“I am a cosmetic surgeon and here are my 5 tips for delaying the first signs of aging”

Increasingly effective treatments, injections and other cosmetic surgery procedures… Solutions are multiplying to delay the appearance of signs of aging as much as possible. But prevention also plays a real role and by avoiding or getting rid of bad reflexes on a daily basis, we can preserve the health of our skin. Doctor Oren Marco, cosmetic surgeon, takes stock of the habits to get rid of and those to adopt to delay the appearance of wrinkles and other signs of old age.

Protect yourself against premature aging factors

We are often told this and yet these are still reflexes that some people do not have. “We must avoid all factors of premature aging such as the sun and tobacco.” For the first, Dr. Oren Marco recommends applying SPF 50 daily with a tinted cream “to avoid pigmented photo spots.” For tobacco, he reminds us that cigarettes are not the only one concerned and that vaping also remains harmful to the skin. “We must understand that what damages the latter is not necessarily the tar but the nicotine. So when we vape with nicotine, we have the same impacts.”

Do not attack your skin

Out of overzealousness, we sometimes do “worse rather than better”. In any case, this is what the cosmetic surgeon points out: “You must avoid attacking your skin with treatments that are too strong. The skin is a living organ in its own right. If we subject it to chemical or physical attacks, it will react and defend itself.” We therefore avoid doing scrubs (especially grainy ones) or peelings too often. But sometimes everything also comes down to the choice of creams. “If the latter are too rich or are composed of active ingredients that are too strong in relation to the nature and quality of the skin, we risk stripping it or stimulating it too much and obtaining the opposite effect.” For the doctor, it therefore remains essential to listen carefully and not blindly follow trends. “If you have reactive skin, for example, avoid using retinol, which is certainly very effective but not suitable for everyone.”

The skin is a living organ. Subjected to chemical or physical attacks, it will govern and defend itself

Dr. Oren Marco

Finally, even removing makeup can cause damage. “I recommend double cleansing with, as a first step, an oil, if possible organic, which will deposit an oily substance on the skin. And to ban micellar waters. This way the skin will be soothed and not stripped, which would tend to make it react and give rise to pimples.” The doctor also recommends applying a thermal oil that contains zinc after removing makeup. Indeed, zinc sulfate cleanses and soothes superficial irritations. Another detail that matters? The towel with which we will dry ourselves. “We avoid using the one with which we dry our body or hands. We risk depositing microbacteria which could also cause imperfections.”

Put your face to sport

Dr. Oren Marco emphasizes the importance of working the facial muscles. “We neglect it while we maintain our body and do bodybuilding. However, we can really act on the relaxation in the platysma muscle (at the neck). We can also strengthen the muscles in the cheekbones and angles of the jaw.” With facial yoga exercises, not only will we put the latter into sport but we will also promote lymphatic drainage which also affects the quality of the skin and the oval of the face. Be careful, however, to practice the exercises in front of a mirror so as not to adopt bad positions which could create other wrinkles.

Work on your posture

Finally, posture also remains essential. “It’s really important to stand up straight. Today, we see that we have a lot of bad postures on a daily basis, partly linked to the use of mobile phones. We always look down: as a result, we relax our muscles at the occipital hinge.” He also recalls that the fact of no longer standing straight promotes a relaxation of the floor of the mouth and therefore the appearance of a double chin “not fatty but muscular.” So, in fact, taking care of your head posture seems essential, like all the little reflexes mentioned previously. All that remains is to change your habits to preserve your youthfulness… It's your face that will thank you.