With age comes wisdom but also wrinkles. The natural ageing process causes everyone to develop wrinkles, fine lines on parts of the body — like the face, neck, hands and forearms — which are exposed to the sun.
Hectic lifestyle, mental and physical stress, improper sleep, lack of nutritious diet and environmental factors like pollution often lead to skin damage, essentially resulting in wrinkles and fine lines.
For most, wrinkles develop between 40 and 50 years of age but nowadays they start appearing in mid-30s. This is due to lack of moisture, genetic disorder, sun exposure, smoking etc. A few lifestyle and diet changes can help you look as young as you feel.
Today, the focus is on how to delay visible signs of ageing. Beauty expert Shahnaz Husain will suggest the right kind of preventive care to preserve the youthfulness.
Today, cosmetology techniques offer corrective techniques in the form of external care. Though ageing is beyond our control but prevention is certainly within our reach.
From the age of 30, begin to protect your skin from drying up. Your daily routine should lay more emphasis on moisturising the skin and prevention of moisture loss. Begin to protect the skin from the factors that cause dryness, like exposure to the sun, artificial heating and air-conditioning, chemical air pollutants, make-up cosmetics and so on. A suitable sunscreen along with a moisturiser should be used during the day, 20 minutes before going out.
Include products which have moisturising effect. Nourishing the skin every night also helps it to retain moisture and delay signs of ageing. Somewhere within the living cell is locked the fascinating mystery of the ageing process. Instead of battling wrinkles and fine lines with expensive creams, you should try anti-ageing ingredients which are easily available at home.
Green tea is a powerful antioxidant. Take half cup water and two teaspoons of green tea. Bring the water to a boil. Put tea leaves in a ceramic bowl. Pour hot water over it and keep for two minutes. Strain and cool the liquid. Apply on face with cotton wool to tone the skin. Leave on.
Exfoliation removes dead skin cells and helps regeneration of new cells. Crush sesame seeds (til) coarsely and mix it with honey. Add dried mint leaves. Or mix almond meal with yogurt for exfoliation. Apply on the face and rub gently on the skin with small circular movements. Wash off with water.
Fruits like banana, apple, papaya, water melon can be mixed together and applied as a face mask for all skin types. Papaya, rich in enzymes, cleanses the skin of dead cells and helps cell renewal. Banana tightens the skin. Apples and oranges are rich in vitamins and minerals. Water melon hydrates the skin. Apply and wash off after 30 minutes.
For an anti-ageing face mask that also adds radiance, take half teaspoon of wheat germ oil and two drops of geranium oil. Add two teaspoons of oatmeal, one teaspoon of almond meal and orange juice. The pack is rich in antioxidants and Vitamin E with powerful anti-ageing benefits.
The hands begin to show neglect and ageing sooner than most other parts of the body. Take two tablespoons of sunflower oil and three tablespoons of coarse sugar. Mix together till it becomes a paste. Apply and rub into skin of hands. Rinse off after 15 minutes.
The practice of handheld body massage is ancient. A five-minute daily facial massage with fingers to either side of your face, moving them in circular strokes, reduces stress and prevents wrinkles and fine lines. You may use specialised spas and massage salon services.
Virgin coconut oil has been used in India for preventing fine lines, wrinkles as tradition from old time. Massage coconut oil in circular motion on body parts like face, arms and hands and leave it overnight. You can use it as daily practice before going to bed for moisturising and hyderating the skin to check wrinkles, fine lines and give radiant and glowing skin by restoring skin elasticity.
Regular intake of yogurt and probiotics boosts skin health. Daily intake of three litres of water hydrates and moisturises the skin.
Olive oil is a natural remedy for wrinkles. Massage a few drops of this oil on your skin before bedtime to get soft and supple skin. You can repeat it daily or twice a week as per your skin type.
Cosmetics entrepreneur Helena Rubinstein once said, “The skin has a tremendous capacity for self-rejuvenation if properly cared for and it’s never too late to start.”
