Mayo Clinic Health Manager
Get free personalized health guidance for you and your family.
Get Started
close window
Housecall Archives
About our e-newsletters
- Free e-newsletters
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- We do not share your e-mail address
Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
Housecall Archives
close window
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Prevention
By Mayo Clinic staffHere are ways to improve and maintain your skin's youthful appearance:
- Protect your skin from the sun. Protect your skin — and prevent future wrinkles — by limiting the time you spend in the sun and always wearing protective clothing and hats. Also, use sunscreen when outdoors, even in winter.
- Choose products with built-in sunscreen. When selecting skin-care products, choose those with a built-in sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 15. Also, be sure to select products that block both UVA and UVB rays.
- Use moisturizers. Dry skin turns plump skin cells into shriveled ones, creating fine lines and wrinkles long before you're due. Though moisturizers can't prevent wrinkles, they may temporarily mask tiny lines and creases.
- Don't smoke. Even if you've smoked for years or smoked heavily when you were younger, you can still improve your skin tone and texture and prevent future wrinkles by quitting smoking.
References
- McCullough JL, et al. Prevention and treatment of skin aging. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 2006;1067:323.
- Renova (tretinoin cream). U.S. Food and Drug Administration. http://www.fda.gov/cder/foi/label/2002/21108s1lbl.pdf. Accessed Nov. 25, 2008.
- Rabe JH, et al. Photoaging: Mechanisms and repair. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. 2006;55:1.
- Soft tissue fillers. American Academy of Dermatology. http://www.aad.org/public/Publications/pamphlets/SoftTissueFillers.htm. Accessed Nov. 25, 2008.
- Kafi R, et al. Improvement of naturally aged skin with vitamin A (retinol). Archives of Dermatology. 2007;143:606.
- Facial skin rejuvenation. American Academy of Dermatology. http://www.aad.org/public/publications/pamphlets/cosmetic_facial.html. Accessed Nov. 25, 2008.
- Helfrich YR, et al. Overview of skin aging and photoaging. Dermatology Nursing. 2008;20:177.
- Mature skin. American Academy of Dermatology. http://www.aad.org/public/Publications/pamphlets/MatureSkin.htm. Accessed Nov. 25, 2008.
- Baumann L. Cosmetics and skin care in dermatology. In: Wolff K, et al. Fitzpatrick's Dermatology in General Medicine. 7th ed. New York, N.Y.: The McGraw-Hill Companies; 2008. http://accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=3007166&searchStr=xerosis. Accessed Nov. 25, 2008.
- Freiman A, et al. Cutaneous effects of smoking. Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery. 2004;8:415.
- Physician's guide to cosmetic surgery: Facial surgery and skin care surgical procedures. American Society of Plastic Surgeons. http://www.plasticsurgery.org/medical_professionals/publications/Physicians-Guide-to-Cosmetic-Surgery-Facial-Surgery.cfm#. Accessed Nov. 25, 2008.
- Rados C. Science meets beauty: Using medicine to improve appearances. FDA Consumer Magazine. http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2004/204_beauty.html. Accessed Aug. 20, 2008.
- Just M, et al. Effect of smoking on skin elastic fibres: Morphometric and immunohistochemical analysis. British Journal of Dermatology. 2007;156:85.
