Eye Wrinkle Reduction

One of the first signs of aging are "crows feet" that occur around the eyes. The area around the eyes has very thin skin and needs proper care. Unfortunately, some of the ingredients that are used in face and body creams are designed to go deep into the skin. These are not desirable for under eye wrinkles as the eyes may become irritated. Therefore, it is better to use a dedicated eye serum or gel so you can maximise benefits without any risk to your eyes.

I would recommend that you use natural anti wrinkle products, and use them every morning and night for optimum reduction of under eye wrinkles. The serum or gel should be free of chemicals, fragrances and mineral oils and contain lots of active and proven anti aging products. There are many natural ingredients that have been shown to be beneficial to wrinkle reduction around the eyes. Check out products and ingredients like Eyeliss, Haloxyl, Homeo Age, Cynergy TK, Nanobelle Coenzyme Q10, Babassu, Crodomol CAP, Phytessence Wakame, Retin A plus natural vitamin E and active manuka honey.

But don't just rely on anti wrinkle products to reduce under eye wrinkles. Maintain healthy lifestyle habits and your skin will benefit long term. Here are some tips to help with wrinkle reduction around the eyes:

• Wear sunglasses when outside in the sun. This will help protect the area around the eyes and stop you squinting.
• Put on sunscreen before you go out in the sun, paying special attention not to miss the skin around the eyes.
• Cleansers and toners can make your skin dry, so don't forget to moisturize afterwards.
• Get lots of anti oxidants in your diet.
• Drinks lots of water.
• Avoid smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, stress and over-eating.
• Get enough sleep and take time out to smell the roses.

I like that last point.

Resources For Wrinkle Reduction Advice

So you've noticed a few (more) wrinkles appearing on your face and neck. What resources are available for obtaining wrinkle reduction advice or information regarding anti wrinkle products? There are several places where you can find the type of information you need to achieve younger looking skin.

Your local dermatologist is a good source for advice. A dermatologist is a doctor who specializes in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of skin conditions and disorders.

There are also many online resources for wrinkle reduction guidance. Online forums can provide you with advice from people who have found solutions to wrinkle problems, who have tried anti wrinkle products or an anti aging treatment. Alternatively, websites can provide you with a wealth of information ranging from laser wrinkle removal to wrinkle cream reviews to treatment for under eye wrinkles, and any other skin and wrinkle problem that you may have. These sites will have recommendations for products and treatments that can get you on your way to having younger looking skin.

You can quiz your friends and colleagues as to what anti wrinkle products they have tried and would recommend. You may quickly discover an excellent product by just asking!

There are a lot of natural products that benefit your skin. So you could scour the bookshelves for homemade skin rejuvenation treatments. Some home-based treatments have been around for decades - these might be a great anti aging treatment for your skin.

When searching for advice, you need to be mindful that everybody's skin is different. Some people's skin is more sensitive than others. Therefore, some treatments and anti wrinkle products will work better for some than for others. You should be aware of the ingredients and products that might react badly with your skin.

Whatever you discover, make sure you take care of your skin every day. Get plenty of rest, drink lots of water, eat healthy food and don't get too much sun. It's the best thing you can do for keeping wrinkles at bay.

Marketing - Don't Get Suckered In!

The skin care market is a mega-billion dollar industry. There is so much demand for effective anti wrinkle products, cosmetic companies are continually introducing new anti wrinkle creams to take advantage of this fact.

People are hungry for products that promise skin rejuvenation, and will pay a lot of money in the belief that it will give them younger looking skin.

More often than not, however, it is the pricier skin care products that are ineffective. And it really annoys me when the products don't even come close to achieving the promises that the advertising leads you to believe.

Many of these products are generated and pushed onto the market without testing or proof that they will do anything beneficial for your skin. Instead of spending time and investing money to produce superior, proven anti wrinkle products, most manufacturers will spend their money on marketing and product staging.

And if you haven't realised it yet, marketing is very expensive! But even so, a good marketing campaign can turn a not-so-spectacular small bottle of goo into a huge earner for a cosmetics company.

But don't get me wrong. There are some excellent products that will give you younger looking skin. The complication is in knowing which skin care ingredients and products actually work. Without good information, it can be very hard to find a product that works for you.

Unfortunately, there will never be a lack of people willing to spend good money for the latest anti wrinkle creams, irrespective of whether they help or not. The reality is that most people will not make the effort to investigate cosmetic products and ingredients.

So do yourself a favour, start reading a few wrinkle cream reviews and GET INFORMED before you commit to purchasing that next product. As an informed buyer, you won't fall for the marketing hype. Find out which ingredients are effective and those that can actually damage your skin.

Bad Ingredients - Part 1

It's unfortunate that so many skin care and anti wrinkle products on the market contain a range of constituents that can potentially harm you over a period of time, some being carcinogenic. The following are ingredients to be aware of:

Mineral Oil

The moisturizing effects of anti wrinkle creams are commonly achieved by the mineral oils in them. Companies use mineral oil because it cheap. Call it what you will (mineral oil, petrolatum, liquid paraffin, paraffin wax), they are all bad for your skin.

After a single application of an anti wrinkle cream containing mineral oil, your pores will become blocked and your skin won't be able to breathe. Consequently, your skin may form pimples and rashes. And after continued use, your skin will stop producing it's own oils. When this happens, it will become dry and scaly.

This common ingredient in creams can actually do the opposite of giving you younger looking skin.

And what's worse is the result from a recent study on mice that found the application of commercial anti wrinkle creams containing mineral oil and sodium lauryl sulphate significantly increased the frequency of skin cancer.

That brings me onto the next ingredient to avoid...

Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (SLS)

This inexpensive detergent is commonly used in cosmetic cleansers, shampoos and bath/shower gels to enhance penetration and absorption of other active ingredients. It is arguably the most dangerous ingredient used in skin care products. SLS is used for industrial cleaning of workshop floors, engine degreasers and car wash detergents. It is highly corrosive and attacks oils and greases.

Sodium lauryl sulphate is harmful to skin as it cleans by corrosion. It dries skin by stripping the external protective lipids, which help control skin moisture.

Another serious dilemma is the association of SLS with nitrate contamination. SLS reacts with many ingredients used in skin products to form nitrosomines. These nitrates are potentially carcinogenic.


There are several more bad ingredients discussed in Part 2 of this post.

Peptides - The Good, The Bad And The Disappointing

Well actually, it's mainly disappointing!

Peptides That Inhibit Neurotransmitters

Neurotransmitters are things that make your muscles work when your brain tells them to. We're familiar with Botox and it's properties - Botox injections block the release of neurotransmitters to, in effect, paralyze the muscles. Thus, after Botox injections between your eyebrows, when your brain tells your eyebrows to squint, nothing happens.

There are anti wrinkle products being marketed to take advantage of the fact that everyone knows and accepts that Botox works. These anti wrinkle creams contain peptides, but do they really work like Botox?

Peptides are proteins consisting of small chain amino acids. Argireline is the name given to a certain peptide (a lot easier to say than acetyl-hexapeptide-3) that slows down the release of neurotransmitters. In wrinkle cream containing up to 10% Argireline, laboratory tests show that it provides some benefit towards the appearance of having younger looking skin. However, the jury is out about whether the peptides can actually go into the skin and through to the muscle level, which they would need to do to replicate Botox. Some have suggested that it's the product's accompanying moisturizing ingredients that reduce wrinkles by hydrating the skin. Also, if the product worked like it claimed, any muscles that came in contact with the cream (face, neck, finger tips) should cease working - but they don't.

Peptides That Stimulate Collagen

Another peptide (palmitoyl-pentapeptide-3, also called Pal-KTTKS or Matrixyl) is reported to encourage the manufacture of collagen and other proteins that are found in the skin's dermal layer. Sounds promising, but how does it compare with Botox?

Well, tests have been conducted. Unfortunately, it didn't do any better than the plain moisturizer it was being compared against.

Peptides For Stabilizing Copper

Copper plays a vital role in living organisms. For us, collagen and elastin creation rely on the presence of copper. In theory, peptides can be used to stabilize copper, transporting the element to locations in the skin to improve the appearance of wrinkles. In practice, trial tests on people have shown only minimal benefits.

The New Buzzword - Cosmeceuticals

Derived from a cross between cosmetics anf pharmeceuticals, the term "cosmeceuticals" implies that these anti aging creams are better than ever. Unfortunately, these anti wrinkle products aren't the wonder creams that the cosmetic companies would like you to believe.

In a recent test (2009), French and US organisations jointly tested popular anti wrinkle creams and lotions. On average, each cream was tested on 20 women, aged between 30 and 70 years old, for 3 months.

The results showed that all creams had some benefits on all women, but none of the creams had an effect on all participants. And there seemed to be no correlation between the type of active ingredient and performance, nor did cost relate to performance.

Are We Surprised?

If you've already spent a pile of money on anti wrinkle creams that haven't come up to your expectations, this conclusion won't come as any surprise. But there are several reasons why you may also find cosmeceutical creams don't work for your wrinkles...

Firstly, the science of skin aging isn't simple. There are numerous aspects involved, including varied cell regeneration rates, loss of subcutaneous fat, attack from free radicals, varying hormonal levels and breakdown of skin cell components. Therefore, trying an anti wrinkle cream that targets just one or two of these factors won't benefit other skin ailments that you may have.

Secondly, everybody has different skin types. So, it's logical that different anti wrinkle products will generate different results for different people.

Thirdly, while the results from "scientific studies" may indicate that specific components will work in a laboratory situation, it doesn't guarantee that the product will work when you use it on your skin. More often than not, the active ingredients can't even penetrate your skin. Or the active ingredient may be unstable and deteriorate, thereby not having sufficient concentration to affect your skin. Additionally, other ingredients may hinder the activity and benefits of the prime ingredient.

There are a lot of expensive products on the market that don't do a lot in the way of skin rejuvenation. But, coming out of the wrinkle cream reviews, here are three anti wrinkle products that hold some promise:

• tretinoin (also known as retinoic acid), found in perscription-only creams.
• AHAs (alpha hydroxy acids), but only in concentrations of greater that 10%.
• sunscreen. Try wearing sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat to minimize the amount of skin damage from the sun's UV rays (and it's likely to be the least expensive, too!).

Forms Of Aging And Possible Treatments

There are three main types of skin aging. And each one needs to be treated in a different way from the others.

Firstly, we have the effects from gravity. With any loss of skin elastin or collagen or disappearance of subcutaneous fat, gravity sees an opportunity to step in and take away our younger looking skin. This results in droopy wrinkles and skin folds about the eyes and neck. Surgical procedures for facelifts (essentially, skin tightening) and cosmetic fillers such as collagen and hyaluronic acid are used to undo the effects and provide some degree of skin rejuvenation.

Secondly, with time, facial expressions from frowning, squinting and smiling leave everlasting wrinkles and furrows. Cosmetic fillers such as botox and collagen can be injected to help decrease these type of wrinkles.

Finally, there is damage caused by UV rays, or photoaging. Gradually, this affects the skin, causing fine lines and wrinkles and skin roughness. We also experience pigment changes resulting in age spots and freckles. Some anti wrinkle products can help, and include creams that contain tretinoin, AHA (alpha hydroxy acids), antioxidants and peptides.

Alternatively, skin resurfacing by using acid or laser wrinkle removal techniques are available.

Botox - Neurotoxin And Anti Wrinkle Product

Botox is just one of the many cosmetic fillers available. It is popular for the temporary reduction of frown lines on the forehead and between the eyebrows. It is a biological toxin modified to be used to treat lines and wrinkles created by muscles during facial expressions, such as squinting or frowning. Botox is injected beneath the skin and restricts muscle contraction to give the impression of being relaxed.

Botox doesn't go anyway towards correcting sun damage, rough skin, age spots or scars. It's use is approved for a very limited area of the face only, essential the furrow between your eyebrows.

Are There Any Downsides To Using Botox?

Botox is a bacterial neurotoxin called botulinum. It can be deadly poisonous in sufficiently large quantities - and that's why it is heavy diluted before being injected. The use of Botox is forbidden for pregnant or lactating women, or if neurological problems exist.

Botox injections are only temporary. The benefits from this anti aging treatment will disappear between 3 to 6 months. A set of injections will cost about $800.

Regular injections will expose you to risk of skin and nerve damage, and may aggravate some skin problems.

Side effects to Botox are possible, although not everyone will get them. If side effects do occur, they are usually slight and easily treated. Botox patients may experience headaches, facial pain or difficulty swallowing. The patient may have a droopy eyelid if the muscle used to raise the eyelid is affected. Occasionally, but very infrequently, sight disorders can occur.

Given in large quantities, Botox can cause botulism. However, this type of poisoning would arise only if the injection is many hundreds of times stronger than that normally used for the cosmetic procedure.

Tretinoin - A Skin Rejuvenation Product

There are hundreds of anti wrinkle products on the market, from facial wrinkle cream to gels that fix under eye wrinkles. But, alas, not many of them work. If they did, we would all have younger looking skin and a lot of extra money in our pockets.

Retin A and Renova are the best known brands of tretinoin. It is derived from vitamin A and is only available by perscription. Tretinoin is one of the few anti wrinkle products whose skin rejuvenation effects have been tested and proven in skin studies. It is found to reduce fine wrinkles and roughness of skin, increase thickness of the epidermis and promote growth of collagen.

Tretinoin works by setting off processes in the skin that includes cell growth, production of collagen, elastin and sebum. It also slows down certain enzymes that damage collagen and elastin. These enzymes become increasingly active as we get older.

But Beware!

Side effects can be common and include irritation of the skin, dryness, peeling and sensitivity to the sun. It is recommended that tretinoin is used sparingly. If the side effects don't go away with continued use, it may lead to skin damage - certainly NOT the aim of the treatment!!

Cosmetic Fillers

Sometimes, in the process of getting younger looking skin, you may consider cosmetic fillers (also known as wrinkle fillers). Cosmetic fillers are used to correct minor facial imperfections, such as lines, skin folds, pitted scarring, skin depressions or to correct hollowness beneath the eyes.

Most cosmetic fillers involve an injection, although some may be administered by incision. Cosmetic fillers can be used to return fullness that is naturally lost as subcutaneous fat is lost. The simplest and least costly process is by injecting temporary filler. Collagen may be used for this, however some products are made from hyaluronic acid. This temporary cosmetic filler can last from 2 to 12 months. Eventually, the filler is absorbed by your body.

Another category of cosmetic fillers involves injection of a permanent material, such as silicone. But as these fillers are non biodegradable, they will stay in your body forever. This is not a recommended route as the long term effects on your body are unknown. Some of these products may ultimately turn out to be toxic.

Personally, I don't like the thought of getting stick by any more needles that I need too. I would therefore recommend, especially for fine lines and moderate wrinkles, you try anti wrinkle products and creams before signing up for cosmetic fillers.

Smoking Causes Wrinkles

Smoking certainly won't give you younger looking skin. This is because smoking causes wrinkles.

Have you ever noticed that people who smoke are likely to have more wrinkles than non-smokers of the same skin type, age and exposure to UV rays? The more cigarettes you smoke and the longer you've been smoking, the more wrinkles you will get. Early skin damage may be difficult to see, but be rest assured, it is happening. Skin changes are more prominent in smokers after about the 10 year mark.

How Does Smoking Cause Wrinkles?

Smoking speeds the aging process of your skin due to the nicotine in cigarettes. The nicotine causes the skin's blood vessels to narrow. This reduces the amount of blood getting to the skin. Less blood flow, less essential oxygen and vital nutrients. And then there are also the hundreds of chemicals in the cigarettes that are detrimental to collagen and elastin. So, consequently, wrinkles begin to form.

And it's not only facial wrinkles. Smoking is also the cause of wrinkles to other areas of your body, such as the arms and neckline. While the skin wrinkles may not be reversible (at least, not without anti wrinkle products), giving up smoking is likely to prevent the them from prematurely getting worse.

So if you are searching for a reason to stop smoking, add the untimely appearance of wrinkles to your motivation list.

Eating Sea Weed Helps Wrinkle Reduction?!?

Aha! But not just any sea weed!

There is a kelp that has been used for eons in Japan, primarily as a food but having a great side effect of encouraging younger looking skin. It's name is phytessence wakame.

The reason that it is so healthy is because it's full of vitamins and minerals. Phytessence wakame contains B group vitamins, including B1, B2, B3, B6 and B12. And it has lots of iron, sodium, calcium and potassium. This all means that it's really good for your skin.

This special sea kelp blocks a harmful enzyme called hyaluronidase from reducing the quantities of hyaluronic acid in your skin. In other words, it assists collagen and elastin fibers in making the skin firmer.

And you know the best thing? You can find phytessence wakame in many anti wrinkle products. Arigatou gozaimasu!

It’s So Versatile!

Skin is so multi-talented! I think that it's just fascinating stuff. It is our natural protective body covering. It keeps our muscles, bones and other organs inside our body while keeping infections out. Skin helps maintain our bodies at just the right temperature and it provides us with our sense of touch.

So when we take care of our skin, we're assisting it to do all the work that it's designed to do. And taking care of our skin NOW will help prevent problems in the future, such as (more!) wrinkles and age spots.

A sound understanding of the various parts that make up our skin and their role can be valuable in understanding the aging process. And once the basics are known, it can help us work out which anti aging treatment and skin rejuvenation products make good sense and which are just a waste of time and money.

In the next post, I'll provide a very quick overview of "The Basics of Skin" so that we can understand the basics behind what causes wrinkles and how to achieve wrinkle reduction - sort of like Skin Biology 101.