Must-haves for Anti-Aging Products!

Are you unhappy with those fine lines that have crept onto your face? Dark circles or smile lines around your eyes? What about the texture of your skin, dull and blah. Has it lost its youthful, dewy glow? In the second part of my Skincare Regimen blog, I want to provide you with some fun and easy options to help that pesky aging process! You need a good foundation of cleanser, toner (if needed), moisturizer, and of course sunscreen, BUT to combat the signs of aging you must have a couple of additional anti-aging products in your skincare regimens!

Antioxidants:

1.      An underutilized, yet important component of a good regimen.  Proper usage of antioxidants can increase your sun protection up to 8x that of using sunscreen alone.

2.      Can come in serum, gel, or cream forms.

3.      Thinner products are better for oilier skin types.

4.      Once applied, serums absorb deeper into the skin, and the beneficial effects cannot be washed off.

Some great antioxidants that I love:

1.      Elizabeth Arden Prevage Face Advanced Anti-aging Serum, $ 159.00.

2.      SkinCeutials Phloretin CF, $ 152.0.

3.      Neutrogena Ageless Intensives Anti-wrinkle Serum, $18.99.

Retinoids (Retin-A): 

1.      I know that many people will say they have used this before, or know someone who has, and did not have a good reaction.  If this is the case, chances are that it was NOT being used correctly!  Retin-A is a prescription medication and should only be dispensed and prescribed by a licensed physician.  It has great anti-aging benefits for the skin and this is an important step in many good skin care regimens.  Consult a physician if you have specific questions regarding the use of Retin-A for your skin.

Exfoliation:

1.      There is more than one way to get exfoliation, but my absolute favorite way is with the Clarisonic Brush! Like I mentioned in the first part of this blog, one of my first skincare product obsession was St. Ives Apricot scrub. It was way too harsh for me and still is! That is just my experience and there a lot of really great less abrasive scrubs out there. However, my favorite is the Clarisonic. It is great for all skin types, it has tons of options including sensitive brushes and acne brushes too! It helps skin tone, reduces the appearance of pore size and helps skin care products work their best. Can you ask for more? Oh wait, did I mention it comes in colors? That’s right is comes in countless different colors, including ‘graphite gray’ for the most masculine of guys!

Options for Clarisonic:

1.      Classic Clarisonic, $195. The original 2-speed Clarisonic offers tons of addition ad-ons like a body brush, I need an entire blog to share my love for this brush!

2.      Clarisonic Mia, $ 149.00. The newest addition to the Clarisonic family, the Mia 2 has two speeds, a one-minute pulsing timer which tells you when to switch to another area of the face.

3.      Clarisonic Mia 2, $119.00.  A one-button, single-speed, smaller size brush that is great for travel. Great option for teens and men!

No matter if you want a simple skin care regimen or one that has 7 different steps, start out with what makes YOU comfortable and add as you deem appropriate!