Structural rearrangements are also taking place behind the scenes. When we are young, facial fat is evenly distributed, with a few pockets here and there filling out the forehead, temples, cheeks, and areas around the eyes and mouth.
With age, that fat loses volume, accumulates and moves downward, so previously round features can sag and skin that was soft and tight loosens and sags. Meanwhile, other parts of the face gain fat, particularly the lower half, so we tend to have slack around the chin and double chins on the neck.
And, of course, there are the wrinkles. The deep ones on the forehead and between the eyebrows are called expression or animation lines. They are the result of facial muscles continually pulling on the skin and eventually wrinkling it.
Other folds may become deeper because of the way the fat decreases and moves. Finer wrinkles are due to sun damage, smoking, and the natural degeneration of the elements in the skin that keep it thick and supple.
What can I do with my aging face?
While a face that ages gracefully is a beautiful thing, there are changes that occur with age that we might want to slow down.
One approach is to simply celebrate our age and appearance for what they are. Age-related changes in our facial appearance reflect our joys and challenges in life. But not everyone is comfortable with that, and some would prefer to postpone adopting those changes.
The age-defying facelift, which surgically removes excess tissue and lifts sagging skin on the lower part of the face, is one way to try to stop the passage of time. Facelifts have improved, so the results tend to look more natural. But surgery is expensive and other procedures may be needed to achieve the desired results.
Non-surgical alternatives
The facelift procedure is just one of the most popular cosmetic procedures. There are many alternatives to alter the aging face, including rejuvenating treatments. Although most rejuvenation procedures are non-surgical, they are not inexpensive, especially considering the need for repeat treatments.
Here’s just a sampling of some of the things you can do (or do) to give your face a more youthful appearance:
Solar protection. Protecting your face from the sun is the best way to keep it young. Much of the damage comes from the UVA part of the light spectrum, so you need to wear sunscreen that protects against it and UVB light, which causes sunburn. It’s also a good idea to wear a wide-brimmed hat.
Creams and lotions. Moisturizers soothe dry skin and can temporarily make wrinkles less noticeable. Facial moisturizers contain water to make them less greasy, and many have substances (glycerin, for example) that can help bind water to the skin. Exfoliating creams can improve the appearance of old skin by removing dead cells that don’t come off as easily as when we were young.
Several prescription creams (Avita, Avage, Renova, Retin-A) have been shown to reduce wrinkles and so-called liver spots caused by sun exposure. These FDA-approved creams contain retinoids, compounds related to vitamin A that appear to work by inducing collagen production in the dermis and altering melanin, the pigment that causes liver spots. There are several varieties of retinoids. Tazarotene and tretinoin are two of those used in FDA-approved products.
Botulinum toxin injections. These injections are used to treat expression lines on the forehead and between the eyebrows. They work by partially immobilizing the muscles that form expression lines so that the skin softens, although some deep expression lines may not disappear. Botox is the family brand. Other FDA-approved botulinum toxins are Myobloc and Dysport.
Dermal fillers. Dermal fillers are used to treat lines created by loss of collagen and fat. After botulinum toxin injections, dermal filler injections are the most common cosmetic procedure performed in the United States. The main sites for injections are two sets of parentheses: the pair of lines that extend from the nose to the corners of the mouth, known as the nasolabial folds, and another pair that extend from the corners of the mouth to the chin. known as puppet lines.
Many different materials are used as dermal fillers. Collagen has fallen into disgrace
