If I had to choose just one from the huge arsenal of ingredients and products in the skincare universe it would be a little known molecule identified only as 302.
Nothing else does what 302 does and what it does is essential to reversing the visible effects of aging.
My second choice would be retinol, from the vitamin A family.
I most definitely would not choose any sunscreen or sunscreen ingredient. The chemicals involved can quickly age the skin, despite what you might have read or heard.
But let’s first understand wrinkles before talking about how to smooth them.
There are many issues in play with wrinkles. Some wrinkles are large and drooping “turkey wattles,” while others are very fine. like ‘crow’s feet.’ Funny how birds, distant relatives of dinosaurs, fit into the wrinkle story. Feeling like a fossil?
A wrinkle announces that your skin has separated from the tissues underneath the skin.
Think about stretch marks from childbirthing. These marks usually occur more often with younger women than with older. The skin when we are young has many many points of attachment to the tissues underneath it.
As we age, the points of attachment become fewer. With stretch marks for younger women the skin is ‘too young’ and the attachment points tear. With older moms (past 30 years old) the skin has already lost many attachment points and so, stretch marks don’t occur as often.
Many use various oils, especially avocado oil (virgin), to keep the skin soft during pregnancy and that does help to minimize the stretch marks at all ages.
Now as we get into our 40’s, 50’s and beyond, the use of oils and moisturizers to prevent stretch marks on our face (wrinkles) the outcome is just so-so.
So, are we doomed to have turkey wattles and crow’s feet my fellow fossils?
No. You can restore many of these attachments along with skin elasticity for substantial visible improvement. How to do that?
Start with mom and dad and better, grandma and grandpa. Do you have any photos of them when they were at your age now? This will tell you a lot about what your natural wrinkle fate will be. Or, what you are up against.
Assuming you have consistent exercise and a diet that is not on the RFK Jr. bad list, you can now address the wrinkles.
The key to wrinkles is muscles. The skin is about eighteen sheets of paper thick. That’s pretty thin. If it’s detaching from the muscles underneath it is going to look loose. There are also muscles in the skin, called pili muscles – these are the muscles that show up as goose bumps. But they are also often involved in loose looking skin.
The other thing with wrinkles is skin architecture. When we are young the skin is layered, sheet upon sheet of cells. As we age, the sheets of paper, once layered, seem as if someone wadded up the paper. The epidermis is on top of the dermis and is full of blobs of pigment, dead cells, fragments of protein, loss of fluids, cells disappearing faster than cupcakes in kindergarten.
You need to exercise. There are two different devices and one technique to help restore skin attachment to the underlying tissues by exercise. Galvanic and microcurrent devices are these and petrissage is the non-device technique.
Galvanic devices will help exercise the big muscles deep underneath the skin. These devices apply a direct current to the skin surface. Ten minutes once or twice a week is more than enough to help firm up the big droopy turkey wattles. But avoid rushing this – you can develop hard knots by using this device too frequently and for too long in repeated sessions.
Micro-current devices do essentially the same with much shorter frequency. This means the pilli muscles are involved and not the deeper muscles below the skin.
If you had to choose one device, the micro-current will be the easier of the two to source – and there are many on the market.
A good one will run about $400. You do not need ANY of their special sauces and in fact these can bring about inflammation so use something like distilled water or CALMING MIST from 302 Skincare. A good micro-current instrument is “ZIIP” and can be found on Amazon (I have no $$ interest in the product).
As with galvanic the temptation is to apply the device too frequently or for too long. Blabbing on the phone to mom while complaining about the ex and rubbing the device around for an hour can create knots – or a very hard skin surface.
The Hungarians developed a technique called petrissage that was quickly copied by other European spas, about one hundred years ago, at least. It is a massage technique at heart and it is a relentless tapping of the fingers all about the face and neck – it increases blood flow to the area – which is very important in rebuilding tissue integrity while assisting in lymphatic drainage.
Now with a great instrument to help re-attach the skin, or a personal masseuse, it is time to go after the skin itself. Done properly this will enhance the effects of the device.
As we age, our skin is thinning (though excess sunlight can result in layers of thick deposits of gristle – and sunscreens will NOT prevent that). Whether the skin is thick or thin, after the age of 30, it is fast turning into gristle. What does that mean? Think scar tissue.
The 302 molecule, available from 302 Skincare in Drops or Serum form has an outstanding ability to replace that gristle with normal tissue: soft, resilient and elastic. Used only twice per week and very well tolerated it is a first line of offense against the wrinkle gristles.
Finally, retinol, available from many marketers, the A 1.0 or A 0.5 Drops or Serums (also from 302 Skincare) are key to restoring skin architecture. Many marketers advise daily application. This is wrong. Twice a week is plenty. Too much will send your skin into addiction and weakening.
Do not use these two products at the same time for best results. One month with one, the next month with the other.
Alright, get smooth, the technology exists and works better than a face lift.