin health and accelerate skin ageing.

A study in the Journal of JAMA Dermatology reports that smoking a pack of cigarettes for approximately one year can increase wrinkling three-fold. [10]

Vaping, often considered a safer alternative to cigarette smoking, can be as detrimental as smoking because vapes still contain nicotine. For instance, according to a 2021 study, e-cigarettes contain as much nicotine as conventional cigarettes. [11]

Similarly, solvents and vape flavourings, such as propylene glycol and cinnamaldehyde, can cause skin irritation, inflammation and dryness. All these can accelerate age-related skin ageing.

Environmental Pollution And Skin Ageing

Chronic exposure to polluted air can promote skin inflammation, leading to wrinkles and pigment spots. [12]

Air pollution can also change your skin’s natural microbiome – the millions of microbes, mainly bacteria, that help maintain the skin’s health.

Also, particles released from automobile exhausts, fire, tobacco smoke, smog and power plants can penetrate the skin and increase inflammation. Consequently, long-term inflammation can accelerate ageing by decreasing collagen and elastin.

Moreover, some studies have linked air pollution to eczema and skin allergies. [13] [14]

And, if that weren’t enough, exposure to heavy metals, such as lead, mercury, and cadmium, affects your skin’s immunity, resulting in inflamed skin and other signs of ageing. [15]

Collagen Supplements For Ageing Skin: How Can They Help?

A growing body of evidence supports using oral supplements to reduce signs of (or delay) skin ageing.

For instance, authors of a 2018 randomized trial of 64 females (at least 40 years old) separated them into two groups. The first group received 1000mg of low molecular weight collagen peptide once daily for 12 weeks, while the second group received an identical formulation but with no collagen. [16]

Assessment at baseline and after six weeks and 12 weeks revealed that skin hydration and wrinkle improvement were significantly higher in the group receiving collagen.

Likewise, another study on Chinese women (at least 35 years old) concluded that collagen hydrolysate with a higher Pro-Hyp and Hyp-Gly content improved facial skin moisture and elasticity and reduced wrinkles and roughness. [17]

Lastly, a 2022 review shows oral collagen supplements improve skin elasticity and hydration, decreasing wrinkling and roughness. [18]

Many tablet supplements contain small quantities of collagen.  Liquid supplements, such as Cutizana from Clinic Nutrition, contain 10,000mg of Types 1 & 2 collagen per serving, providing essential amino acids for producing collagen, elastin and keratin.

Summary

Healthy skin can be considered a signpost for overall health.  Poor nutrition, lack of adequate sleep and hydration, low exercise levels, and alcohol and nicotine consumption all manifest as ageing skin, which can mirror the effects on our bodies health.

Looking after yourself will result in your skin being in better condition and you looking younger.  Combined with sensible protection against damage from UV light and with adequate nutrition, which may include supplements, you can give yourself the best chance of maintaining healthy skin and ageing gracefully.

I hope you enjoyed that.

Talk soon

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Polly Clarke is from Clinic Nutrition Ltd., which produces a range of high-quality, broad-spectrum liquid supplements that are supplied to clinics, and direct to the consumer. These include Vitaliti (for general health and well-being), Cartonica (for joint health) and Cutizana (for hair, nails and skin).

www.clinicnutrition.co.uk

References

1. National Geographic. Skin. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/skin-1. Accessed March 23, 2023.
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3. Weihermann, A.C., Lorencini, M., Brohem, C.A. and de Carvalho, C.M. (2017), Elastin structure and its involvement in skin photoaging. Int J Cosmet Sci, 39: 241-247. https://doi.org/10.1111/ics.12372
4. Oyetakin-White, P et al. “Does poor sleep quality affect skin ageing?.” Clinical and Experimental Dermatology vol. 40,1 (2015): 17-22. doi:10.1111/ced.12455
5. National Institue on Aging. A Good Night’s Sleep. https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/good-nights-sleep. Accessed March 23, 2023.
6. Munehiro, Asuka et al. “Combination effects of cosmetic moisturizers in the topical treatment of acne vulgaris.” The Journal of dermatological treatment vol. 23,3 (2012): 172-6. doi:10.3109/09546634.2010.551109
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8. US Dermatology Partners. Top 5 Benefits of Exercise for Skin Health. https://www.usdermatologypartners.com/blog/will-exercising-improve-my-skin/#. Accessed March 23, 2023.
9. Goodman, Greg D et al. “Impact of Smoking and Alcohol Use on Facial Aging in Women: Results of a Large Multinational, Multiracial, Cross-sectional Survey.” The Journal of Clinical and aesthetic dermatology vol. 12,8 (2019): 28-39.
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11. Mitri, Andia et al. “Effects of tobacco and vaping on the skin.” Clinics in Dermatology vol. 39,5 (2021): 762-771. doi:10.1016/j.clindermatol.2021.05.004
12. Martic, Ines et al. “Effects of Air Pollution on Cellular Senescence and Skin Aging.” Cells vol. 11,14 2220. 17 Jul. 2022, doi:10.3390/cells11142220
13. Hieda, Daniele Seo et al. “Air Particulate Matter Induces Skin Barrier Dysfunction and Water Transport Alteration on a Reconstructed Human Epidermis Model.” The Journal of investigative dermatology vol. 140,12 (2020): 2343-2352.e3. doi:10.1016/j.jid.2020.03.971
14. Celebi Sozener, Zeynep et al. “Epithelial barrier hypothesis: Effect of the external exposome on the microbiome and epithelial barriers in allergic disease.” Allergy vol. 77,5 (2022): 1418-1449. doi:10.1111/all.15240
15. Chavatte, Laurent et al. “Elemental and molecular imaging of human full thickness skin after exposure to heavy metals.” Metallomics: integrated biometal science vol. 12,10 (2020): 1555-1562. doi:10.1039/d0mt00121j
16. Kim, Do-Un et al. “Oral Intake of Low-Molecular-Weight Collagen Peptide Improves Hydration, Elasticity, and Wrinkling in Human Skin: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study.” Nutrients vol. 10,7 826. 26 Jun. 2018, doi:10.3390/nu10070826
17. Inoue, Naoki et al. “Ingestion of bioactive collagen hydrolysates enhance facial skin moisture and elasticity and reduce facial ageing signs in a randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled clinical study.” Journal of Food and agriculture science vol. 96,12 (2016): 4077-81. doi:10.1002/jsfa.7606
18. Al-Atif, Hend. “Collagen Supplements for Aging and Wrinkles: A Paradigm Shift in the Fields of Dermatology and Cosmetics.” Dermatology Practical & conceptual vol. 12,1 e2022018. 1 Jan. 2022, doi:10.5826/dpc.1201a18a