7 Ways to Combat Aging

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As you age, your skin starts to sag and wrinkle, and your body becomes weaker, causing you to wake up with aches and pains. Depending on how well you take care of your health, you may even start to feel sick more often. Unfortunately, there’s no way to prevent aging. As you get older, you’ll feel the effects of aging, and eventually, you’ll start to notice it on your face. Unfortunately, while you can’t prevent aging, you can support immune health and reduce your chances of premature skin aging to help you look and feel younger. Here are a few ways to combat aging.

7 Ways to Combat Aging

1. Exercise

Exercise supports health and wellness and can even slow down the aging process on the inside and out. Working out delays aging in many ways. It builds muscle strength, which you lose naturally as you age. Additionally, it makes daily activities less difficult because you have the muscle you need to accomplish them. It can also reduce disease while improving mood and brain health. Exercise also improves bone density to prevent the breaking down of bone tissue. Unfortunately, in your 30s, your bone mass no longer increases. Then, in your 40s and 50s, you start to lose bone density. Exercise can help increase bone density and prevent bone diseases like osteoporosis that can affect you as you age.

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Exercise also improves cognition because it helps circulate blood and oxygen to the brain to help fight signs of aging in the brain related to a decrease in cognitive function. Physical activity hasn’t been effectively proven to prevent dementia, but studies show exercise is linked to reduced dementia risk.

2. Stay Out of the Sun

Keeping your skin out of the sun can help prevent wrinkles and other signs of premature aging. When spending time outside, always wear sunscreen and protective clothing and accessories like hats. Since wearing long sleeves in the heat isn’t ideal, you can bring an umbrella with you to the beach or reapply sunscreen after going in the water or sweating.

3. Use the Right Products

Firming creams are designed to restore elasticity to the skin to prevent fine lines and wrinkles. While they’re not miracle cures, they can tighten loose skin and fill in wrinkles while minimizing the appearance of cellulite. Results from firming creams take time, and results vary depending on the person. Additionally, some anti-aging creams aren’t effective, but they will keep your skin moisturized and healthy to prevent signs of aging.

4. Face Yoga

Facial yoga can help you exercise the different muscles in your face to reduce wrinkles and sagging skin. Facial exercises don’t cost money and can tone your muscles using different techniques, including jawline exercises to reduce double chins and target different areas of the face. Unfortunately, evidence on the effectiveness of aging skin is limited, but more research continues to emerge on the benefits.

5. Supplements

Your skin is your largest organ, and it requires vitamins and minerals. Unfortunately, many of us have a difficult time obtaining all the vitamins we need from our diet. If you’re not eating a balanced diet or aren’t getting all the vitamins your skin needs, it can become dry, cracked, and flaky, leading to wrinkles. Supplements can help combat aging by giving your skin all the vitamins it needs to be healthy and fight the signs of aging on its own. One of the most popular supplements for your skin and complexion is vitamin C, a powerful antioxidant known for its ability to repair damaged cells and protect your skin from free radicals and oxidative damage that can cause wrinkles.

6. Cosmetic Procedures

Unfortunately, diet, exercise, and creams aren’t enough to effectively prevent wrinkles since they’re all part of the aging process. It’s a simple fact of life that as you age, your skin will lose elasticity and start to sag. However, cosmetic procedures can combat these effects. For example, many people resort to chemical peels that can improve skin texture and remove damaged cells from the skin to promote rapid cell turnover. You may also invest in ultrasound skin tightening that utilizes heat to promote the production of collagen for smoother and firmer skin.

Of course, there are also more invasive procedures to choose from, including face lifts, chin and neck lifts, and tummy tucks, all of which can give you a more toned appearance. If you’re considering cosmetic procedures, it’s always best to schedule a consultation with a medspa professional or plastic surgeon to help you determine whether or not the procedure is safe for you based on your medical history and skin concerns.

7. Avoid Smoking

Cigarettes contain thousands of chemicals that affect your overall health, including your skin, lung, and heart health. Chemicals in cigarettes damage skin cells and can quicken the signs of aging, especially wrinkles. Smoking has been proven to increase fine lines and wrinkles on the face and neck, especially around the mouth. It may also cause skin discoloration and an uneven complexion. Quitting smoking can reverse some of these effects, but once the skin, lungs, and heart are damaged, they will never fully repair themselves. The earlier you quit smoking, the healthier you can become in the long run, helping you feel and look your best as you age.

Final Thoughts

Unfortunately, you can’t reverse aging since it’s a normal part of life. However, you can combat the effects of aging on your body and skin to prevent disease and help you look and feel your best. Eating a healthy diet, staying out of the sun, and getting enough exercise can support total body health and wellness to help you feel more energized and strong as you age while reducing wrinkles and fine lines that can make you look older. Changing your lifestyle habits can delay the aging process, even though you can’t reverse it. Evaluating your eating and exercise habits can help you prevent skin damage while supporting total body health. Additionally, choosing products with proven anti-aging effects can help improve skin health on the surface to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.