How To Stay Youthful

“Oh, wait ’til you reach your 30s,” warned my friend who’s been there and done that. “Once you’re 30, everything starts coming out.”

Update: I’m 6 months away from turning 30. Do I just give up now and accept my inevitable doom? A tad bit dramatic I know, but didn’t you just read what my friend told me? EVERYTHING STARTS COMING OUT. I repeat–EVERYTHING! Abort. Abort mission. Turn back. Turn back time!

Okay, let’s be serious. To women like me who have the same dilemma: what’s our next step? How do we prevent everything, and I mean, EVERYTHING from coming out? We can’t really turn back time. We can’t stay forever young. The only thing we CAN do is to delay the process and eventually reverse the effects of aging–starting with the first thing people see: our skin.

But how?

1. Eat healthy. You are what you eat. Multiple studies find strong links between nutrients and wrinkle reduction, radiance, and acne prevention. Cocoa, for example, hydrates your skin. Protein from eating dairy helps skin become firmer. Organic food maintain the regular flow of hormones unlike food sprayed with pesticide that can cause skin to break out and form blemishes. The list goes on. Bottom line: a happy body makes for clearer, smoother skin.

2. Avoid stress. I know, I know. This is easier said than done but with commitment and determination, it’s not impossible. Physical, mental and emotional stress can trigger systemic inflammation that may not only affect your skin (read: more breakouts) but can also cause physical illness. Look for ways to help you relax. Meditate. Do yoga. Go on morning walks. Get a massage. Whatever works for you, do it.

3. Drink more water. At the end of the day, skin is an organ. And like any other organ, it needs water to be at its best and to rid it of toxins.

4. Wear sunscreen. I cannot stress enough how the sun is our skin’s public enemy no. 1. Its UVA and UVB rays are so harmful to the skin. In fact, it causes 90% of wrinkles, with intense and frequent sun exposure lessening the skin’s ability to heal on its own. It causes premature skin aging, making skin coarse and dry. Sunscreen can prevent all these and keep our skin safe from sun damage. It’s easy and fast to apply so don’t be lazy! This alone can make such a HUGE difference.

5. Start an anti-aging skin regimen. Our skin health processes slow down as we get older so we need to upgrade our skin regimen as early as our 20s. “Skinvesting” time and effort will prevent formation of pigmentation or discoloration and static wrinkles on your skin. I’ve personally tried a number of anti-ageing products already. I like to rotate them every now and then and introduce new products to my regimen after a while. Currently, the latest addition to my roster of anti-aging products is the Revitalift Laser X3 line from L’Oreal Paris. They’re basically laser treatments in a jar.

So you start with the Anti-Aging Power Water, a water-based treatment that enhances skin hydration up to 48 hours, restores skin elasticity and refines pores. It really does feel like splashing water onto your face so you feel like your skin was just awakened.

Next is the Renewing Anti-Aging Serum to correct pores and wrinkles, restore elasticity and stimulate skin renewal. With so much benefits, you’d think it might be too rich and sticky but it’s totally not. It’s actually very refreshing and lightweight and makes my skin feel super soft!

Third on the regimen is the Revitalift Laser X3 Total Care with SPF27 PA+++. It corrects lines, reduces dark spots and evens out skin tone. It melts into your skin with a very thin oil-in-water emulsion and fresh texture so it’s kinda like a moisturizer which is why I sometimes use it alone and don’t follow it up with the fourth step anymore.

Which brings me to the fourth step: the moisturizer–New Skin Anti-Aging Day Cream for day and New Skin Anti-Aging Night Cream Mask for night time. The day cream promotes exfoliation and cell renewal for skin resurfacing, reduces pore size, smoothens out wrinkles and improves skin plumpness and elasticity. The Night Cream Mask, on the other hand, does all these as well except it forms a thin layer of moisture on your skin to work double time, overnight. It’s highly-concentrated and quite intense but not at all heavy on the skin. I personally don’t use it every night though because I feel like this is meant more for dry skin.

Last but not the least on this skin regimen is Anti-Aging Transforming Eye Cream. It smoothens out lines, diminishes eye puffiness and tightens skin around the eyes. It comes in a tube with a cooling metallic applicator which I love because I find it so soothing. Don’t you just hate eye creams that causes a stinging sensation around the eyes? This one doesn’t. It feels gentle yet still does the job so well!

Overall, I’ve been pretty happy with the results. I don’t think they’re meant to correct imperfections and improve skin overnight but I definitely see more and more positive changes as I go along using the products. My skin doesn’t feel or look tired anymore. It feels tighter and plumper. FYI, I don’t use all the products every night. I have pretty oily skin so I try to moderate my usage of the thicker creams. 

(If you want to try these products for yourself, L’oreal Paris Revitalift Laser is at 30% off at Watson’s for the entire month so go go go!)

6. Pay attention to how you apply products on your skin. Upward motion is recommended to avoid saggy skin and wrinkles. For sensitive parts of the face, dab, don’t rub.

7. Make smart lifestyle choices. Watch your alcohol intake. Give up smoking. Avoid late nights. Curb how much processed sugar you intake. These are just a few examples of lifestyle choices that affect your skin greatly.

And that’s it! 7 tips to help you fight skin-aging. We may have not found the fountain of youth yet, but at least we have these.