Antiaging Skin Care Product Review

Anti-ageing skin care - a review

The overall appearance of aging skin is primarily related to the cumulative effects of repeated sun exposure and UV damage combined with aging to the structural components of the skin such as collagen and elastic fibers.

The signs of aging usually start to become evident as a woman enters the perimenopausal period. Loss of endogenous estrogen is reflected by cutaneous skin changes. The relationship between estrogen and the skin is complex being influenced by a number of factors including anatomic site, concentration of estrogen, saturation of receptors in the skin and levels of other circulating hormones.

Research has shown that this age-related loss of estrogen causes a reduction in the levels of dermal skin collagen, but this loss can be slowed down and sometimes even prevented by oral dose of estrogen.

Though the appearance of ageing is affected to some degree by genetic factors, intrinsic factors, and disease processes such as rosacea, the most potent cause of accelerated skin aging is caused by sun damage; a problem called "photo ageing". The effect starts manifesting itself by the thinning of the outer skin epithelium with the number of cell layers remaining affected. This change allows for the sun rays to penetrate even deeper into the skin to promote other changes such as a decrease in the number of pigment-containing cells (melanocytes) and an associated increase in their cell size. These changes make the skin more pale and translucent.

Large pigmented spots (called age spots, liver spots, or lentigos) can also start appearing in sun-exposed areas.

Sun exposure also causes changes in the deeper connective tissue to reduce the skin's strength and elasticity, a condition that is referred as "solar elastosis".

With the depletion of ozone layers in the atmosphere, we are all being increasingly exposed to the harmful UV rays of the sun. Skin ageing is becoming more and more critical with the signs of damage and disease becoming more evident in younger and younger individuals.

There is a tremendous increase in the number of patients in their twenties and thirties presenting with signs of solar elastosis and other conditions in dermatology clinics. In the older population and those individuals with extensive sun exposure, these changes are magnified to a large extent.

As a result of this increase in people affected by photo ageing, and the desire to look young, anti-ageing skin care products and regimens have become increasingly popular to reverse the signs of photo ageing.

Use of chemical peels is becoming more and more common as an anti-ageing skin care approach. There are a wide range of chemical peels available involving several different anti-aging skin care regimens - be it as a daily skin care routine or as a preparation for the application of deep chemical peels.

The following information presents the benefits of using these anti-aging skin care products, the focus here is mostly on the superficial peels as a routine treatment for various categories of skin damage and skin aging.

The damage to skin can generally be broadly be classified into 4 categories - mild to moderate photodamage (i.e. fine rhytides, hyperkeratosis), actinic damage, acne vulgaris/rosacea, and pigmentary disorders (i.e. melasma, lentigines).

Mild effects of photoaging of the skin are visibly reflected on the skin by laxity, roughness, sallowness, irregular hyperpigmentation, and telangiectasia (dilation of groups of capillaries causing elevated dark red blotches on the skin).

Histologically, these alterations are manifested by:

Epidermal atrophy

Acantholysis-the loss of cohesion between epidermal or adnexal keratinocytes

Abnormal keratinocyte progression from the basal layer

Overstimulated or destroyed melanocytes

Collagen loss with elastic fiber degeneration,

And reduction of vascular networks.

Face skin care with AHA treatment has been found to offer significant improvement in the parameters of texture, fine wrinkling, number of solar keratoses, and color of lentigines.

Routine usage of broad spectrum sunscreens is critical to maintaining any benefits from an anti-aging program and face skin care program and also for preventing further damage.

Other topical therapies, including retinoids such as retinol (vitamin A), and other antioxidants such as topical ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and tocopherol (vitamin E), can often greatly augment glycolic acid therapy in patients with mild to moderate photodamage.

Actinic Keratoses

Actinic keratoses is a crusty, scaly precancerous skin lesion caused by damage from the sun. The prevalence of actinic keratoses in individuals aged over 40 years is estimated to around 56%. The probability of an actinic keratosis developing into a squamous cell carcinoma is about 1% /year.

Whereas discrete lesions can be simply treated using cryotherapy, for more diffuse actinic damage glycolic acid chemical peels have been found to be an effective treatment. Dermatologists claim 70% glycolic acid combined with 5% fluorouracil is the most useful treatment for the condition. Treatment only with fluorouracil has adverse effects and is not commonly used.

Melasma

Melasma is a common acquired disorder that is caused by facial hypermelanosis brought about by sun exposure.

It can also appear during pregnancy or be brought on by oral contraceptive usage and can flare premenstrually.

Since melasma results from the combination of genetics, hormones, and sun exposure, it can be particularly difficult to treat. Standard treatment includes the nightly application of tretinoin cream. It has been demonstrated that a series of 8 glycolic acid peels used in combination with a daily application of a cream containing 10% glycolic acid and 2% hydroquinone improved melasma and fine wrinkling in women with type IV and V skin. Otherwise the gycolic acid peel treatment has been found to offer overall safety and efficacy of in a variety of skin types.

Acne

Acne is the major pathogenic condition of the skin that is the result of androgen-induced sebum production that leads to proliferation of the bacteria Propionibacterium acnes. Faulty desquamation of the hair follicle wall produces a plug dead skin and oils in the follicle called a comedo. The superficial plug is infected by P. acnes and that leads to severe lesional inflammation.

Microdermabrasion and photopulse thereapy are increasingly becoming popular for the treatment of acne and acne scars. Generally, glycolic acid peels and topical products are used in combination to treat acne. In comedonal acne (grade I) patients, noncomedogenic glycolic acid lotion in the morning and the retinoid treatment has been found to quite effective at reducing acne.

If the patient's acne has a papular or pustular component (grade II or III), topical oral antimicrobial therapy may need to be added to the regimen.

For deep acne scars, professional treatment with phenol deep peels, laser resurfacing or dermabrasion is a very effective treatment approach.

In instances where a woman develops late onset acne (developing after the age of 25), which has been resistant to treatment or is accompanied by clinical signs of hyperandrogenism (hirsutism, androgenic alopecia, or menstrual irregularities) further testing is required to confirm or rule out conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

When prior treatment with topical preparations, oral antibacterials, or isotretinoin has failed, additional antiandrogen therapy can be tried.

Rosacea

Rosacea is a polymorphic disease which seems to be precipitated by many causes including genetic, vascular, immune-mediated, emotional, environmental, and infectious factors. Central to disease formation is the development of vascular hyperresponsiveness and the condition is triggered by solar elastosis and dermatoheliosis.

Factors which have also been implicated in the development of rosacea include Demodex folliculorum mite infestation and Helicobacter pylori infection by provoking inflammatory or allergic reactions either by mechanical blockage of follicles or by acting as a vector for micro-organisms.

For the treatment of patients with mild to moderate rosacea, a combination approach by adding glycolic acid peels and topical glycolic acid products with an antibacterial have the potential to dramatically improve the patient's condition.

Some Routine Anti-aging Skin Care Products

In most cases of acne vulgaris and rosacea, standard therapy can be augmented by the addition of antiaging skin care products like glycolic acid peels and home application of lower concentration glycolic acid preparations.

Use of serial glycolic acid peels with glycolic acid homecare products show a significant resolution of comedones, papules, and pustules with improvement in skin texture and follicular pores.

Tretinoin is one of the routine medications that have been shown to improve the clinical and histologic changes of photodamage, minimize epidermal hyperpigmentation in melasma, and reduce comedones and inflammatory lesions in acne and rosacea.

Tretinoin also provides an additional benefit of stimulating epidermal turnover, aiding in uniform peel application as well as potentiating the depth of penetration and speeding re-epithelialization after the procedure.

In patients with melasma, dyschromia and hyperpigmentation and postinflammatory hyperpigmentation secondary to acne or rosacea, bleaching agents containing hydroquinone may also be incorporated into the pre-peel regimen or the daily skin care regimen.

Sun screens

The cornerstone of total sun protection is a broad spectrum (UVA and UVB) sunscreen or sunblock with an SPF of at least 15.

A sunscreen is applied in the morning and reapplied after every 1 to 2.5 hours if sun exposure is prolonged. Beyond preserving the results of the chemical peel, benefits of regular broad spectrum sunscreen usage includes a reduction in the stigmata of photoaging and melasma as well as a decrease in premalignant actinic keratoses and nonmelanoma skin cancers.

We hope that the anti-ageing skin care product review presented above helps you to have the best anti-aging skin care treatment for your face and enjoy the young look.

References:

Rebecca C. Tung and et.al., "α-Hydroxy Acid-Based Cosmetic Procedures Guidelines For Patient Management", Am J Clin Dermatol, 2000 Mar-Apr; 1 (2): 81-88

James M. Spencer, Microdermabrasion, Am J Clin Dermatol, 6 (2): 89-92, 2005

Anti Aging Skin Care - review of anti aging skin care products and procedures

Home Search Resources Site Map Contact Us
Microdermabrasion Information History of Mircrodermabrasion Microdermabrasion Candidates Microdermabrasion Benefits Microdermabrasion Costs Microdermabrasion Procedure Microdermabrasion Procedure Care with Microdermabrasion Scientific Studies Histological Changes Before A Chemical Peel History of Chemical peels Chemical Peel Procedures Assessment of Skin Type Candidates for Chemical Peel Preparation for Chemical Peel Chemical Peel Procedures Retinol Treatments Glycolic Acid Peels Medium Depth Peels Deep Phenol Peels Post Operative Care Others Procedures... Photo Facial Therapy Photo Facial Therapy Procedure Holistic Skin Rejuvenation Sponsored Articles		Home > Before A Chemical Peel > Chemical Peel Procedures Anti-ageing skin care - a review The overall appearance of aging skin is primarily related to the cumulative effects of repeated sun exposure and UV damage combined with aging to the structural components of the skin such as collagen and elastic fibers. The signs of aging usually start to become evident as a woman enters the perimenopausal period. Loss of endogenous estrogen is reflected by cutaneous skin changes. The relationship between estrogen and the skin is complex being influenced by a number of factors including anatomic site, concentration of estrogen, saturation of receptors in the skin and levels of other circulating hormones. Research has shown that this age-related loss of estrogen causes a reduction in the levels of dermal skin collagen, but this loss can be slowed down and sometimes even prevented by oral dose of estrogen. Though the appearance of ageing is affected to some degree by genetic factors, intrinsic factors, and disease processes such as rosacea, the most potent cause of accelerated skin aging is caused by sun damage; a problem called "photo ageing". The effect starts manifesting itself by the thinning of the outer skin epithelium with the number of cell layers remaining affected. This change allows for the sun rays to penetrate even deeper into the skin to promote other changes such as a decrease in the number of pigment-containing cells (melanocytes) and an associated increase in their cell size. These changes make the skin more pale and translucent. Large pigmented spots (called age spots, liver spots, or lentigos) can also start appearing in sun-exposed areas. Sun exposure also causes changes in the deeper connective tissue to reduce the skin's strength and elasticity, a condition that is referred as "solar elastosis". With the depletion of ozone layers in the atmosphere, we are all being increasingly exposed to the harmful UV rays of the sun. Skin ageing is becoming more and more critical with the signs of damage and disease becoming more evident in younger and younger individuals. There is a tremendous increase in the number of patients in their twenties and thirties presenting with signs of solar elastosis and other conditions in dermatology clinics. In the older population and those individuals with extensive sun exposure, these changes are magnified to a large extent. As a result of this increase in people affected by photo ageing, and the desire to look young, anti-ageing skin care products and regimens have become increasingly popular to reverse the signs of photo ageing. Use of chemical peels is becoming more and more common as an anti-ageing skin care approach. There are a wide range of chemical peels available involving several different anti-aging skin care regimens - be it as a daily skin care routine or as a preparation for the application of deep chemical peels. The following information presents the benefits of using these anti-aging skin care products, the focus here is mostly on the superficial peels as a routine treatment for various categories of skin damage and skin aging. The damage to skin can generally be broadly be classified into 4 categories - mild to moderate photodamage (i.e. fine rhytides, hyperkeratosis), actinic damage, acne vulgaris/rosacea, and pigmentary disorders (i.e. melasma, lentigines). Mild effects of photoaging of the skin are visibly reflected on the skin by laxity, roughness, sallowness, irregular hyperpigmentation, and telangiectasia (dilation of groups of capillaries causing elevated dark red blotches on the skin). Histologically, these alterations are manifested by: Epidermal atrophy Acantholysis-the loss of cohesion between epidermal or adnexal keratinocytes Abnormal keratinocyte progression from the basal layer Overstimulated or destroyed melanocytes Collagen loss with elastic fiber degeneration, And reduction of vascular networks. Face skin care with AHA treatment has been found to offer significant improvement in the parameters of texture, fine wrinkling, number of solar keratoses, and color of lentigines. Routine usage of broad spectrum sunscreens is critical to maintaining any benefits from an anti-aging program and face skin care program and also for preventing further damage. Other topical therapies, including retinoids such as retinol (vitamin A), and other antioxidants such as topical ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and tocopherol (vitamin E), can often greatly augment glycolic acid therapy in patients with mild to moderate photodamage. Actinic Keratoses Actinic keratoses is a crusty, scaly precancerous skin lesion caused by damage from the sun. The prevalence of actinic keratoses in individuals aged over 40 years is estimated to around 56%. The probability of an actinic keratosis developing into a squamous cell carcinoma is about 1% /year. Whereas discrete lesions can be simply treated using cryotherapy, for more diffuse actinic damage glycolic acid chemical peels have been found to be an effective treatment. Dermatologists claim 70% glycolic acid combined with 5% fluorouracil is the most useful treatment for the condition. Treatment only with fluorouracil has adverse effects and is not commonly used. Melasma Melasma is a common acquired disorder that is caused by facial hypermelanosis brought about by sun exposure. It can also appear during pregnancy or be brought on by oral contraceptive usage and can flare premenstrually. Since melasma results from the combination of genetics, hormones, and sun exposure, it can be particularly difficult to treat. Standard treatment includes the nightly application of tretinoin cream. It has been demonstrated that a series of 8 glycolic acid peels used in combination with a daily application of a cream containing 10% glycolic acid and 2% hydroquinone improved melasma and fine wrinkling in women with type IV and V skin. Otherwise the gycolic acid peel treatment has been found to offer overall safety and efficacy of in a variety of skin types. Acne Acne is the major pathogenic condition of the skin that is the result of androgen-induced sebum production that leads to proliferation of the bacteria Propionibacterium acnes. Faulty desquamation of the hair follicle wall produces a plug dead skin and oils in the follicle called a comedo. The superficial plug is infected by P. acnes and that leads to severe lesional inflammation. Microdermabrasion and photopulse thereapy are increasingly becoming popular for the treatment of acne and acne scars. Generally, glycolic acid peels and topical products are used in combination to treat acne. In comedonal acne (grade I) patients, noncomedogenic glycolic acid lotion in the morning and the retinoid treatment has been found to quite effective at reducing acne. If the patient's acne has a papular or pustular component (grade II or III), topical oral antimicrobial therapy may need to be added to the regimen. For deep acne scars, professional treatment with phenol deep peels, laser resurfacing or dermabrasion is a very effective treatment approach. In instances where a woman develops late onset acne (developing after the age of 25), which has been resistant to treatment or is accompanied by clinical signs of hyperandrogenism (hirsutism, androgenic alopecia, or menstrual irregularities) further testing is required to confirm or rule out conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). When prior treatment with topical preparations, oral antibacterials, or isotretinoin has failed, additional antiandrogen therapy can be tried. Rosacea Rosacea is a polymorphic disease which seems to be precipitated by many causes including genetic, vascular, immune-mediated, emotional, environmental, and infectious factors. Central to disease formation is the development of vascular hyperresponsiveness and the condition is triggered by solar elastosis and dermatoheliosis. Factors which have also been implicated in the development of rosacea include Demodex folliculorum mite infestation and Helicobacter pylori infection by provoking inflammatory or allergic reactions either by mechanical blockage of follicles or by acting as a vector for micro-organisms. For the treatment of patients with mild to moderate rosacea, a combination approach by adding glycolic acid peels and topical glycolic acid products with an antibacterial have the potential to dramatically improve the patient's condition. Some Routine Anti-aging Skin Care Products In most cases of acne vulgaris and rosacea, standard therapy can be augmented by the addition of antiaging skin care products like glycolic acid peels and home application of lower concentration glycolic acid preparations. Use of serial glycolic acid peels with glycolic acid homecare products show a significant resolution of comedones, papules, and pustules with improvement in skin texture and follicular pores. Tretinoin is one of the routine medications that have been shown to improve the clinical and histologic changes of photodamage, minimize epidermal hyperpigmentation in melasma, and reduce comedones and inflammatory lesions in acne and rosacea. Tretinoin also provides an additional benefit of stimulating epidermal turnover, aiding in uniform peel application as well as potentiating the depth of penetration and speeding re-epithelialization after the procedure. In patients with melasma, dyschromia and hyperpigmentation and postinflammatory hyperpigmentation secondary to acne or rosacea, bleaching agents containing hydroquinone may also be incorporated into the pre-peel regimen or the daily skin care regimen. Sun screens The cornerstone of total sun protection is a broad spectrum (UVA and UVB) sunscreen or sunblock with an SPF of at least 15. A sunscreen is applied in the morning and reapplied after every 1 to 2.5 hours if sun exposure is prolonged. Beyond preserving the results of the chemical peel, benefits of regular broad spectrum sunscreen usage includes a reduction in the stigmata of photoaging and melasma as well as a decrease in premalignant actinic keratoses and nonmelanoma skin cancers. We hope that the anti-ageing skin care product review presented above helps you to have the best anti-aging skin care treatment for your face and enjoy the young look. References: Rebecca C. Tung and et.al., "α-Hydroxy Acid-Based Cosmetic Procedures Guidelines For Patient Management", Am J Clin Dermatol, 2000 Mar-Apr; 1 (2): 81-88 James M. Spencer, Microdermabrasion, Am J Clin Dermatol, 6 (2): 89-92, 2005

Anti Aging Skin Care - review of anti aging skin care products and procedures