Many people in their 20’s are stressed out about high student loan debt requiring side hustles to pay it off. They’re noticing tired eyes and premature wrinkles as they turn to filters to optimize their social media photos. There is pressure to keep up with celebrities their age not to mention the countless influencers who are setting the new standard for beauty and youth.
Good Habits to Start
Dr. Manish Shah, a plastic surgeon who specializes in facial plastic surgery, urges the under 30 crowd not to overdo it with expensive treatments. These procedures can actually make them look older and put them further into debt. Instead, he recommends other pre-juvenation tactics that will help millennials can do to maintain their youth. A few good habits that can keep their skin glowing.
Get your Vitamin C
Vitamin C is a huge collagen booster and it also reduces pores and brightens skin. These are the exact things women in their late 30’s and 40’s complain about most. Foods such as cantaloupe, mango, pineapples, oranges, grapefruits, and berries are all packed with this antioxidant which, when eaten regularly does wonders to sustain a youthful glow.
Use Sunblock Every Day
The best way to make sure your face is protected from the sun is to use a daily moisturizer with SPF of no less than 30. Apply creams to your neck and chest to postpone wrinkling and sagging in these areas. The sun protection done daily in your 20’s will pay off greatly in your 40’s.
Eat More Fish
Those late-night post partying fries and pizza are to be expected and at 25 are difficult to avoid. Perhaps your metabolism can handle it, for now. You may want to ditch the fast food and eat more fish. Offset these weekend indulgences by eating fish during the week. Fish oil has fatty acids can erase early wrinkles you may notice. It prevents inflammation which can only make wrinkles more noticeable and deeper over time. Many millennials who are picky eaters and avoid seafood can get Omega-3’s via supplements but getting it directly from eating fish is best.
Quit Smoking
That’s an obvious one, not one of the good habits to keep. Nothing will age you quicker than smoking. It is possible for a 25-year-old to look 8-5 years younger, within just 3 months after quitting smoking. This number increases after age 30. Women over age 40 who don’t smoke typically look up to a decade younger than their counterparts who still smoke. There are a gazillion reasons to quit smoking. Linking it to vanity is a pretty powerful motivator.
Decrease Your Sugar Intake
You really want to start getting mindful about your sugar intake in your 20’s for many different reasons. Sugars and carbohydrates are a beauty killer because they are pro-inflammatory. Pasta, ketchup, candy, ice cream, and fruit juices are often dietary staples for those under 30. Any inflammation in the body will show up on the face in the form of adult acne, sagging and wrinkling, not to mention sallow skin tone.
Maintain Your Glow With Facials & Peels
While many millennials are starting off with “Baby Botox” which can postpone wrinkling, it isn’t cheap. It also can be a “gateway” treatment which leads to lip injections and fillers that often have a reverse effect making younger women appear older. Lasers and peels have come very far and can be good habits to start. They offer an excellent solution for sun damage, skin texture, pores, acne scarring and cell turnover to stimulate collagen growth.
Select Your Products Wisely
The organic beauty industry projected to reach $25.11 billion USD by 2025. While ingredients are often centre stage, consumers are also looking at everything from a brand’s packaging, to production and environmental impact before buying. Admittedly, natural products are more environmentally friendly, and we have research that points to people’s new beliefs about what matters to them:
When considering a purchase, people believe in supporting brands that
- provide environmentally-friendly packaging
- don’t test on animals
- include all-natural ingredients
There has been a consistent increase in choosing personal care products that are vegan, not tested on animals and free from artificial flavours, fragrances, sweeteners, colours and preservatives. Quite a few brands offer some great products like:
- Lala Skincare – organic skincare ranging from body oils, to face wash
- No Pong – natural deodorant that keeps you fresh
- Georgie Maine – organic hair mask
I’ve tried them all and recommend them thanks to their efficient ingredients.
While I love the effect of natural products, organic though does not always equate with better. Their shelf life is shorter. This means that you have to buy more on a regular basis, undoing all of the reduction in your carbon footprint. Buying more entails additional manufacturing, shipping and disposal. Some packaging despite all its efforts, enables ingredients to break down due to repeated exposure to light an air, and natural does not mean harmless or chemical free.
Choosing products that suit your skin, natural or not, will be key to ensuring lasting, beneficial effects on your skin.
The Gist of it
Millennials who get into a good habits of taking care of themselves both inside and out, will create a lifestyle of longevity. Those raised by mothers who may have had breast implants, Botox and lip injections may feel that getting things “done” is normal. However there are ways around taking on those trends early on but opting for healthier ways to keep your youthful glow.
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