Page 141 - Cosmetology

How to Buy Moisturizers and Antiwrinkle

Creams

Most basic moisturizers--both drugstore and high-end brands-- contain the same key
ingredients (water, propylene glycol, lanolin) to soften your skin and help with surface
dryness. Wrinkles? That's another story. Here's the rub.

Instructions

• STEP 1: Choose moisturizers, makeup base and other daily-use beauty products
with built-in sun protection factor (SPF) 30. Sunscreen really can prevent new
wrinkles from forming. Look for at least one of these active ingredients: titanium
dioxide, zinc oxide or avobenzone (aka Parsol 1789). These protect you from
harmful UVA and UVB rays.
• STEP 2: Mind your skin's moisture needs. Dry skin drinks up rich moisturizers,
while oily or acne-prone skin does better with noncomedogenic or nonacnegenic
products. (These are preferred over "oil-free" products, which often include pore-
clogging oil imitators.)
• STEP 3: Study the active ingredients, which are listed on labels in order of the
amount contained. If soothing aloe vera or vitamin C is 15th on the list, you're not
getting much of it
• STEP 4: Be skeptical of products that claim to augment your own natural
collagen or elastin, whose job it is to keep skin plumped up and youthful. The
molecules in these products are too big to actually penetrate the skin.
• STEP 5: Ask your doctor about tretinoins, one of the few active ingredients
shown to truly reverse sun damage, reduce fine lines and soften wrinkles. These
medications, which include Retin-A and Renova, are available by prescription
only. Because of their ability to actually change your skin's structure, they are
designated as drugs rather than cosmetics.
• STEP 6: Sample other weaker, nonprescription vitamin A relatives like alpha
hydroxy acids (AHAs) and beta hydroxy acids (BHAs). You need at least 8
percent AHA for any visible results, though, which is just as likely to be present
in a cheap drugstore product as in an expensive brand.
• STEP 7: Experiment with antioxidant ingredients like coenzyme Q10, vitamin C
and alpha lipoic acid. Some dermatologists make great claims for them (with
promising research), while others are skeptical about visible results given the low
concentrations used.

What To Look For

• SPF 30 sunscreen
• Active ingredients
• Right ingredients for your skin type