In your 50s? This is the time of life to “up your skincare game” according to a GP and skincare founder who boasts her own youthful visage. She detailed the Best skincare routine for anti-ageing to look younger in your 50s. Dr. Ginni Mansberg, GP and Founder of ESK Skincare spoke with Express.
How can you look younger at 50?
Watch for sensitivity
The skin may become more sensitive in this decade, something that can make skin look older, but also feel sore. Dr. Ginni explained: “At this age, most women go through, or have just hit menopause. And what comes with this hormone change is sensitivity.
“A Dutch study found that 32 percent of peri- and postmenopausal women said they had sensitive skin. The women experienced bumps/pimples, dryness, itching, and redness, and typical triggers included shaving, weather, toiletries, and emotions.
“Plus rosacea often makes an unwelcome appearance at this time causing flushing, redness, dilated blood vessels, and burning/ stinging. In fact, 20 percent of our users in their 50s report having Rosacea.”
So how can you soothe your skin if you’re suffering from sensitivity? Be careful when it comes to using strong products, Dr. Ginni explained.
She said: “You might need to cut back on using Vitamin C and Alpha Hydroxy Acids for a bit until your skin settles down.”
READ MORE: I’m 48 and I look 30 – the secret is a skincare product necessary to look 15 years younger
Check your Vitamin A products
Dr. Ginni advised continuing with your skincare routine into your 50s but having a look at products with a certain ingredient.
She advised: “Just check your Vitamin A products. Prescription Vitamin A (Tretinoin) is a super effective anti-aging ingredient, but is often irritating, for sensitive rosacea skin. So, gentler forms of Vitamin A, particularly Retinal, (Tretinoin’s gentle precursor) are often touted as a tool for Rosacea management.
“There is a small study which showed Retinal combats redness and the dilated red blood vessels, although retinol has not been studied specifically for rosacea.”
A viral skincare expert has dubbed retinol, made from vitamin A, the “superstar of anti-aging” and recommended the Youth To the People Retinal Serum.
Try microneedles
Dr. Ginni said: “At this age, you might really need to up your skincare game. Everything you’ve been doing up until now needs to continue but you might want to turbocharge your skincare by adding some microneedles. Yes, seriously!”
But what are microneedles? Dr. Ginni explained: “Microneedles are exactly what they sound like – tiny AKA “micro” needles (often less than one millimetre long) that puncture the outer surface of the skin.
“The act of puncturing the skin causes tiny injuries. When the skin starts to heal it stimulates growth factors to stimulate new skin cells, new collagen, and elastin. Secondly, the needles allow certain larger molecules to get past the skin barrier (or stratum corneum) to deliver critical ingredients into the deeper epidermis and dermis.”
Some at-home products have harnessed the power of micro-needling. Dr. Ginni explained: “New technology has allowed us to make microneedles out of hyaluronic acid which is hard enough to penetrate the skin, but then dissolve in the outer layer of the skin. These microneedle patches can be easily applied at home, delivering the hyaluronic acid directly and efficiently into the skin layers.
“Hyaluronic acid is a great skin ingredient in and of itself because it is well tolerated by the skin, has a low rate of immune system reactions, and has its own anti-aging and skin healing properties.
“With dissolving hyaluronic acid microneedles, actives can be encapsulated within the microneedles so that- after piercing into the skin- as the microneedles themselves dissolve, they also allow a super-efficient but the controlled release of active ingredients into the skin.”
If you’d like to try out products such as these, there are the skyn ICELAND Dissolving Microneedle Eye Patches or the Peace Out Microneedling Anti-Wrinkle Retinol Patches among others.