So, who isn’t interested in anti aging wrinkle cures? If you’re a part of the baby boomer’s generation (or younger) then I bet you’ve got some kind of anti aging program or strategy going on.
Of course you know as well as I do that there is a literal mountain of products out there, all of which supposedly give you the anti aging wrinkle results you so desperately desire. If you’re well read however then you know all too well that most anti aging products barely do anything!
The fancy marketing presentations (aka ‘lies’ and ‘mis-truths’) that manufacturers come up with to ‘spin’ their products are designed to mis-lead you and tell you what you want to hear. They also cleverly hide any and all weaknesses that each product contains. But, their days of basking in the vast profits that amass from consumers lack of knowledge are fast coming to an end!
Over the past 10 years researchers have been hard at work learning what actually works and why. So, let’s just cut to the chase!
When it comes to anti aging wrinkle cures what works and what doesn’t work? And just how many ‘PROVEN” anti aging wrinkle substances actually exist?
Well, according to a recent review in The Archives of Dermatology, there are THREE treatments out there waiting for you which are “proven clinically effective”!
1. The topical application of retinol
2. Carbon dioxide laser resurfacing
3. An injection of hyaluronic acid
WOW – only three!
Each of these treatments work with the same mechanism of action- the interaction of connective tissue cells (called ‘fibroblasts’) with the collagen they produce.
David Leffell, a professor of dermatology and surgery at Yale, said in response to the study “This is an area where there’s a lot of hype and not much substance”
Of course any of us who have spent a small fortune on anti aging wrinkle creams and serums over the years already know this.
Leffell went on to say that this particular study is “good science”.
What researchers have come to gradually recognize is that the cause of wrinkles lies with damage to the mechanical properties of collagen outside your skin cells, and not necessarily genetic damage to the cells themselves. This discovery sits along side an improved understanding of ‘dermal collagen’ which is your skin’s connective tissue.
So, here’s an easy breakdown.
Fibroblasts create collagen. So, in a perfect world they could go on their merry way unimpeded throughout our lives busily making collagen to keep us looking young. But…..
…of course there’s always a ‘but’ and here it is. Exposure to sunlight diminishes fibroblasts ability to produce collagen!
Which body parts receive the greatest sun exposure? That’s right, your face, neck, hands and upper chest. All the areas where we wrinkle the most (and don’t want to). This connection is clearly demonstrated in fair skinned people whose light-pigmented skin wrinkles more readily than darker skinned people.
You know that your skin naturally deteriorates with age. This is in part because certain enzymes degrade your collagen. But ultraviolet radiation from sunlight sets of the production of these same enzymes. Double whammy! Sun damage to your collagen and its production essentially creates a situation representing accelerated natural chronological aging.
So, with age and exposure to ultraviolet radiation, your collagen fibers deteriorate and fragment. This inhibits the fibroblasts collagen producing ability. As the fragmented collagen accumulates, new collagen production declines, the connections between the fibroblasts and the collagen weaken, and the skin, now lacking support, begins to wrinkle!
Anti Aging Wrinkle Magic
Enter our three proven treatments from above. Each one is able to tackle this destructive process.
Retinol ( a form of vitamin A) when applied topically on your skin causes the production of new collagen in both naturally aged skin and skin damaged by ultraviolet radiation.
How does it do that? Well no-one is really sure, The molecular pathways involved are not very well understood as yet. But as long as we know it works then who really wants to know how it performs its anti aging wrinkle magic.
The next logical question is what concentration of retinol is enough to have an effect?
According to Dr, Gary J. Fisher, a professor of dermatology and the lead author of the review, you should look for concentrations of 0.2% to 0.6%
Strangely enough MANY of the retinol containing skin creams which are available over the counter do not list the concentration of the retinol. Only a company with something to hide would resort to such measures so steer clear of these kind of dubious products.
A totally ineffective concentration of say 0.005% still qualifies a manufacturer to market their retinol wonder product in big bold letters! These incredibly tiny concentrations barely qualify the retinol as the active ingredient! They are simply a waste of money.
And don’t be sucked in by useless products that do state the concentration of retinol on the label. Take careful note of that number!
Now, with over the counter retinol products there is a fine line between effectiveness and side effects! Anti aging wrinkle preparations with retinol concentrations strong enough (as above) to produce results can cause a ‘retinoid dermatitis’. In such cases you must stop using the product. A gradual build-up in concentration has proven effective for some in avoiding this problem.
Retinol also makes your skin more prone to ultraviolet light damage. Strict sun protection measures such as umbrellas or avoiding the sun altogether are absolutely crucial while using retinol.
If you take your anti aging wrinkle strategy very seriously then the best bet is to go for a prescription strength retinol preparation rather than risking an over the counter product.
Anti Aging Wrinkle Strategy – Zap Them
Now we come to the second treatment from our ‘effectiveness proven’ list – carbon dioxide (Fractional) laser resurfacing.
The CO2 laser has been around for quite a while now and it’s effectiveness has been well tested. I definitely know this treatment works because I’ve had it done on my face twice in the past 14 years and my results were nothing short of fantastic. For most people though one treatment in a space of this many years would normally be enough. (When it comes to my anti aging wrinkle program I’m a bit on the ‘intense’ side!). Around 2006 the Fractional CO2 laser was put into operation. This newer technique significantly reduced the healing period to almost nothing.
If you’re not familiar with the CO2 Fractional laser, what it does is to burn away fractional parts of the very fine layers of skin without damaging surrounding tissue. New collagen is produced as the miniature wounds heal.
The healing time takes on average a day or 2 compared with 2-3 weeks for the traditional CO2 laser (non fractional). This rather long recovery period associated with the non fractional CO2 laser is what turns many people away from this treatment option. You need to completely avoid the sun while your skin is healing.
There are several alternative lasers available now which have virtually no recovery downtime but the results are way less noticeable than with the carbon dioxide laser, as far as I’m concerned. I’ve tried one of these lasers (around my eyes) roughly 1 year ago and frankly I felt that that the financial outlay was just not worth it for the minimal results achieved. Particularly because I had experienced the results of the CO2 laser earlier so it was easy to assess the comparative effectiveness of both treatments.
Anti Aging Wrinkle Injections
Injections of a form of hyaluronic acid, similar to a substance the skin normally produces, into the dermis that underlies the wrinkles is the third and last of our three effective anti wrinkle treatments.
The interesting thing with hyaluronic acid is that it was originally used as a space filler to ‘fill in’ wrinkles. There was no intended physiological outcome.
In time researchers discovered that as the injection stretches the dermis, fibroblasts react by increasing their collagen production levels. The authors of the Archives of Dermatology review cite studies that have demonstrated that increased collagen production is visible within a month after the injection. The benefit lasts about six months, Dr. Fisher said.
You’ll find topical creams containing “Hyaluronic Acid” for sale but this form is not the same as the effective injectable form. It is not possible to stimulate new collagen with these topical skin preparations so please don’t waste your money on any of them.
Anti Aging Wrinkle Cures – Specialized Nutrients
We’ve seen that these three treatments effectively address the reduction of wrinkles and are backed by solid research. But there’s more we can add to create a much more potent anti aging wrinkle program!
You can address your wrinkles from the inside out!
What I mean by this is using cutting edge nutritional science to address the primary causes of chronological aging. This involves sophisticated supplementation with specialized nutrients that can tackle the five fundamental causes of aging.
Do you know what these five ‘aging components’ are?
1. Free Radical Production
2. Glycation
3. Methylation
4. Inflammation
5. DNA Degeneration
Each of these is a traumatic and highly destructive situation for your health. But all five together represent a colossal tidal wave of health issues and degenerative disease. You see they are all interrelated so you must tackle all of them at the same time.
Living in the civilized world of the 21 st century is the chief cause of these four health busting conditions. Their net effect on your health is PREMATURE AGING. This means the greatest majority of people living in the modern civilized world are aging far faster than what mother nature intended.
Besides the onset of degenerative disease, premature aging leads to the degradation of your collagen. Remember I mentioned earlier how your skin naturally deteriorates with age? Well, premature aging speeds that process up tremendously. Basically your collagen begins to collapse and those youth destroying wrinkles appear more and more.
So, as far as your anti aging wrinkle program is concerned, for more powerful results you need a 2 pronged approach. The first is addressing wrinkles at the skin level with the one of the proven treatments from above. The second is to address premature aging by using supplements containing proven nutrients which can take on and deal with free radicals, glycation, methylation, chronic inflammation and DNA Degeneration.
Perhaps you may like to read my anti aging secrets and nutritional supplements series There are four parts and they reveal the names of the specialized nutrients needed to tackle the complete anti-aging equation. Parts 1-3 are available now and the final article will be out next week. Just use the link above to pop over to Part 1.
Some of these special ingredients are extremely rare in the nutritional supplement industry. In fact, there is only one multi ingredient health/vitamin supplement in the entire market that contains ALL of them to successfully address premature aging by slowing down and normalizing your chronological aging process.
How do I know?
I used to work in the supplement industry and I’ve reviewed many supplements, primarily the markets leaders. I can tell you that almost all nutritional health supplements (or nutritional vitamin supplements as they’re more commonly called) address free radical production through the use of antioxidants. But as for the other primary causes of aging, manufacturers simply cannot afford to include the specialized ingredients that can get the job done. That’s because almost all of them set out to manufacture their supplements to a price!
This approach guarantees that they will NOT include all the necessary key ingredients that the latest nutritional science has identified as the most potent and effective!
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Click on this link if you would like to know more about the only nutritional supplement that includes the rare and specialized ingredients to tackle free radicals, glycation , methylation, inflammation and DNA Degeneration. There’s separate versions for males and females and even a children’s version.
And if you would like to read my review of this supplement (it’s called ‘Total Balance’) use this link here: My review of Total Balance
Good Health Always!
