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The Lab The Garden

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Published on April 30, 2020

Post-menopause and skincare for women in their 50 and 60.

By Marina

First of all, let me say, we love mature faces. They have so much character, confidence, wisdom, and style. They exude life experience. Yes, young faces are beautiful in their youth, but think of Marleen Dietrich and Sophie Loren in their 50’s and 60’s? Gorgeous, sensual, confident, chick. You have to live life to develop that kind of style.

Changes to the skin

As we cross that terrifying bridge into no-more-periods land, we come to a realization that life on the other side is not over yet. Our femininity did not leave us and together with a few extra pounds, we gained wisdom and confidence. Where was that confidence and wisdom in our 20s when we so desperately needed it?

Unfortunately, women’s best helpers hormones are now tired and do not want to work as hard as before.  During and after menopause, women produce less and less estrogen. Decreased estrogen production has a significant impact on our skin: less estrogen makes skin prone to thinning, sagging, and wrinkling.

Estrogen is responsible for a lot of important body functions.  This hard-working hormone is responsible for the production of collagen and elastin and the distribution of fat deposits. As estrogen levels diminish, so does the production of collagen. We end up losing fat in the face as it migrates to the waste line. 

Remember there was a time we could fall asleep on pebbles and wake up with silky smooth faces. Nowadays, we use silk pillowcases and still wake with pebbled faces. It is because skin elasticity decreases.  

Also, in the morning, I get this feeling that my face went wandering in the desert for a few days and came back all dry and dehydrated.  That is because skin oil glands become lazy and do not produce enough sebum (skin oil). Dry skin is our new reality.  When we are young elastin creates a net of connective tissue that supports the structure of the face. Our body no longer produces as much elastin as before which in turn causes sagging, especially around the neck, jawline, and cheeks. Lack of collagen results in wrinkles and lines. 

A simple “I use a moisturizer from time to time” no longer works and we now have to employ heavy artillery for our skincare regiment. 

Skin Routine:

  1. It can be just one product, but it has to be twice a day, religiously.  No miracle skincare treatment or facelift surgery will help you if you do not have a daily routine.
  2. Use a very gentle cleanser – preferably of a natural variety. It can be cream or oil-based.  You do not want to remove the very little natural skin oil you have left, you want to replenish it.
  3. Exfoliate – your natural cell turnover slows down with age. Help remove the build-up of dead skin cells and reveal the younger-looking skin underneath.
  4. Moisturize religiously.  Very often I see the terms “hydrating” and “moisturizing” used interchangeably in the beauty industry. However, there is a difference when these terms are applied to skincare. Hydrating – is to supply your skin with water or water-based skincare. Moisturizing – is to provide your skin with nutrition, such as vitamins, oils, and skincare actives. It is important to hydrate your skin, but a good moisturizer is essential for menopausal and post-menopausal skin.
    Choose a richer formula. Creams and serums should now have a higher oil content.  Introduce more oil-based serums and balms. That doesn’t mean skincare products have to be greasy or heavy. Well-formulated creams and serums are quick-absorbing, have a light texture, and provide a breathable feel. Try our 3 in 1 Intense Nutrition cream or Vitamin C serum.  You will see the difference in your skin.
  5. Look for Anti Aging ingredients such as Matrixyl or peptides. These ingredients are clinically proven to minimize wrinkles, especially around the eyes. Use products that will help you build your natural moisture reserve such as glucosamine and niacinamide. Vitamin C will also help build your natural collagen and brighten up your skin. 
  6. Dark spots – the best weapons against skin discoloration are Vitamin C and Alpha Lipoic Acid. Look for oil-based Vitamin C formula, water-based Vitamin C products disintegrate and start to lose their potency as soon as Vitamin C comes in contact with water. Alpha-Lipoic acid is 400 times more potent than Vitamin C. It truly is a miracle ingredient that can help your skin to get that youthful glow and radiance back.
    Some skincare companies recommend Retinol as a great anti-aging ingredient. Retinol is clinically proven to work on the signs of aging, however women in menopausal and post-menopausal states should be very careful with Retinol. At high concentrations Retinol causes dryness and flakiness of the skin, at low concentration, it delivers no visible results. Given the fact that natural oil production diminishes with age, using a product that would further dry out your skin is less than ideal.  We recommend an oil-based formula or to substitute retinol with Alpha Lipoic acid or a combination of ALA and retinol derivative. Try our Skin Repair face oil with Alpha Lipoic Acid and Retinol. It is specifically formulated to provide quick results without dryness. It is an oil-based serum that will deliver a moisturizing effect and compensate for the slower oil glands production. You should not be using it daily however, start with 2 times a week. 
  7. Protect your skin – use sunblock.  We recommend using sun protection powder rather than a cream. There are a few reasons for that: powder doesn’t leave a heavy white residue on your skin, it can be difficult to blend foundation on top of the sunblock cream. More importantly, however, chemical sun blockers in the cream allows UV rays to penetrate your skin first, and then the UV rays are reflected by the sun protection ingredient. Powder, on the other hand, sits on top of your skin, so UV rays are reflected off the surface of your skin, hence better protecting our skin.

Dear All, love your skin. It has been protecting you for at least half a century. Your skin is your first line of defense against the world, help it serve you better.

After this many years of service, our skin deserves to be pampered, loved, and protected.

As one wise woman once said: “If you need to choose between health and sexual attraction, choose health. With age it will become your sexual attraction”