It is always nice to look at a baby’s flawless skin. There are no lines, no signs that a pimple has even been there and actually, it’s perfect. You had gone that route but as you age, you can’t help but accommodate a wrinkle in time until you no longer know where your baby skin has gone to.

To know about the causes of wrinkles, you must first know about the normal skin layers. Here are the layers that constitute a human skin.

1. Epidermis

This is the outer layer of your skin. This protects the inner layers to whatever the environment may cause them. This seemingly tough outer skin is caused by the movement of keratinocytes, the cells of the epidermis, from its bottom part to the top. As a result, a large dose of keratin is produced. But when these cells reach the top, they actually flake off. So if you see scaly types of skins, it means that something went wrong in this process.

2. Dermis

This is the skin’s second layer. This contains its structural elements, which is the connective tissue. There are actually many types of connective tissue. Each type acts for different functions. Some samples are the collagen. This gives the skin strength. The glycosaminoglycans are the proteins that give turgor to skin. The elastin fibers create the elasticity of your skin.

Between dermis and epidermis is the dermal-epidermal junction. This is an important feature as it interlocks and form fingerlike projections which are called rete ridges. These will increase the area of the epidermis which is exposed to the blood vessels and need nutrients. The blood vessels in the dermis give out such nutrients to the epidermis through the rete ridges.

3. Subcutaneous tissue

This is the skin’s bottom layer. And the subcutaneous tissue contains the fat cells. You know what those cells are for? They supply insulation to your body and they also make your skin full and plump.

Presenting the Wrinkles

How do wrinkles form and develop as people age? Through time, the epidermal cells will become thinner. As a result, you will also look thinner. The epidermal cells will also be less sticky. This means that that there are more chances for the moisture on your skin to be released than maintained, which causes dryness. The decrease in the epidermal cells is actually 10 percent per decade. And as people age, they divide slower. For this reason, the skin cannot cope up quickly as it used to repair itself.

In the dermal layer, less collagen is being produced. The elastin fibers also wear out. Such factors will cause the skin to sag and wrinkle. The rete ridges, meanwhile, will flatten out. This will cause the skin to be fragile. And so the nutrients that the epidermis needs will not be met accordingly.

As for the subcutaneous layer, the fat cells get thinner as people age. This will result to more wrinkles and sagging.

It is a complex process that everybody will go through as people age. You can use moisturizer while you are young and take good care of your skin to slow down the process. But you have to admit that there will come a point wherein you will not only face a wrinkle in time, but other kinds of changes in your features as well.

That is okay. The important thing is that you age gracefully so that people will perceive you as beautiful inside and out.

Health Tips for Women 50 or Older

Many women report being more liberated in their 50’s and feeling more in control of life. Women love to share tips, so here is a list of the most popular tips for staying healthy for women aged 50 or older.

Most women reach 50 and have achieved quite a bit towards career goals or motherhood goals. They feel a real sense of achievement and have discovered a new freedom with fewer obligations they can explore what interests them. They can have more fun with hobbies or volunteer work, or memberships in community organizations.

One freedom women realize around this time in life is the freedom from menstrual pain and discomfort as they enter the time of menopause. Now they can enjoy all of the days of the month! The health concerns for menopausal women are that their skin will be thinner and become dryer. Taking good care of their skin becomes a daily regimen if it wasn’t already.

You may notice changes in the appearance of your skin - wrinkles and or age spots. These appear as a result of sun exposure during your younger years. Your vagina will become drier too in response to lower estrogen levels. Use a moisturizing cream for your face and a lubricant for your vaginal dryness.

Women’s metabolism slows from age 35 on and you may notice a decrease in your energy level. Lean muscle also changes to fat, unless you maintain an active lifestyle. You may notice this extra fat around your arms and at your waistline.

Some health-related age changes will not be felt but will still occur in your body. These changes are: bone loss, an increase in heart disease and stroke risk because of an increase in blood pressure and cholesterol. Have your blood pressure monitored on a regular basis to stay on top of this silent change. Your health care professional will also monitor your cholesterol levels periodically.

Declining estrogen level also can have an effect on your brain. This is the cause of “hot flashes”, short-term memory loss or word recall, and trouble sleeping.

Another condition that tends to flair up for women in their 50’s is hypothyroidism (low thyroid). This can cause you to experience fatigue, depression and weight gain.

As women age the risks for certain conditions increase too; such as diabetes, bladder infections, Diverticulosis, hiatal hernia, and also breast and colon cancer.

To help you beat these risks and stay healthy the following health screenings should be discussed with your healthcare professional:

1) Pap smear test for cervical cancer

2) Clinical breast exam

3) Mammography

4) Blood pressure checks

5) Weight monitoring

6) Cholesterol monitoring

7) Sugar testing for diabetes

Thyroid test

9) Colorectal cancer screening

10) Dental exam every 6 months

11) Eye exam every 2 to 4 years

12) Skin exam for skin cancer yearly

13) Bone mineral density exam (BMM) if you have had a fracture

14) It is also important to keep up with your immunizations: influenza, tetanus, hepatitis A, and hepatitis B.

Women should take charge of their healthcare at any age. Taking an active role in their preventative healthcare will help you to feel more in control of your life.

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Steps to a long healthy life

It’s not hard to live longer if you follow the basic steps that are required.

It seems obvious but the majority of people will never do what is needed to live longer.

* By simply staying hydrated every day, drinking sufficient water so you never feel thirsty you can add years to your life with better health and reduce chance of illness and disease.

* By simply exercising a few times a week moderately and on a regular basis you can also add many years to your life.

* You can add years to your life by choosing to eat the correct foods and getting in the habit of having a good diet more often than not.

* By having a relaxed and happy lifestyle you can also add years to your life.

These are all simple things that you should make as lifestyle choices that will not only help you to live longer but they will also help you to enjoy your life more along the way with increased energy and all the potential for success that it brings with it.

Generally people who are more positive will not only enjoy a longer and happier life but they will be more successful at what they do. This will help them to become more financially secure too which will also help to maintain a higher standard of health.

Even small changes in any of the areas mentioned above can help to make other changes more easily and the effect that these small changes will have over the course of a lifetime can bring big benefits in your later years.

By making a decision to change one small aspect of your life today you will be on the way to a longer and more fruitful life. Once you get the process in motion there will be no stopping you.
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