To be able to fight against the lines and wrinkles on our skin it is also essential we understand more about how they are formed so we can treat them more effectively and reduce their appearance.
There are various factors that contribute to the wrinkling of our skin as well as the natural aging process of the body. With the aging of our body the cells of the skin tend to slow down their process of division.
The dermis, which is the inner layer of the skin starts thinning out. The elastin network and collagen fibers that support the skins outer layer start to slacken causing the skin to appear saggy and lumpy.
As we age our skin loses in elasticity and does not keep in the moisture and our oil-secreting glands are also less efficient making the healing process our skin slower.
Those lines that creep up on us between the eyebrows and in the corner of our eyes develop because of small imperceptible muscle contractions. Frowning, smiling as well as squinting which are regular facial habits cause these wrinkles to form.
The sun also contributes considerably to the damaging of skin and formation of wrinkles. UV radiation from the sun will cause premature aging of the skin, for the sunrays damage the collagen fibers causing excessive production of unnatural elastin.
To reform the damaged collagen the body produces an enzyme metalloproteinase which naturally helps reconstruct the collagen.
Unfortunately during this process some healthy fibers are damaged which leads to an unhealthy formation of fibers known as solar scars, which in turn leads to development of wrinkles.
Smoking also contributes to degenerate the skin cells, for it reduces the production of collagen naturally produced by the skin when the old collagen is broken down and removed.
This decreased formation of collagen results in more wrinkles.
So how can we effectively treat these wrinkles? There are several treatments that are more or less effective for reducing wrinkles and preventing their formation.
Creams and treatments that contain retinoid and retin-A are very good options for anti-aging remedies.
You can also actually remove dead and damaged skin layers that will also get rid of those irregular depressions and damaged skin. This will result in younger looking skin and smoother texture.
Some methods include chemical peels that dissolve the skin layer, dermabrasion that scrapes the skin away and laser skin resurfacing.
The latter method is a more radical treatment which uses an ablative laser and will need a longer healing process and may also cause side effects.
However, there are also other laser treatments that are not ablative and can also effectively treat wrinkles.
These treatments do not touch the outer layer of the skin, all it does is it stimulates the dermis by heating it thus producing more collagen.
For more radical treatments against aging skin Botox collagen and other similar injections can be used although must be used only after medical advice and if your skin really needs such a radical solution.
