Skin aging

General

The term skin aging describes the very complex process which changes the human skin undergoes with increasing age. This process is very different from person to person and is related on the one hand to a genetic predisposition and on the other hand to the individual risk behavior. Therefore, the onset of skin aging is also highly variable:
While some show the first signs of aging from the age of 20, others do not show them until around the age of 40. However, since this is a natural development, at some point everyone (more or less and sooner or later) affected by skin aging.

Causes of Skin Aging

Actually, the term "Skin aging“A little misleading. Of course, strictly speaking, the process of skin aging begins right away birth on. A person's skin is practically subject to constant change throughout their life. Small children usually have very delicate and fine-pored skin, with most of them changing to earlier during puberty greasier and large-pored skin, which among other things Pimples makes noticeable.
Subsequently, in younger adulthood, the texture of the skin depends on the individual disposition and can greasy / oily, dry or mixed be. At some point the transition to aging, „tires"Or"demanding" Skin. Although there is great variability in the timing of this stage of aging skin, it is generally said to be around 25 years of age around.

How quickly the skin ages depends on both internal (intrinsic) and outer (extrinsic) Factors.
The internal factors cannot be influenced; skin aging is a naturally biological process that, depending on the genetic disposition, begins at different times and cannot be stopped.

There are several processes in the body that play a role in skin aging. From around mid to late 20s, the speed of cell division slows down, including in the skin:
While the cells in younger people divide about every 27 days, in older people this only happens every 50th day. As a result, the cells in the skin are less able to renew themselves (the epidermis or dermis is of greatest relevance in the context of skin aging). The main components of the dermis are connective tissue fibers (made of collagen, which makes the tissue stable and resistant to tension, and elastin, which is responsible for the elasticity of the tissue) and connective tissue cells (also called fibroblasts). In older people, less collagen and elastin are formed, which makes the skin less elastic. In addition, the moisture content in the skin drops considerably and this can lead to annoying wrinkles.
In addition, both the skin and the fatty tissue in the subcutaneous tissue become thinner and therefore more "transparent". This makes the red veins under the skin increasingly visible. As the number of blood vessels also decreases, the supply of nutrients and oxygen to the skin decreases. In addition, with increasing age, the skin produces less and less fat and is no longer able to retain as much moisture as it used to be. This makes the skin drier and consequently more sensitive. Another point that is needed to understand skin aging is hormonal changes that take place as we age.

These are particularly noticeable in women who are going through menopause. During this time, the level of the female hormone estrogen drops sharply. This in turn means that the skin is poorly supplied with blood, appears thinner and paler and loses its elasticity.

As the skin ages, the number of pigment cells in the hair also decreases. Therefore, less pigment is formed here and more and more hair becomes white.

Read more on the topic: What is Oxidative Stress?

Another sign of aging are the so-called Age spots (Lentigines seniles). These are benign skin changes that are caused by the deposition of pigments in the epidermis and primarily occur in areas where there is regular strong exposure to the sun.

This natural aging of the skin can be massively intensified by various factors. This primarily includes UV radiation, so either sunlight or the light in solariums. When UV rays penetrate the skin, they lead to the formation of so-called free radicals. These are oxygen particles that have a very high energetic potential and can therefore cause great damage to the skin. You can directly use the DNA harm or Collagen fibers, Proteins or Fat molecules to destroy. Although the skin has a certain protection system (consisting of Vitamins and Enzymes), but this protection is no longer sufficient, especially in the case of excessive UV radiation over a longer period of time. It is now assumed that up to 80% the aging processes that are noticeable on the skin of the face are caused by UV radiation! This also amplifies via the same mechanism Smoke the aging of the skin, as also the contained therein nicotine releases more free radicals.

Also stress The fact that the body releases certain hormones during stress can lead to accelerated skin aging. Our also has a not inconsiderable effect on building aging Nutritional behavior. In order to stay healthy and firm, the skin needs sufficient vitamins and minerals, the amounts of which are unbalanced nutrition or as part of Diets can be deficient. Frequent diets or insufficient fluid intake can also significantly reduce the strength of the connective tissue. Also alcohol damages the skin. A significant one lack of sleep can sometimes contribute to the aging of the skin, probably also due to hormonal processes in the body.

Symptoms of aging

Most of the time, aging skin makes itself smaller by first using it pucker noticeable, which are often initially noticed by the Corner of the eye, to the mouth around and / or on the forehead arise because these regions are usually moved the most and the most. Over time, these wrinkles develop into deep wrinkles and they appear in more and more places, for example in the area of ​​the nose, to the Cheeks and on neck. It also increases the tendency to form Dark circles, Drooping eyelids and visible Bags under the eyes.

Old skin is thinner, so it often looks very bright, almost transparent, and veins lying in the depth are clearly visible. Due to the fact that the skin is getting thinner, it is also much more sensitive than it used to be. Hence it can multiply too Injuries come. Because the skin is also on Regenerative power loses, these injuries can persist longer than with young skin and often it even occurs Wound healing disorders.

More and more hair turns white. Since some hair initially still has its original color, the overall picture usually first appears gray and then white as time goes on.

Old skin also often contains a multitude of Age spots. These are usually flat or only slightly raised, light brown and especially in the area of face, Hands and Forearms to be found, i.e. where the skin multiplies UV radiation is exposed.

Therapy of skin aging

The condition of old skin cannot be treated as a "healing". However, one can rely on a good one maintenance respect the skin and thereby slow down the process of skin aging somewhat Consequential damagesuch as injuries. It is important that the mostly dry skin using various care products such as Creams and lotions are kept as moist as possible.
Some substances are also said to have a positive effect on the aging process of the skin. These include the Vitamins A and vitamin E., Carob Seed Extract and Acacia extract. Care products that contain these substances can therefore be considered primarily for use on older skin.

Prevention of skin aging

The top priority in preventing premature aging of the skin is not to expose it to too much direct UV radiation. So you should excessive sunbathing Avoid and when staying in the sun always on a reasonable one UV protection through textiles and / or sunscreen. Visits to the solarium should be avoided altogether if possible.

A healthy lifestyle is almost as important. You should definitely go for one balanced nutrition pay attention, so enough Vitamins and Minerals eat enough drink and on luxury foods like alcohol and nicotine do without if possible. In addition, it is advisable to try not to expose yourself to significant stress and to stay healthy Sleep rhythm worth it.

In addition, it makes sense to start with an individually tailored skin care program at a very early stage, i.e. not only when the first signs of aging are already there, but rather at an early age. That means that depending on Skin type, certain care products (for cleaning, moistening or drying out) the skin should be used.