Preventing and Smoothing Crows Feet, the First Signs of Aging
The first signs of aging often begin with crows feet or “smile lines” around the eyes. As we get older, this delicate skin is especially vulnerable to wrinkling since we repeatedly compress the skin as we smile, laugh, frown, or squint. As early as the mid 20’s, our skin starts to lose its elasticity, and these delicate lines become more permanently etched around our eyes.
What can we do to prevent or soften crows feet? Start by minimizing sun exposure and, of course, don’t smoke. Protect your skin with sunscreen, creams and serums that have a high content of antioxidants, from vitamins E and C to green tea and resveratrol. Retinol is especially potent for long-term anti-aging benefits. Not only does this hard-working antioxidant minimize break-outs, brown spots, and reddening, it helps to boost the skin’s collagen and other skin protection substances. The results are firmer, more evenly toned skin, with improved texture.
If you’ve developed crows feet that are too deeply etched for skin creams alone, you may wish to explore Botox to relax the muscles that produce frown lines and fine wrinkles or injectible fillers like Restylane® Silk, or Belotero® for discrete correction of defined wrinkles and folds.
Several Dermapen treatments may also offer an additional adjunctive measure to soften wrinkles. Ultherapy, which uses ultrasound technology to lift, tone, and tighten areas of the face and neck, is another popular method to minimize wrinkling and loosening skin. While most of us don’t mind a few “smile” lines, when these lines become more prominent, it’s good to know we have a variety of options that can smooth out the wrinkles and keep the focus on our eyes, not the skin around them.
