Do You Really Need An Anti-Aging Cream?

The anti-aging industry is one of the most profitable industries in the world. And although a large proportion of that industry actually manufactures some brilliant products, a number of companies spend an awful lot of time and money on selling products to people that don't really need them - i.e. teens and girls in their twenties. Because we're led to believe that we need anti-aging products even when our skin shows absolutely no outward signs of aging, we can get lured into this mindset that we need to use products that we don't even need. Here, we tell you whether you really need to use an anti-aging cream, if there are better options - or, if you should be focusing on prevention rather than cure.

Sunscreen

Virtually every skincare expert that we've spoken to agrees that the best anti-aging product that you can use in your teens and twenties is: you've guessed it, sunscreen. And to use it religiously. Nothing else prevents aging like it. Sun damage is absolutely one of the biggest causes of skin damage and although you might not see any damage now, just one sunburn can cause premature aging and you'll really start to notice those fine lines and wrinkles in your late thirties and forties.

But prevention is different from erasing the signs of skin damage. Do you really have fine lines around your eyes at age 20? Probably not - so instead of using an anti-aging cream, use a sunscreen. Oh and by the way - moisturizers with an SPF do not count.

What You Absolutely Don't Need

No longer is an anti-aging cream the only product used to turn back the clock and erase those signs of aging - there are a wealth of products on the market, including anti-aging cleanser, lip balms, clever moisturizers with tiny spoons that you use to apply the product and even creams specifically designed for your neck, elbows and knees. Here's what you don't need.

• An anti-aging cleanser. The job of a cleanser is simply to remove dirt, debris and oil from your face and typically, it'll only stay on the skin for six seconds - which is nowhere near long enough for any fancy ingredients to permeate the top layer of skin, which means that they won't provide any benefit. At all. A regular drugstore cleanser will do the job nicely.

See Also: Face Creams - Which One Really Works?

• An anti-aging lip balm. In the same way that cleansers don't stay on the face for very long, lip balms don't stay on your lips for too long - we're always too tempted to lick them off and even if you don't, they wear off pretty quickly.
• Extra fancy creams or creams for specific and obscure parts of the body. A moisturizer is a moisturizer, and the job of a moisturizer is to lock in moisture. As long as you choose the right formula - oil-reducing or hydrating, a $20 jar will probably do the job.

What's In An Anti-Aging Cream?

Anti-aging creams contain all manner of ingredients and how effective these ingredients are is entirely up for debate. One of the most effective ingredients that actually works - that actually has a huge amount of research behind it - is retinoids.

It'll probably be named "retinol" in the ingredients list and helps to undo damage caused by the sun, plumping skin and reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. The trouble with retinoids is that they can be quite irritating to skin if you've never used them before, so you'll need to start slowly with just a little bit before building up to using them every day. 

Another ingredient that you want to look for is hyaluronic acid as it helps to smooth skin and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. But generally, all you really need is something that properly hydrates the skin, so you need to look for products that contain both humectants (ingredients that draw water to the skin), like hyaluronic acid and emollients, which lock in moisture and prevent moisture loss, like petrolatum. Provided that the moisturizer is the right formula for your skin and you use something that's extra-nourishing on more vulnerable parts of the body, like the neck and knees, you'll be fine.

Can Anti-Aging Creams Damage My Skin?

Unfortunately, yes. If you start using products that contain strong ingredients, like retinols, before you even see any lines as a means of preventing aging before it begins, you might be surprised to see the opposite happen - more fine lines and wrinkles develop. That's because retinols and hylaronic acid - as well as other anti-aging products - can irritate skin so much that it becomes dry, cracked and much more sensitive. These ingredients can also make your skin more sensitive to the sun because they start to break down the protective lipid layer, which means that your skin has less natural protection - and so if you're a little bit lax with your SPF regime or if you don't use enough sunscreen, you might find that anti-aging cream could actually age your skin.

Another myth we want to bust is the use of Botox and fillers to prevent and slow down the aging process. We hear that many people - starting as early as their teens - use Botox because they believe it'll stop wrinkles from ever forming. But all this really means is that their face ends up looking frozen and 9 times out of 10, will actually cause users to look a little bit older than their age.

See Also: Best Anti-Wrinkle Cream - Is There a Solution?

Sunscreen is really the only preventative worth using, but you do have to use it everyday - even when it's cloudy out or if you're indoors all day - for it to work properly.