Whether you enjoyed gorgeous, clear skin in your teens or were plagued with pimples, once you hit your 20’s you need to re-evaluate how you care for your skin. So…what does skin care for your 20’s and 30’s look like?
At around age 25, skin begins the ageing process. Step by step from now, your collagen and elastin levels decrease. These are the two major structural proteins in the skin. Collagen gives your skin its strength, resilience and firmness and elastin provides you with skin that snaps back into place when it is pulled and pushed – its elasticity and flexibility. Imagine yourself without these – it’s pretty ageing isn’t it?
What also begins to happen is that your cell turnover rate slows. This, in turn, can create a dull, thicker skin that can be more prone to breakouts. This is due to pores becoming enlarged as they are pulled apart by the thickening of the skin and changes in the pH of the surface of the skin.
If you were plagued by oily, acne-prone skin in your teens, your skin would have coped quite well with the use of harsh products. When you use them now, your skin may become reddened and irritated, even flaking. All this just begins to happen in our 20’s, but it does continue into your 30’s and, of course, continues on and on until your skin isn’t so important any more.
Most of us want clear, radiant skin. It is generally accepted that a plumped, glowing skin is a healthy one in all ages. To achieve this we need to consider our individual skin’s needs during times of change in our lives and look at changing our regime every decade or so. Skin care for your 20’s and 30’s needs to evolve as the balance in your skin and body changes.
Four Basics of Skin Care for Your 20’s and 30’s
- Avoid UVA – the single most damaging factor in skin cell and collagen breakdown
- Avoid nasties/chemicals in all your skin products as they inflame the skin, damaging the cells and creating abnormal cells (free radicals)
- Choose products that have proven delivery systems to get ingredients deep into your skin – these are only really the medical-grade cosmeceuticals
- Use antioxidants to nourish, strengthen and deal with those free radicals
Specifics for Skin Care in Your 20’s
You are an adult in every other sense, so it’s time your skin care regime joined in. Here’s what we recommend:
A milder cleanser based on lactic acid or enzymes, rather than salicylic or glycolic acids. This will help heal cell walls, change the pH of the surface of the skin and generally make it easier for other ingredients to penetrate your skin. Cleanse twice to ensure you remove all the day’s grime and makeup. Using a Micellar Water first is a sensible move – your skin doesn’t need to squeak to be clean.- Oily skin often responds well to an oil-based cleanser. CosMedix Purity Solution is a perfect choice and using this 1-3 times a week with the matching Detox Scrub is beneficial for those who do get breakouts from clogged pores.
- Throw away your harsh scrubs! Your pores don’t need that much cleaning now. Use a weekly mask to exfoliate, stimulate and nourish your skin instead. A charcoal detox mask (CosMedix Detox Charcoal Mask) for skin that still gets breakouts, more of a stimulating mask (CosMedix Pure Enzymes Mask) for normal skin and a hydrating, nourishing mask (Aspect Probiotic Sleep Mask) for sensitive and dryer skin.
- Start using Vitamin B and C serums – every day!
- If you have problematic skin, starting on a Vitamin A serum is essential. Let’s knock your pimples on their head! I don’t need to tell you not to pick at your pimples, do I? Start on an entry level Vitamin A and spot-treat if your skin is dry and/or sensitive.
- Moisturise with a humectant moisturiser. This draws water in during the day and helps protect against water loss from your skin. Aspect Dr Hyaluronic serum or Aspect Dr Resveratrol or Osmosis MD Hydrate are all excellent moisturisers in this regard. Even if your skin is oily and you are scared a cream or lotion will clog your pores, consider using Aspect Dr Hyaluronic serum as an anti-ageing product.
- UV Protection every single day!! UV’s are the single most ageing factor in our skin so find one your skin likes and use it religiously to save your skin. There’s some extra reading explaining how UV’s age your skin here.
A milder 
A Few More Things to Consider in Your Quest to Age More Slowly…
- Fake tan, even when organic, contains some nasty characters. So, if you are a frequent user, give your skin a break regularly and try to avoid it on your face.
- Choose makeup carefully. Skin care for your 20’s and 30’s isn’t just about cleansers and moisturisers! Everything you put on your skin counts. With makeup, mineral is best. These days you can choose makeup that gives you all the cover you want, but also feeds and treats your skin all through the day – why would you choose anything else? Osmosis Colour and Colorescience ranges give you all the SPF you want, as well.
- Diet – your body and skin need the best, so feed yourself with lots of colour and protein. Skip the added sugars, processed foods and carbs at every meal.
- Drink water – 2-3 litres every day. Adding lemon to it helps create an alkaline environment in your gut which, in addition to a healthy diet, helps create healthy hormones. These influence what is happening in your skin – you see a decrease in congestion and those breakouts you get around your jawline and chin.
- Exercise and Sleep – ensure you have enough of both!
And Once You Turn 30…
We see many clients around the ages of 28-34 ‘ish’ whose skin has suddenly become uncomfortably dry and sensitive, often associated with breakouts and congestion.
Why?
In a nutshell, because they didn’t start or change their skin regime in their 20’s. They may have had no regime at all or continued to use products which had become too harsh for their skin.
What to do?
Start on the same regime of skin care for your 20’s, including the diet and lifestyle advice listed above. Using a skin-balancing Harmonised water, such as Skin Perfection, and some probiotics is also helpful as your skin needs more help now to return to optimal function and to reverse as much of the damage as we can.
The Essential
- A Vitamin A serum, coupled with the Vitamins C and B as listed above.
Every person’s skin is different. Every person’s skin is also programmed to age in a particular way with its own rate. By caring for it sensibly and wisely we are able to influence, and even slow, each individual program. This ensures the skin remains as healthy and, therefore, as radiant, plumped and wrinkle-free as possible.
Starting with skin care for your 20’s and 30’s is an important factor in your long-term skin health.
Still not sure?
If you need more help or would like personalised advice on what skincare products are best for you, book now for your consultation with a skin care advisor:
Book Your In-Clinic Consultation.
Or fill in the Online Skin Consultation and Gaye, our registered nurse, will happily help you to choose the right treatments and products for your skin type or concern.
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