The skin is made up of 3 layers namely the epidermis, the dermis and subcutaneous tissue. The outer layer namely the epidermis becomes thinner and less sticky as we age. This in turn causes dryness and as this decreases by 10% per decade, it takes more time for the skin to repair itself.
Among the primary factors that contribute to skin wrinkles are smoking, which dries out the skin since it reduces moisture; skin type as well, since people with light-colored skin and blue eyes are susceptible to sun damage; hereditary peculiarities since there are family lines that are more prone to skin wrinkles; hairstyle, which obviously depends on how much skin is covered by the hair and protected from the sun; dress style, since this will also determine how much skin is covered or left exposed to the sun; and finally, recreational and occupational sun exposure that may spans over a period of years.
But is aging the only cause of wrinkles? The answer is no. Studies have shown that exposure to ultraviolet light, UVA or UVB accounts for 90% of skin aging. This varies depending on race because of the person?s pigment protection. A few other studies have shown that wrinkles can also be caused by environmental factors. Examples of these include cigarette smoking and pollution as this may hasten aging by producing oxygen free radicals. These are particles produced by many of the body?s chemical processes and when it is produced in excessive amounts, it can damage cell membranes causing not only wrinkle but other skin disorders as well.
Rapid weight loss may also cause wrinkles since you reduce the volume of fat cells that cushion around the face that will make the skin sag.Now that we know what causes wrinkles, can it be treated? The answer is yes. Some dermatologists recommend retinoic acid which is applied to the skin to fill in the crevices. There are also things people can take such as topical creams and ointments to peel off the top layers of the skin, dermabrasion which is a procedure to sand the top layer of the skin, injecting collagen or botulinum under the skin and laser surgery.
Some medical practitioners perform laser resurfacing under conscious sedation, where a patient remains awake and receives intravenous medicines to ease and calm the pain. This is also combined with the application of topical anesthetic creams or injectable anesthetics like lidocaine. The procedure may be repeated several times to achieve desired results, however, there is still the risk of causing permanent color change or scarring.
In some cases, a combination of these procedures is necessary. The best part is knowing that this causes uniform destruction and shedding of the old damaged superficial skin cells so the healthier deeper cells will take their place on the surface.
There is not much that people can do to prevent wrinkles because this is normal as we age. But we can slow it down by staying indoors between 10 am to 4 pm when the sun is the hottest and washing the face with a mild non-soap cleanser. The skin should be patted dry and lubricated at once with a water based moisturizer ideally SPF30 filter to prevent further dehydration.
Anybody concerned about getting wrinkles or other signs of aging should still be advised to practice a healthy and, better, a stress-free lifestyle or if not possible, even just keeping stress levels under control. Finally, exposure to ultraviolet light, whether UVA or UVB, from sunlight accounts for most symptoms of premature skin aging, especially since most of the photoaging effects occur by the late teenage years around 19-20 years and so on. Thus, the amount of damage to the skin, especially the presence of wrinkles is determined by the total lifetime of exposure to radiation and the person?s pigment protection.
Among the primary factors that contribute to skin wrinkles are smoking, which dries out the skin since it reduces moisture; skin type as well, since people with light-colored skin and blue eyes are susceptible to sun damage; hereditary peculiarities since there are family lines that are more prone to skin wrinkles; hairstyle, which obviously depends on how much skin is covered by the hair and protected from the sun; dress style, since this will also determine how much skin is covered or left exposed to the sun; and finally, recreational and occupational sun exposure that may spans over a period of years.
But is aging the only cause of wrinkles? The answer is no. Studies have shown that exposure to ultraviolet light, UVA or UVB accounts for 90% of skin aging. This varies depending on race because of the person?s pigment protection. A few other studies have shown that wrinkles can also be caused by environmental factors. Examples of these include cigarette smoking and pollution as this may hasten aging by producing oxygen free radicals. These are particles produced by many of the body?s chemical processes and when it is produced in excessive amounts, it can damage cell membranes causing not only wrinkle but other skin disorders as well.
Rapid weight loss may also cause wrinkles since you reduce the volume of fat cells that cushion around the face that will make the skin sag.Now that we know what causes wrinkles, can it be treated? The answer is yes. Some dermatologists recommend retinoic acid which is applied to the skin to fill in the crevices. There are also things people can take such as topical creams and ointments to peel off the top layers of the skin, dermabrasion which is a procedure to sand the top layer of the skin, injecting collagen or botulinum under the skin and laser surgery.
Some medical practitioners perform laser resurfacing under conscious sedation, where a patient remains awake and receives intravenous medicines to ease and calm the pain. This is also combined with the application of topical anesthetic creams or injectable anesthetics like lidocaine. The procedure may be repeated several times to achieve desired results, however, there is still the risk of causing permanent color change or scarring.
In some cases, a combination of these procedures is necessary. The best part is knowing that this causes uniform destruction and shedding of the old damaged superficial skin cells so the healthier deeper cells will take their place on the surface.
There is not much that people can do to prevent wrinkles because this is normal as we age. But we can slow it down by staying indoors between 10 am to 4 pm when the sun is the hottest and washing the face with a mild non-soap cleanser. The skin should be patted dry and lubricated at once with a water based moisturizer ideally SPF30 filter to prevent further dehydration.
Anybody concerned about getting wrinkles or other signs of aging should still be advised to practice a healthy and, better, a stress-free lifestyle or if not possible, even just keeping stress levels under control. Finally, exposure to ultraviolet light, whether UVA or UVB, from sunlight accounts for most symptoms of premature skin aging, especially since most of the photoaging effects occur by the late teenage years around 19-20 years and so on. Thus, the amount of damage to the skin, especially the presence of wrinkles is determined by the total lifetime of exposure to radiation and the person?s pigment protection.
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This is also combined with the application of topical anesthetic creams or injectable anesthetics like lidocaine. wrinkles
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