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Summary
Your skin changes as you age. You might notice wrinkles, age spots and dryness. Your skin also becomes thinner and loses fat, making it less plump and smooth. It might take longer to heal, too.
Sunlight is a major cause of skin aging. You can protect yourself by staying out of the sun when it is strongest, using sunscreen with an SPF of 15 or higher, wearing protective clothing, and avoiding sunlamps and tanning beds. Cigarette smoking also contributes to wrinkles. The wrinkling increases with the amount of cigarettes and number of years a person has smoked.
Many products claim to revitalize aging skin or reduce wrinkles, but the Food and Drug Administration has approved only a few for sun-damaged or aging skin. Various treatments soothe dry skin and reduce the appearance of age spots.
NIH: National Institute on Aging
Latest News
- Men: Here Are Ways to Healthier, Younger-Looking Skin (01/18/2017, HealthDay)
Treatments and Therapies
- Blepharoplasty (American Society for Dermatologic Surgery)
- Blepharoplasty - slideshow (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Botulinum Toxin Therapy (American Academy of Dermatology)
- Chemical Peels (American Academy of Dermatology)
- Facelift - slideshow (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Forehead lift - slideshow (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Laser Skin Renewal (Logical Images)
- Neuromodulators for Aging Skin (American Society for Dermatologic Surgery)
- Wrinkle Fillers (Food and Drug Administration)
Living With
- How to Create an Anti-Aging Skin Care Plan (American Academy of Dermatology)
- How to Select Anti-Aging Skin Care Products (American Academy of Dermatology)
- Tips for Relieving Dry Skin (American Academy of Dermatology)
- Wrinkle Creams: Your Guide to Younger Looking Skin (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
- Wrinkle Remedies (American Academy of Dermatology)
Related Issues
- Eldercare at Home: Skin Problems (AGS Foundation for Health in Aging)
- Is It True That Smoking Causes Wrinkles? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Specifics
- Bags Under Eyes (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
- Sagging Skin (American Society for Dermatologic Surgery)
Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Skin Aging (National Institutes of Health)
Journal ArticlesReferences and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
Find an Expert
- American Academy of Dermatology
- American Society for Dermatologic Surgery
- Find a Dermatologic Surgeon (American Society for Dermatologic Surgery)
- Find a Dermatologist (American Academy of Dermatology)
- National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Also in Spanish
- National Institute on Aging Also in Spanish
Children
- What Are Wrinkles? (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Patient Handouts
- Aging changes in skin (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Eyelid lift (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Facelift (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Liver spots (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Wrinkles (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish