Your Perfect Beauty Regimen: Skincare in Your 50s

The dermatologist can be even more intimidating than the dentist: scary lasers, pulsating lights, vibrating tools that scrape off the top layer of your skin. And sure, those high powered tools that you’ll find in the dermatologist’s office can work wonders, but you may not have the time, money, or pain tolerance to go through with them. Age gracefully, and naturally, with a beauty routine that’s customized to your ever-evolving skin.

After age 50, most women will notice changes in their skin’s texture. As menopause and peri-menopause occurs, estrogen levels decrease significantly, and your skin’s natural moisture production slows way down. Less moisture means that lines and wrinkles will look more obvious and will get deeper more quickly—which is the opposite of what you probably want. Keep your skin super hydrated and increase collagen production–the compound that keeps your skin firm and supple–for smooth, youthful skin.

Nosh on anti-inflammatory foods

“Most of the skin changes that people associate with aging, like brown spots and wrinkles, are more related to chronic sun exposure than just aging,” explains dermatologist Dr. Anne Marie McNeill. Load your plate with colorful veggies to get tons of antioxidants in your diet quickly; bell peppers, carrots, heirloom tomatoes, cabbage, kale, and swiss chard are all loaded with youth boosting carotenoid, which fights signs of skin damage from the sun and pollution. And toss out the white flour and sugar–Inflammation accelerates the signs of aging in skin, so stick to an anti-inflammatory diet to get glowy.

Getting enough healthy fat in your diet is another staple of the anti-inflammatory diet, and even though it may sound counter intuitive if you’re trying to lose weight, you probably need to increase the amount of fat you’re eating on a daily basis. Most low-fat foods are loaded with sugar, which cause you to gain weight and do a number on your skin. Cut the low-fat foods out and go for the good stuff–stick to natural sources of fat like coconut oil, nut butters, ghee, and lard for the most benefits. Lipids are essential for healthy skin to maintain its moisture, so you’ll notice a difference pretty quickly as soon as you add in this key ingredient.

Water is the essence of wetness

When it comes to how important moisture is to your skin, male model Derek Zoolander said it best, “Water is the essence of wetness, and wetness is the essence of beauty”. As you age and your skin loses moisture, it’s vital to keep it hydrated to maintain a healthy glow. Start your day with a creamy cleanser that won’t strip your skin with chemicals and detergents–if you’d prefer, you can even get away with just rinsing your skin with cool water in the morning and using a cleanser at night.

Layer on an antioxidant-rich serum under your sunscreen during the day, and at night try a peptide boosting moisturizer. Peptides are full of protein, so they’ll help your skin stay firm and keep it dewy and moisturized.

Supplement your skincare routine

What you put in your body greatly affects how your skin looks, so adding a dietary collagen supplement can accelerate the results you see from your beauty regimen. Dietary collagen is a really simple way to get a clean protein into your diet with minimal calories and almost no taste–you can dump a spoonful into your coffee and you won’t even notice it.

Because your body isn’t producing as much collagen as it used to, as soon as you start supplementing you may notice your hair and nails will grow a little faster, and you’ll see a difference in the texture of your skin. Collagen is also known for its wound healing abilities, so any scarring you have may heal and fade more quickly. Basically, you need this supplement in your diet like, yesterday!

Your skin doesn’t need a total overhaul to look amazing. Just pay attention to the ingredients in your products—and what you put in your body—and you’ll have skin that looks better than it ever has!

Illustration by Karley Koenig