Skin Care During Menopause
You don't need a magic fountain to get younger looking skin.
Until there is a Fountain of Youth, we'll need to be proactive to keep our mature skin beautiful. Menopause doesn't mean you can't have youthful skin!
10 Skin Care Tips during Menopause
Menopause symptoms typically hit women sometime after 48 years old. They range from mildly noticeable to extreme and can last a year. Every woman’s menopause journey is different. Your genetics, how you have eaten, the amount of sun you have let your skin be exposed to are going to dictate your menopause experience and the level of work needed to regain and keep beautiful skin. Eventually the hot flashes and other menopause symptoms stop, but your skin won’t snap back without thoughtful action.
During menopause a woman’s body stops producing as much estrogen, while still producing the same level of testosterone. Less estrogen means less fat in the right areas, such as on the face and backs of hands, and slower collagen production all round. This is exactly why your skin has suddenly seemed older. It has nothing supporting it anymore, causing it to sag. Sagging is 100% related to wrinkling. Testosterone, without the previous levels of estrogen to keep it in check, means more hair in new places. That thinner layer of fat beneath the surface, more facial hair, and less collagen make you look old.
You don’t have to accept that your menopause symptoms will make you look dramatically older. There are basic things you can do to look and feel better. There are some more involved all-natural actions that can make such a difference it can take 15 years off of your face.
Part 1: 5 Basic Tips
Get Cleanser and Lotion for Mature Skin
Forget about feeling vain for spending more time in front the mirror. The more time you spend the better the results now and in the long run. We all want to be fabulous at 90!
Get a brand new face routine and new products designed to keep hydrated. Your old cleanser and lotion are not going to do the job, no matter how much you loved them prior to menopause. There are lines of cleansers and lotions designed for mature skin. They are formulated specifically for menopausal women’s skin issues. Really, you need to see the 1st point under “Advanced Fight” to get the routine you need to use for a radical effect.
Whether you are just using cleanser and lotion or doing the full face routine, do it immediately after the shower and before you go to sleep. Twice a day, every day, you need to clean and moisturize. When you leave the shower or bath your pores are open. Take advantage of it. Never go to sleep with your face not clean. Free radicals are bad. Cleansing helps to remove cells damaged by free radicals before they reproduce like crazy.
Make-up and Facial Hair
Get new foundation and eye shadow. Your make-up could be aging you. First, if it is not for mature skin, it will settle into even minor wrinkles and make them appear much worse. Also, it can remove the hydration you gained from your lotion or cause perimenopausal acne. Good hydration will plump your skin to make your wrinkles shallower. The next way that your make-up could be aging you is the style of how you are wearing it. We all can recognize an 80’s make-up and it dates the wearer. Your style needs to be current or elegantly timeless.
While you are taking care of your make-up, getting rid of the unwanted facial hair is a must. Even long peach-fuzz is a sign of being older. Ever heard of dermaplaning? It is a fancy way of saying “woman’s face straight razor treatment”. Dermaplaning razors come in cute feminine colors, just to reinforce that they are indeed for the ladies.
Age Spots
Take care of Age Spots, also called Liver Spots, everywhere you have them. Hit them with several different products at the same time.
Be sure to exfoliate often using either the Facial Magic Face Cloth or Konjac Sponge with activated bamboo charcoal. These are gentle enough to use every day. Do a bigger exfoliation once a week. Deep exfoliation plus cellular regeneration products are needed so you can literally grow better skin.
Glycolic acid is a chemical exfoliate that works great when paired with Retinol.
Use broad spectrum SPF to prevent more sun damage. During and after menopause the skin is more susceptible to UV radiation. You have to do more to protect it now than ever before.
Beyond Topical
Drink a lot of water and eat right, see our article on it and take it to heart. Antioxidants and the right mix of minerals and vitamins are needed for healthy skin and good cell turnover to get even more beautiful skin. Free radicals are a big part of why skin ages terribly. Antioxidants kill free radicals.
To make the eating habits more age specific for menopausal women, beyond the foods recommended in the Beautiful Skin blog, you need to eat or drink Soy. Soy has estrogen. It being plant based is irrelevant in the big picture. It is estrogen. Having more estrogen means you are replacing the very thing menopause is taking away. You’ll have less face hair and more feminine skin texture, too.
Part 2: 5 Advanced Tips
Multi-Step Hydration Process
If you were doing a two-step process for years, it is time to step it up. Add toner, a really great serum and eye moisturizer. Commit to it, twice a day! Really, you should have been doing Lotion, Toner, Serum, eye lotion and face moisturizer since your 30’s. It is never too late to start. I know it may seem overwhelming to some women, but it is worth both the time and money to do all 6 steps twice a day. You WILL see a difference if you are using great products.
The toner and serum make a huge difference. Toner doesn’t just “remove the dirt the moisturizer left behind”. It also insures the pH level on your skin is right. This helps control breakouts, dry spots, oily spots and uneven skin type. Serum does wonders. It provides benefits specific to its type and it makes your lotions and treatments work better. Yes, your eyes need their own lotion. Eye lotion is specially formulated for the thin skin around your eyes. Regular face lotion won’t make as much of a difference as a great eye treatment, like the one Cell Renewal offers.
Advanced Skin Care Treatments
To work on age spots fast, use a skin lightener made for your ethnicity. Be sure to treat your face as a whole though, as treating just the spot can create an uneven coloring.
Serums with Peptides are seriously great for menopausal skin. Peptides go deeper than any other kind of treatment and work directly with your skin to increase collagen production. There are many types of peptides, from Apple Stem peptide to Multi-Peptide serums.
If you suffer from acne, use products designed for mature acne. Stay away from products intended for teenagers.
Take a Pill
Committing to a pill before you eat is a hassle, but taking a digestive enzyme supplement immediately before a meal will help your skin. If you are eating great foods but your body can’t get the goodness out of it then you won’t see the type of benefit you deserve for skipping sugar and loading up on greens. Amylase, lipase, and bromelain are a must in whatever pill you choose. Personally, I like the ones with several more enzymes and a multi-strain probiotic complex.
Smooth and Plump your Lips
Our lips age. They get little lines radiating from them and they deflate. It is such a surprise when it happens. You don't have to go from deflated lips to super thick "I had injections for sure" look. You CAN have your lips back. Smooth, full lips that are natural looking. You use a lip plumper. Not all are made alike, even if they look alike. Luscious Lips is designed for you to never have bruises or end up with lips triple normal size.
Get to the Root of the Problem: Face Muscles
Facial Exercise. Seriously, it works. And because lotions and serums can’t get past your skin to what is really causing the issue (the muscles!) they aren’t going to give you the dramatic effect you are looking for. A lotion isn't going to take off 10 years, but facial exercise can. You don’t need surgery. You just need a facial exercise program that works the right muscles in the right sequence. It won’t hurt either. After you have the effect you want, to maintain it you only do the routine 3 times a week.