The growth in anti-ageing skin care products has grown enormously over the last two decades, this is due primarily to the fact we are all living longer and want to look younger as we get old. This is done by encouraging the growth of the protein collagen which happens to be the main source of the protein used in the connective tissue of skin. Collagen is related to other anti-ageing substances in the body called anti-oxidants.
You probably know many anti-oxidants by name, including vitamin C, the use of which is still, even now, hotly debated in the science and nutrition community. Skin care treatments that are based on vitamin C, pose the problem of becoming oxidized themselves as they come into contact with air during their usage.
Manufacturers are trying alternative skin care treatments to vitamin C that do not have this oxidization problem or cost as much to produce. These alternative products are not as effective as vitamin C but vitamin E and lipoic acid are anti-oxidants and are now being used.
Vitamin E is a fat-soluble anti-oxidant and is found in human blood, it helps build resistance against infection like cancer. Another, lipoic acid is in every cell of our body and is used to generate energy for us to live but also helps reduce and reverse the skin’s ageing process.
Other compounds called phytochemicals, have proved to be beneficial in the formulation of anti-ageing skin care products. Phytochemicals prevent occurrence of certain types of cancer.
Some B-vitamins like B5, B6 and B12 are also in use for anti-ageing skin care products. Although the area of anti-ageing skin care products is huge, more is being learnt about the whole ageing process and about natural products that can reduce the effects it has on our bodies as well as our skin.
While a great deal has been learned about this subject, it is only the tip of the iceberg and more long term effective methods need to be discovered to reverse or slow down the effects of time. Hopefully, these challenges will get resolved in due course and better and cheaper anti-ageing skin care products will be produced.
However, man-made skin care regimes should be used only as a supplement. You know all these things but how many do you practice? Regular exercise, restful sleep, drinking plenty of water, eating a healthy diet and keeping your stress levels low.
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