From your 20s to your 50s, your skin care regimen can – and should – change over the years. Here, expert dermatologist Dr. Maritza Perez provides a successful skin care routine for every age in part two of our skin care success series.

Women in Their 30s

What are the typical problems that a woman in her 30s will encounter with her skin?
You might notice a decrease in acne; however, you may experience more dryness and discoloration. This is because the skin barrier starts malfunctioning; sun exposure induces uneven skin pigmentation and collagen (a protein that provides firmness and strength for the body and skin) is broken down. At this age you are subtly beginning to show signs of aging.

What types of products would you recommend to remedy these issues?
You should definitely use SPF to prevent collagen degradation and products that help produce collagen.

What should the skin care regimen for a woman in her 30s consist of?
You should still use an exfoliant with Retinoids, either medically prescribed or non-medically prescribed. Additionally, Niacinamide (vitamin B3) is a great exfoliant and antioxidant. You can also use products that contain amino-peptides that can be associated with some collagen production. 

What types of anti-aging products should she be using?
Protect against dryness and discoloration -- anti-aging issues women experience in her 30s -- by targeting the eyes, dorsum of the hands and décolletage. Don’t forget that the skin on your body ages as well, so it is ideal to moisturize and use a hydrating body wash. During your mid-to-late 30s, you should begin transitioning to a more aggressive anti-aging treatment, while continuing to cleanse, moisturize and treat skin.

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As much as we all love our blow-dryers, straightening irons and curling irons, excessive heat when hairstyling can weaken your hair structure and affect its health. The heat created by styling tools can degrade hair’s proteins, so it is important to minimize hair’s exposure to heat.

Using a heat-protective spray before hairstyling, holding the blow-dyer several inches away from hair and quickly passing straightening irons through hair so that the heat is not concentrated in one area are all excellent preventative measures against heat damage.

Excessive friction from manual hairstyling, like overly-zealous brushing, backcombing or teasing can also weaken one’s hair structure and affect hair health. To protect healthy hair from friction-related hairstyling damage, use conditioner every time you shampoo (be sure to choose the conditioner that is right for your hair structure and the look you want to achieve), detangle wet hair with a wide-toothed comb, and try root-lifting products to create lift and volume rather than backcombing.

From your 20s to your 50s, your skin care regimen can – and should – change over the years. Here, expert dermatologist Dr. Maritza Perez provides a successful skin care routine for every age in our skin care success series.

Women in Their 20s

What are the typical problems that a woman will encounter with her skin?
The most common skincare problem that a woman in her twenties encounters is acne. At this age many women have combination or oily skin.

What types of products would you recommend to remedy these issues?
Contrary to popular belief, the idea that acne will go away if you remove oils and dry your skin is erroneous. Prevention and treatment for acne is not through alcohol-based products. I recommend using a mild cleanser with salicylic acid that cleanses the lipids from the hair follicle or anti-bacterial Benzoil peroxide.

What should the skin care regimen for a woman in her 20s consist of?
A regimen at this age is essential for preventative treatment. You should follow a day and night regimen in which you cleanse the skin, moisturize and provide SPF protection and treat areas such as the eyes, dorsum of the hands and décolletage which many of us forget.  

When is the right time to start incorporating anti-aging into a skincare regimen? Your 20s are the perfect time to begin using anti-aging products for prevention. Prevention is better than trying to undo aging/damage later on in life. From my perspective there is no reason to avoid anti-aging products unless you experience allergies.

Can you please describe what someone’s skin would be like under normal conditions in their 20s?
Aging is a chronological process. When we are in our 20s, our skin is plump, lustrous, healthy and resilient. Your skin is very elastic so if you pinch yourself it bounces right back. As you age, you stop producing collagen, elastin and proteoglycans and glucosaminoglycans. Your habits also influence the aging process. You will age more rapidly if you engage in habits such as smoking, drinking excessively, doing drugs and sun exposure which increases the production of free radicals which exponentially accelerates the aging process.

There are a number of hair growth myths we have heard across the years. One myth is that cutting hair will it help grow faster or thicker. This hair growth myth may have something to do with the fact that hair, when it is cut and has a good shape, tends to look healthier than hair that has no shape and/or a lot of split ends. You can plump up your hair by using volume-enhancing styling products, and a good cut can also help you “fake” volume -- layered hair works well to achieve this. But cutting hair will not make it grow faster or thicker, as hair has a normal, biologically determined growth rate and overall texture, making this a hair growth myth.

As with other myths of hair growth, there are questions about what products can really grow hair. On average, hair growth is about a quarter of an inch to half an inch every month. While science has made huge technological advances that do help promote hair growth, myths of hair growth and old wives’ methods such as scalp massage, hanging upside down, rubbing magic elixirs into your scalp and getting it cut when the moon is waxing have not been scientifically proven to grow hair faster.