By Carly Young, Special to LifeScript
Many people who are dissatisfied with their fine lines, eye
wrinkles and other signs of aging are reluctant to turn to plastic
surgery. Even though procedures like facelifts can tighten up skin and
reduce other signs of aging, the risks that come with going under the
knife, like facial scarring, are too much of a deterrent for many. If
surgery’s not for you, what exactly can you do to help keep your skin
looking young? In order to answer that question, let’s take a look at
exactly how our skin ages and what causes wrinkles and other signs of
aging...
Slow Sloughing
The smooth, flawless skin that we’re born with as babies can become
wrinkled and saggy as we advance in age. This is due in part to
extrinsic, or external, factors that can oftentimes be controlled or
eliminated. They include sunlight, cigarette smoke and pollution. On the
other hand, time, which is an intrinsic factor of aging, is
unstoppable. Let’s take a look at how both these factors result in fine
lines and other signs of aging.
Free radicals can be triggered by sunlight and pollution, among
other elements. When your skin absorbs UV light or is exposed to harmful
toxins like cigarette smoke, free radicals are activated. An enzyme
that breaks down fat in your skin is also activated. Though fat loss may
sound desirable, your skin is one place where fat cells are actually
good – they keep skin supple and moist. As fat continues to be broken
down, a chemical is produced that paves the way for inflammatory
molecules, which cause eye wrinkles, fine lines and other signs of aging
The stratum corneum is the outer layer of your skin. It’s
made up of a protective layer of dead skin that is formed when fresh
skin cells push their way to the top of the skin and then die. As new
cells die, the stratum corneum is constantly sloughed off, renewing and
refreshing itself. Unfortunately, this sloughing process winds down as
we advance in age. In a child, cells turn over every 28-30 days, but
for a person who’s in their sixties, this process only occurs around
every 45-50 days. In short, the older we grow, the slower our skin is
able to regenerate itself.
Wrinkles in Time
Collagen is a protein that helps our skin to look young and taut. Collagen is especially susceptible to attacks from free radicals,
and over time these attacks lead to a destructive chemical change that
causes signs of aging. Healthy collagen molecules slide over each other,
giving way to soft, young skin, but after they’re damaged they become
“cross-linked,” or stiff and rigid, making skin look ld. How do these healthy molecules become damaged?
Free radicals harm our cells by randomly bouncing around in their
interior and even between them. They can damage every single part of our
cells, including the nucleus, where our DNA is stored, and the
mitochondria, which makes the energy for our cells. Because the plasma
membrane, or the exterior wall, of the cell is the most crowded, free
radicals do more damage there than in any other part of the cell.
These inflammatory molecules are called transcription factors.
Their job is to send chemical messages to your body, telling your DNA to
produce proteins and telling your cells what to do. These otherwise
harmless molecules can be turned on by free radicals that have been
activated by sunlight or toxins. These molecules then travel to the
nucleus and tell your DNA to start producing various chemicals. When the
transcription factors are triggered by ultra-violet light, they turn on
something called AP-1, which starts secreting enzymes that digest
collagen, causing tiny scars. You know these tiny scars by another name:
wrinkles.
Other factors that can precipitate signs of aging are sleep
deprivation, the use of harsh soaps, stress, excess alcohol consumption,
and a diet low in nutrients and high in salt. However, even if you took
a clue from Smokey Bear and hibernated in a cave for the rest of your
life, your skin would still fall victim to the passage of time. As time
passes, your skin will experience: fat loss, dryness (because your
skin’s ability to produce oil glands will decrease), sagginess and loss
of firmness, and a decreased ability to repair damage. Your skin’s
collagen structure will also break down. But don’t give up hope just
yet. Although you can’t help the fact that time will pass and your skin
will look older as you advance in years, it’s still important to protect
and care for your skin. By doing so, you can put your skin on the right
path toward aging gracefully.
How to Fight Damage
Certain skin care products and nutrients can help combat signs of
aging. When choosing an anti-aging treatment, make sure it contains antioxidants,
which are a powerful defense against harmful free radicals. Topical
vitamin C, one such antioxidant, may help your body to produce more
collagen, thus thickening your skin. Alpha hydroxy acid, another type of
antioxidant, may also thicken the skin if used on a regular basis. It
also helps the skin to hold onto moisture longer. Alpha lipoic acid is
also a key player in the battle against misbehaving transcription
factors. Like harmful sunlight, it can also activate AP-1, but with
beneficial results. AP-1 that has been activated by alpha lipoic acid
and not by sunlight attacks only damaged collagen, thus reducing fine
lines and wrinkles. Polypeptides, another skin-saver, can help renew
skin tissue and cells. When choosing an anti-aging skin care product,
think about what kind of results you want and make sure to purchase the
right product for your own individual skin type. Don’t let wrinkles get the best of you!
For more information on how different antioxidants can work for you and help fight signs of aging, check out part two of this series.
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