How to look younger effortlessly
Repeat after us: Aging is beautiful. Every wrinkle, crinkle and spot is hard-earned proof of a life well lived. Thankfully, society has come a long way in recent years, and we’re more fully appreciating the wisdom and beauty of women in their 40s and beyond. But just because you’ve earned your stripes (or the lines on your face, in this case), it doesn’t mean you don’t want to look your very best. The truth is, you can love your age and yourself and still want to know how to look younger.
From choosing makeup that will make you look younger and hairstyles that will turn back the clock to wearing strategic outfits and accessories, we have so many easy options at our disposal. Heck, there are even youthful body-language tactics that can help you look better in pictures. It all comes down to doing what you can to enhance your features. “For example, as you age, your skin gets more dull,” says Jackie Alves, an Arizona-based makeup artist and the founder of Real Makeup for Real Women. “You can reverse that with a few simple moves.”
We dove deep into research and spoke to top beauty, style, nutrition and body-language experts for the tips and tricks that will help you figure out how to look younger while still honoring the life experience you have. It’s not magic … but it may very well feel like it.
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Go easy on the makeup
Instead of heavy makeup in darker colors, opt for nudes and soft pinks that mimic the look of natural youth. And use a light hand. “As we age, our skin loosens and is not as taut as it once was, so the more makeup you apply, the more it can move, settle and travel,” says makeup artist Carmindy Bowyer, the former What Not to Wear star better known simply as Carmindy. “Less makeup will adhere to mature skin much better, so you stay looking fresh all day.”
Need some coverage? Try a tinted moisturizer instead of a heavy-duty foundation. Looking at blush? Skip the heavy cream formula in favor of a sheer cheek tint. And the perfect nude lipsticks are a lot less harsh and aging than darker colors, which can make lips appear to recede and also “bleed” into fine lines around your mouth.
Sleep more tonight
Beauty sleep is a real thing—your body needs the rest time (seven to nine hours) to rejuvenate and repair your body’s cells and get gorgeous overnight. You know lack of sleep causes puffy eyes and dark circles, but there are other negative effects too. “Lack of sleep dries out your skin, making wrinkles deeper and more visible,” says sleep expert Richard Shane, PhD, creator of the Sleep Easy method. “Collagen production also increases during sleep, preventing sagging, and blood flow increases, so your complexion looks better and younger.” Try to go to bed around the same time every night, and stay off your phone as much as possible in the hours leading up to bedtime, since the blue light emitted by our devices can keep us wired.
Go wild for mangoes.
Sleep is one of the best anti-aging treatments, explains Niket Sonpal, MD, NYC Internist and Gastroenterologist. "Skin ages faster and doesn't recover as well from environmental stressors like sun exposure when you have poor sleep. Poor sleep also can cause wrinkles and fine lines, swollen eyes, and paler skin, all characteristics that make you look older," he notes. "Beauty sleep is not a myth, your body repairs itself while you sleep, and good sleep leads to a long list of benefits that will make you look younger." They are loaded with beta-carotene, says London, which helps your skin repair itself, stay smooth, and even delay the appearance of wrinkles. When it’s not their season, reach for winter squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, cantaloupe, and apricots for the same effects.
Take Care of Your Skin - It Makes a Huge Difference Over a Lifetime
As we get older, we need to take care of our skin and commit to a cleansing and exfoliation regimen. Doing so will not only encourage your face to produce more collagen and antioxidants to help new cell growth, but also help to remove excess layers of dead skin cells.
This will continually reveal the brighter skin cells underneath, a natural way to add shine and vibrance to your appearance. This simple tips to looking younger can help you take 10 years or more off of the appearance of your face.
You can also improve on these results by staying hydrated so that your body can actively flush away toxins and bring better nutrients to your skin. Exercise has also been shown to help reduce the signs of aging skin in the face, as it allows for more blood flow, and sweat, which cleanses the pores.
Lastly, there are a few other easy tips and tricks to looking younger that you can use daily in order to maintain that youthful appearance in your face:
Some Medicines Can Help You Look Younger
If you really want to look years younger, consider taking your skin care treatment to the next level. You can nourish and repair your skin with prescription strength skin medicine. Remember that all of the modern medicines we used to treat our body have some plant-based or natural derivative. Don't be afraid of Mother Nature, let her help you in the form of a heavy-duty prescription.
Retinoid, for example, is actually a type of vitamin A which you can naturally find in beef, eggs, or dairy products. It is a vitamin essential for skin health and any creams or facial care products that contain this derivative will help to protect your skin from signs of aging.
Pigment controllers can help reverse signs of aging like age spots or sun spots.
A hydrator can help add hydration to the skin when natural methods are insufficient.
Taking extra antioxidants can improve the effectiveness of the foods you are eating while sunscreen can help protect you against sun damage while allowing your body to get the right amount of vitamin D.
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