Your skin is made up of three layers, each with its own functions. The skin aging process affects each layer in a different way, and causes different external symptoms of aging.
Many factors cause the skin to age. Those causes can be divided into two categories: internal factors and external factors. Let's look at each individually to understand how they can be minimized.
The first category is internal factors. Internal factors are changes — often caused genetically — that occur naturally within the body. Everybody has a biological clock or chronological age determined by their genetic makeup, and this applies to the skin as well. As our biological clock ticks, our skin gradually loses its ability to function as it once did and this manifests in signs of aging on the skin. Frequently, these changes are the result of a gradual shift in the balance of hormones and molecules from our glands and organs within the body and cannot be stopped.
The second category is external factors in the environment, which occur as a result of daily exposure to free radicals from a variety of sources: UV rays from the sun, pollution, smoke, harsh weather, and external stress. These free radicals damage our cells, limit the ability of cells to function, and cripple the integrity of overall cell composition. Years of accumulated environmental stress on cellular structures eventually results in the premature aging of the skin.
Sun exposure is the main external factor leading to damaged skin. The damage to skin caused by sun exposure is called photoaging. Although cigarette smoke, exposure to harsh weather conditions, and pollution are also contributors to environmental aging, UV damage from the sun accounts for 90% of premature skin aging. Photoaging results in wrinkles, sagging, uneven skin tone, dark spots, and a rough, dry skin texture.
While sun exposure accounts for most of the premature skin aging, there are others. Pollution damages skin by increasing free radical production and the effects of UV exposure. Harsh weather such as dry air, wind, and cold depletes skin of essential moisture, resulting in rough texture and fine, dry lines. Cigarette smoke increases free radical production, significantly decrease the supply of oxygen to skin, causes poor wound healing, and may decrease collagen and elastin production.
External factors also include mechanical aging, which is the result of continually repeated wrinkle causing behaviors and muscle movements. Although it is unrealistic to avoid some wrinkle causing behaviors such as smiling and frowning, behaviors such as squinting, resting your cheek or chin in your hand, weight fluctuations, sleeping on your side or stomach, and pursing your lips should be avoided to help prevent premature signs of mechanical aging.
When we age, so does every cell in our body. Skin aging is the result of the deterioration of structures in the skin and slowing of healthy skin functions. Let's take a look at several of the visible signs of skin aging and what is happening inside the skin to cause these changes.
Different signs of aging will start to appear at different stages of the aging process, for example, during your:
Several factors contribute to the decline of skin cell renewal as we age. For example, weakened blood vessels in the dermis decreases the amount of nutrients and oxygens available. UV exposure can also penetrate the epidermis, damage cells, and slow the rate of cell division. Finally, failure to exfoliate the surface of the skin to stimulate cell renewal contributes to the decline in renewal.
One visible sign of aging is fine lines and deep wrinkles in the skin. The structural protein in the dermis called collagen provides a mesh-like framework of support and strength for the skin. As we age, collagen production slows down and collagen fibers degrade at an increasing rate, leading to an overall decrease in the amount of collagen. Areas with less collagen begin to cave in and form wrinkles.
Multiple factors lead to decreased collagen levels. First, with age there is a natural decline in messenger molecules that trigger collagen production and an increase in the enzyme which breaks collagen down. Second, mechanical stress on the skin caused by repeated wrinkle causing movements can break down collagen. Third, the decrease in moisture levels in the skin from aging makes collagen brittle and prone to breakage. And another factor contributing to decreased collagen levels is free radicals from UV exposure, which damage collagen strands and stimulate formation of irregular collagen linkages that weaken the skin. In order to avoid UV damage, application of a consistent daily sunscreen is necessary. Research also indicates that chemical exfoliation may stimulate collagen production.
Loss of firmness in the skin is another sign of aging. Biologically, as we age, our body naturally inhibits the production of elastin, the protein that gives the skin its elastic quality. Elastin fibers also lose much of their resilience. This decrease in healthy elastin levels results in areas of reduced firmness, especially along the jaw line, neck, and around the eyes. Environmentally, UV rays can penetrate the skin to damage elastin-producing cells. Also, skin becomes more susceptible to environmental damage as skin cell renewal decreases, leading to damaged elastin-producing cells and decreased elastin levels. Finally, mechanical aging due to repeated wrinkle causing actions can permanently stretch out elastin fibers.
Skin aging is an inevitable biological phenomenon of human life that results from either the age-dependent decline of cell function (intrinsic factors) or from cumulative exposure to external harmful influences (extrinsic factors). Intrinsic and extrinsic factors act together to induce skin changes that manifest as skin sagging, coarse wrinkles, or skin texture changes. We can slow these processes down, but unfortunately it's impossible to stop them altogether. It is ofthen when patients start noticing these signs of aging that they start considering what they can do to stop or reverse the signs of aging. Procedures such as standard facelifts, mini-facelifts, or brow lifts, chin lifts, or full facelifts can turn back the hands of time and take ten years off your face.
If you are experiencing wrinkles and sagging skin and are living with stress over the loss of your youthful appearance, we encourage you to contact us now. You can find the answers to the most frequently asked questions here. Our doctors in Korea will give you a thorough consultation and a detailed treatment plan, and provide you with an effective, lasting solution.
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