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Wed Aug 02, 2006 11:16 am  |
Last week at a local pharmacy, I saw a pharmacist in her 50s with absolutely the most beautiful skin and could not hesitate to compliment her on her aesthetically fine skin, which was plump, firm, smooth, and translucent with no spots.
She told me that she doesn't use anything on her skin except a moisturizer with some antioxidants and that's it! Her internal regimen includes drinking a gallon of water a day.
Sometimes I wonder if the cosmetics or cosmeceuticals industry is playing us for fools. I'm 35 and found that the more I worry, the more I buy products that give more promises than they can deliver. I was using l-ascorbic acid and SPF 55 suncreen in the morning and retin-A on alternate nights and that was fine. Then I started worrying about my 36th birthday approaching and I bought products with glycolic, higher levels of ascorbic acid and guess what? I wake up to older skin!!! Then I try to switch cleansers or spackle more creams on in the morning and evening and I'm not getting any better.
Maybe we need to be more minimalist and focus on internal health and happier relationships.
Just my thoughts!  |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 11:19 am |
Not even that but also consider her genes. For instanace when I compare the skin of my mother and my b/f's mother it's a world of difference. My b/f's mother has already had 2 facelifts and my mother nothing. My mother has beautiful skin and is in her late 40's while the b/f's mother is about 50 and her elasticity of her skin is non existent and has too many wrinkles and sun damage...Gawd I hope he doesn't find me on here...  |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 11:56 am |
You know, I am wondering the same thing. My grandmother was in her 90s and barely had a wrinkle. Her skin was so smooth. She washed her face with soap and then rubbed baby oil on her face. That was it. I just turned 50 and have never taken care of my skin until a few months ago. I am also a smoker (yikes). I just started noticing crows feet last year.
So I would have to think that genetics plays a large part in how quickly we age.
With that said, I'm still going to use many products available to me (Vit. C serum, face masks, exfoliating) just in case. |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 12:19 pm |
I've been wondering about this lately, too. I recall reading that most lip balms contain products that actually dry your lips, so that you feel like you have to keep re-applying and need more and more product. In the past couple months, I've tried lots of new skincare products since finding this board. And....my skin looks no better, and some days I wonder if it looks less glowy than before. It makes me wonder if I have been caught in an endless and perhaps foolish pursuit. So, in the past few days, I've really backed off on the products, since my simpler routine really had me looking nice. This morning, I finally accepted that there really is no product that will make my few deeper lines disappear, and I decided that is just going to have to be okay with me. (since I don't want anything invasive)
One new trick I tried this morning and am very happy with the result: I applied my mmu blush before the mmu foundation. Looks more natural. |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 12:21 pm |
| ariesxtreme wrote: |
| Not even that but also consider her genes. For instanace when I compare the skin of my mother and my b/f's mother it's a world of difference. My b/f's mother has already had 2 facelifts and my mother nothing. My mother has beautiful skin and is in her late 40's while the b/f's mother is about 50 and her elasticity of her skin is non existent and has too many wrinkles and sun damage...Gawd I hope he doesn't find me on here... |
totally, my mother is the same way-minimalist skin care routine, eats healty, never drank or smoked a cigarette in her life, avoids the sun and has the skin to show for it...beautiful!!! And to top it off after 5 kids and pushing 60 STILL has a body better than mine!!! 
Hopefully if I get on the ball Ill have the same good fortune!
But heres the kicker, my hubbys mom who IS 60-tans, smokes, and drinks but still has the body and skin of someone half her age, while my Mom is consertive and looks great, his mom is the type to still wear leather and pull it off better than a 20 yr old!
Go figure!
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_________________
27~Texas~Oily~ fair~ breakout prone~ easily congested~Cysts caused by emotional stress~ Using Ayurvedic skin care and philosophy~ Dry brushing body and face~ On strict less is more routine~ We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars~ Oscar Wilde |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 12:22 pm |
my grandmother had beautiful skin even when she was in her 80's - very few wrinkles, and no discolorations. My mom's skin is beautiful too. My mother does take good care of her skin, but my grandma never used much more than pond's cold cream on hers - she had 4 children, and money was tight a lot of the time.
My sister's doctor told her that good skin is largely a function of genetics, and the biggest things you can do to impact how you age are not smoking, avoiding the sun, and drinking plenty of water.
having said that, I don't think it can hurt to add something like vitamin C to your skincare, and if an eyecream gets rid of your dark circles, so much the better! Who knows, with the benefit of really good skincare, my grandmother might have been even more beautiful. |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 12:23 pm |
Crow's feet just last year or so? That's nothing. My b/f's sister's only 27 and she's got them already, but she's so fair skinned Irish gal that she is, guess that's a part of it.
Me being asian, the rumor has it that we tend to age a bit more gracefully along with black women. My grandmother who's in her 70's now has better skin than my b/f's mother, guess I got lucky!
The thing about applying lip balm I heard also. I guess something in the lip balm makes your body stop producing it's own moisture if you will, therefore you actually have to keep applying more lip balm. |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 12:24 pm |
| It's just genetics, good skincare does wonders, even with people with pretty nice skin allready. It's funny how when we see a nice tan we always think "nice skin" only in truth it is damage. I wish people would remember that tans fade but damage does not. |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 12:29 pm |
It's largely genetics. One of my neighbours, in her 40s, uses minimal skin care and has gorgeous, firm and wrinkle free skin. Many of my friends, in their mid 30s, use tons of pricey skin care, retiniods, DMAE etc, but still cannot reverse wrinkles and loss of firmness, and have had multiple Botox shots already.  |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 12:50 pm |
I think mostly genetics but lifestyle, including diet have an impact for sure.
I guess I have average genes because I don't look years and years younger than I am. Most people put me at 5 years younger, which considering my lifestyle I'm very grateful for |
_________________
my new jewellery website:www.gentle-medusa.com |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 12:53 pm |
| Funny story (if you want to call it that). I just got back from a new derm and I gave him the break down of my skin issues. (Clooged pores, breakouts etc)..which I never had in my teens...adult acne I am sure. I told him about how much a freak I am about not wearing too much pore clogging makeup, washing my skin before bed and eating heathly and drinking tons of water. He point blank told me, drinking water has nothing to do with healthy non break out skin. I should have walked out right then. I guess I am thankful I am 37 years old and do not have any wrinkles or crows feet, just breakouts. GRRHHH! |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 1:07 pm |
Lots of informative replies here! Wasn't expecting so much feedback within the last hour or so.
OK, so it seems that genetics is a real winner here. My mom is 64 and she has the most beautiful skin for her age. Although she has dark spots around her undereyes (yes, Asians get a lot of pigmentation problems which is why whitening products in the Asian countries are best sellers) and a bit of sagging, she has no wrinkles and her skin is as thick as can be. But I think the fact that she lives in New York (where it's cloudy most of the time and shading occurs from high rise buildings), eats lots of vegetables, and sleeps a good amount really helps.
For me, I live in Texas where it's sunny all the damn time and I don't get as much sleep as any normal person prevents me from aging beautifully. When I eat more vegetables, drink more water, sleep at least 8 hours a day, and stress less then damn I could be gorgeous since I'll look less puffy, lined, and haggard. The truth is that it's so hard to keep this up. Trust me, I try but life gets me off track sometimes.
It's true that Asians age better but I truly believe that it's because we stay out of the sun and eat a lot more fish and vegetables. My dad is 67 and when he was young, he looked like Ricky Ricardo every time he slicked his beautiful hair back (not kidding) and he was quite a looker. After his heart attack in his 40s, he started walking on the Coney Island boardwalk every day for about an hour. He also watches what he eats by eating fish, vegetables, and lots of bland drippy oatmeal. He even walks to work (1.5 hours) if he can. The downside for my dad is that even though he is slim for his age (being a little overweight runs in our family due to too much high glycemic foods in our diet) he never wore sunscreen and his skin looks like he's lost a lot of collagen. Compare him to my mom and you will see a huge difference.
I've also come to the conclusion that Asians age better because we have more fat on our faces. We may not wrinkle as much but we can sag due to the weight of fat and gravity. I don't know which is worse, wrinkles or sagginess. Either way, it doesn't look good.
If it's all about genetics, eating right, drinking water, staying out of the sun, exercising, then why do we still buy all these promises in a bottle? I had a whole list of products I was going to buy but after reading all your posts, I'm just going to stick to vitamin C (l-ascorbic acid), Philosophy's When Hope Is Not Enough serum (antioxidant), and retin-a. I think the Tazorac gel did some harm to my skin as well as the glycolic acids in Perricones Amine Complex Facial Lift and Avon's Anew Alternative cream. Might be too much for my skin to handle. My mom only uses Dove soap at night and in the mornings just used Lancome foundation (maybe it had an SPF, I don't know)with makeup. That's it. Very minimalist but her skin is still absolutely beautiful and she looks like she has no pores or wrinkles. |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 1:37 pm |
| I do think that some actives help. I only use stuff that has been proven to help such as C serums, copper peptides and mild exfoliants. I'm introducing green cream again (a retinol) to give a bit more and counter my deeply unhealthy lifestyle |
_________________
my new jewellery website:www.gentle-medusa.com |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 7:29 pm |
I waver between believing firmly that it has everything to do with genetics and then hoping (maybe in denial) that I can have control over it through products.
I think everyone wants to feel like they can have some control over their aging, whether or not that's the truth. And that instinct is natural -- but also something cosmetics companies prey upon.
I will say that acne (well, I won't pretend to know anything about bad cystic acne -- I'm talking more run-of-the mill bad skin) can be controlled a lot through products, especially prescription products. It won't change your skin from being acne-PRONE, but you can at least take some control over that. |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 7:56 pm |
Hi librarygirl - I believe of course that genetics and a healthy lifestyle play a large role in skin condition, but I also believe the proper use of topicals can really help. Sunscreen is one product I just won't go without, and I'm a faithful Vit.C serum user (but not certain that it's really doing a lot). Everything else is optional depending on the current state of my skin.
BUT, while I've experienced good results from AHAs and retinoids, I've backed off the frequency of use in the last few months. My skin was looking worse when I used them too often because those types of products are very drying and irritating. I've discovered that just because the directions on something like retinoids may say work up gradually to daily use, or peels say use once or twice a week, or scrubs say they can be used daily, this isn't ultimately beneficial (or tolerable) for everyone. I still use them all, but only when needed. When I've overdone it, the very best remedy has always been to leave my skin alone for a few days.
I'm 54 and have nice skin -- hardly any fine lines even (and I'm a smoker). I don't use a long list of skincare products either (but I'm always trying new things!) and I don't use fancy cleansers. Many derms recommend Dove soap or Cetaphil because they're gentle and emollient (and relatively cheap and accessible). Less can be more -- no doubt about it! |
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Wed Aug 02, 2006 7:58 pm |
Genes are definitely the biggest factor, but don't give up with the actives if you don't have that kind of skin.
I'm on a very basic programme at the moment: Vit C, Ystheal, PSF pumpkin peel, HA & emu - nothing fancy.
I can safely say they make an ENORMOUS difference. I can really see this because I went through a bit of a skincare desert this year and did next to nothing to my face bar sunscreen for several months. Then I started using CPs, Vit C and Ystheal one by one over the past few months and since I just got the rest of it a couple of weeks ago I look 100% nicer. I had a biggest HA/emu gap - what an instant difference they make. I never want to live without them again.
The past few days I look quite lovely actually. 
P.S. Just saw m.april's comments and I should add that I absolutely agree about not overdoing it. I tend to use one active at a time and don't use things every night as commanded. I prefer to give my skin recovery time with emu or HA or nothing. Plus gentle exfoliation not too often. Yes, take it slowly and see what works for you. |
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Thu Aug 03, 2006 8:07 am |
I truly believe that using actives do make a difference. At least we know that what we put on our face is not just mineral oil and other useless chemicals.
I think that hoping that there is something out there to help us is probably better than nothing. When we've given up that is when we could shrivel up.
Thanks all for your replies!!! |
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Thu Aug 03, 2006 8:54 am |
| I'm sure a lot of it is genes but I do also believe that less is better. This spring I've eliminated quite a bit from my routine and my skin is so much better off. I still struggle but, overall, it is so much nicer. I suppose that if I could just keep my hands off my face then I would improve about 60% but that's another story..... |
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Thu Aug 03, 2006 9:02 am |
| ellyp wrote: |
| I suppose that if I could just keep my hands off my face then I would improve about 60% but that's another story..... |
Here I thought I was the only one with that problem. I should wear a stray jacket |
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Thu Aug 03, 2006 10:54 am |
ellyp,
You hit the nail on the head about keeping your hands off of your face. It absolutely makes the biggest difference... Ahhh, if I could only remember that when I start feeling around for things to pick or when I look in the mirror at a spot.  |
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31, combination-dehydrated skin (I live in the desert), occasional breakouts. I just want beautiful, glowing skin! Is that too much to ask? |
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Thu Aug 03, 2006 11:10 am |
| i tried the soap and water and cheap moisturizer thing--doesn't work for me, for sure! i end up breaking out with dry patches everywhere. people compliment me on my skin now and a few even said, "it must be natural, isn't it?"....if only they knew how much i spend and what i go through everyday! |
_________________
about to hit my 40s, retin-a user, differin, LRP |
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Thu Aug 03, 2006 11:18 am |
| librarygirl wrote: |
Maybe we need to be more minimalist and focus on internal health and happier relationships.
Just my thoughts! |
I'm almost 50 and the past month have ordered more skincare stuff than ever, but with a reason. I wanted to find a line or lines that gave me the most without irritation. I've tried Renova and Vit C which seem to be too much and have found that the cleansing line of Dr. H and the moisturizers from Decleor may be the way to go for me. No fancy ingredient of the moment, just something to soothe sensitive skin. We all age, can't get away from that fact, so why not find the easiest way to enjoy the rest of the ride called life  |
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Sat Aug 05, 2006 8:43 am |
Hi all,
I used to believe that sun was the most important thing, but just by looking around, I'm beginning to think that's just not true. In my own family, which is a mix of italian and german roots, the italian side got years of sun (without any sunscreen) and got about 5 shades darker than their normal skin tones. The german side stayed out of the sun. The italians have no wrinkles, while the germans have tons.
I'm not at all saying that "italians have great skin" and "germans have bad skin"-- i've seen a lot of cases of the reverse-- I'm just saying that there are family lines with good skin, and family lines that are wrinklers.
I actually got the wrinkling skin, and i've sort of accepted this. I also have relaxed in my use of sunscreen because i feel that, while it can make somewhat of a difference, 90% of how you'll age is determined by your genetics, NOT your sunning. |
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Sat Aug 05, 2006 9:56 am |
Hi gserchi - I'm of Italian descent (but quite fair -- northern Italian) and my husband is of German descent (blond hair, blue eyes). I agree somewhat with what you've said, but my husband's had a lot of pre-cancerous lesions that have required treatment so I definitely think sunscreen is a must. His derm does too.
I've wondered if our mothers and grandmothers benefitted from a thicker ozone layer in the atmosphere than we have today. We're much more vulnerable to the sun's rays now. Also, even though they didn't have sunscreen products in their youth, they often wore those heavier foundations that surely gave them some amount of protection.
Makeup today often includes sun protection, and even though it may be slight, it's better than nothing. A lot of forum members love MMU not only for the way it makes them look, but also for the fact that it offers the bonus of sun protection. If you favor the riskier phototypes in your family, you may want to wear sunscreen to lessen the risk of developing skin cancer. |
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Sat Aug 05, 2006 4:50 pm |
| m.april wrote: |
| I agree somewhat with what you've said, but my husband's had a lot of pre-cancerous lesions that have required treatment so I definitely think sunscreen is a must. His derm does too. |
I've had a pre-cancerous lesion removed and the darn thing came back. What I thought was being removed was only a treatment (freezing first, burned off when it came back). Now I find to get rid of it they have to cut it out. I think I better take that step.
I've been using sun-screen since they first started talking about the stuff in the early 80's, we've come a long way from the early Paba stuff. |
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