I love to explode beauty myths, so I’m excited to write my 12 Anti Aging Beauty Myths Debunked post. Here’s the deal with beauty products, treatments and regimens: You don’t want to waste your money, right? I spend a lot of time talking about natural products, which are safe, but today I want to address things that really work in terms of anti-aging, and those that are just hype or buzzwords.
Your skin care products should contain collagen and elastin: This is an absolute myth. Collagen and elastin in skin care products cannot do much good because they cannot and will not penetrate your skin. You are much better off using ingredients such as Vitamin C (L’Ascorbic Acid) and Retinol, both of which have been proven to increase collagen production. Also, remember that collagen always comes from an animal source, so it is obviously not vegan.
You must use a night and a day cream: This is not true. You can totally use the same moisturizer for day and night. But, the skin does lose more moisture at night, so you might want to use a richer cream or a treatment oil at night.
An anti-aging eye cream is important: I think eye creams are lovely, especially when they are formulated with homeopathic ingredients such as arnica, to reduce swelling. But are they important for anti-aging? Only if they contain retinol, and most of them don’t (the exception in Mychelle’s Remarkable Retinal Eye Cream).
Certain anti-aging ingredients in skin care products can eliminate wrinkles: I so wish this one was true. And if there was an ingredient or product that could totally eliminate wrinkles, I’d be the first in line! Can some products diminish fine wrinkles? Possibly, although we need to think more in terms of our skin’s overall texture, than focusing on wrinkle depth.
Certain skin care products can shrink enlarged pores: A lot of women complain about getting enlarged pores as they age, and quite a few products promise to shrink them. There is no product out there that can or will do this. Sorry!
How we age depends on our genes (you age like your mom): Not necessarily so. Although we can look at our Mom and kind of see the blueprint of where we’re heading, our lifestyle plays a much larger role in the texture and look of our skin as we age. A healthy lifestyle, using great products, and tons of sunscreen, will win out in the anti-aging arena.
Drinking lots of water hydrates the skin from the inside out: I wish this were true, but it’s not. Drinking loads of water is great for your body and digestion, but it doesn’t plump your skin in the way that watering a wilted plant does!
Retinoids (Retinol) make your skin more light sensitive: Actually it doesn’t. The reason why it’s recommended that you use it at night is because sunlight will make it inactive.
Always use Vitamin C at night: Not true. Vitamin C (L’Ascorbic Acid), should be used in the morning because it offers sun protection during the day.
Oxygen Facials take away fine lines and plump the skin: Oxygen facials are very expensive, and promise huge anti-aging benefits. Loads of celebs getting red-carpet ready swear by them. However, I am very skeptical because there is scant scientific evidence to back up claims. At best, a facial using compressed oxygen might make your skin look a little “plumped up” due to the inflammation caused by the oxygen plumping compressor that’s used to deliver the product.
Gold is anti-aging: Again, I wish it were. And expensive “gold” facials are very popular, but to date there is no scientific published to data to prove it’s anti-aging efficacy.
Lemon Juice lightens dark spots: Being in the “natural” space, I so so SO wish this one were true. But, sadly it’s a bit of a tall tale. The lemon juice will exfoliate your skin, but it won’t fade or get rid of those brown spots on the backs of your hands or your face.
Having exploded all those myths, let’s now look at ingredients and products that actually work, and that are safe and healthy. Make sure that you regimen includes:
- A stable Vitamin C serum
- A good AHA product
- A gentle retinol product
- A good sunscreen, BB or CC cream.
You can find the Mychelle Amazing Retinal serums, and their Amazing Vitamin C serum here.
