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How to Look Good Naked

Naked Science

Anti-Ageing Moisturisers | Dark Circle Removal | Micro-Dermabrasion | Fake Tan | Eye Wrinkles | Stretch Marks | Firm Breasts | Cellulite | Series 3

Anti-Ageing Moisturisers

We're all obsessed with keeping our bodies and faces looking gorgeous, but if your piling on the foundation and still getting mistaken for Keith Richards you might be looking for an anti-ageing moisturiser to stop the rot and turn back the years.

With over £650 million spent on these and similar products each year, someone is getting very rich on our quest for eternal youth. But what are the secret ingredients behind these products, and more importantly, do they actually work?

Firstly, let's refresh ourselves about what we're dealing with when it comes to wrinkles. They occur as a consequence of the outer skin layers becoming thinner and less sticky. This results in more moisture being released by the skin and greater dryness. The outer skin layer loses about 10% of its cells per decade, and as a result it becomes harder for it to repair itself.

That alone would probably be enough to reckon with but unfortunately there are two other skin layers that also contribute to the prunification process. The dermal layer thins and less collagen and elastin are produced which affects the scaffolding of the skin. Reduced sweat glands and production of sebum (an oily substance that lubricates the skin) also contributes to the dryness, and when the reduction of fatty cells under the skin is taken into account, we've got some serious sagging.

All of these are factors before you've even started to take ageing agents such as exposure to excessive sunlight into account, so, with all that working against us is there actually anything that can be done to combat this ageing assault?

Naked Science - Anti-Ageing Moisturisers
Well, our experts first sound a note of caution as a lot of over the counter products contain very low concentrations of active ingredients. The reason behind this is that these can sometimes have unwanted side effects, with substances such as retinol making some skin red and itchy. For safety's sake, most companies tend to put low concentrations of active ingredients in their products, reducing the likelihood of a reaction, but also the effectiveness of the product.

One way of worsening the wrinkles is soaking up the sun so whatever you do wear SPF 15 or above every day but if you're already at war with wrinkles, then a cream with either retinol or glycolic acid could help to smooth out those top layers of skin.

Whatever you choose, wrinkles are an indispensable part of getting older, and please, please, please, resist the urge to go under the knife or hit the botox. For ageless beauty, take your inspiration from delectable Dame Helen Mirren and use our Naked Truth polls as your guide to the top over the counter products to try out.

Check out the results of our anti-ageing moisturiser cream test >>


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