7 Science-Backed Tips for Skin Longevity With Insights From a Dermatologist
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Expert contributor: Dr. Dhaval Bhanusali, board-certified dermatologist, laser surgeon, and Therabody’s Chief Dermatologist.
Smart skincare isn't just about addressing concerns as they arise — it's about staying ahead of them. Your skin naturally changes over time, developing fine lines and wrinkles and losing some firmness and hydration.
Collagen is a connective tissue that holds your skin together, contributing plumpness. Its levels start declining in your 20s. [1] This rate picks up even more for women as they enter menopause. The significant drop in estrogen is accompanied by a 30% drop in collagen over a nearly 5-year period. [2]
The good news? You can help protect your skin's longevity. Avid photoprotection and a good skin care routine are the keys to maintaining healthy-looking skin for years to come.
The key is knowing which strategies actually work. With so much conflicting information on social media, generic solutions that fall short, and expensive treatments that aren't always accessible, it can be challenging to know what's right for you.
To help uncover what treatments are actually effective for aging skin, we turned to the research and identified the top at-home solutions that can help you maintain radiant, healthy-looking skin, no matter what decade you're in.
1. Wear sunscreen daily
Daily sunscreen use is one of the most effective steps for supporting overall skin health, preventing visible signs of aging, and helping to reduce the risk of skin cancer.
That’s because the sun’s ultraviolet rays lead to collagen damage and breakdown. Plus, these rays trigger melanin (pigment) production, contributing to dark spots or sunspots. [3]
Overall, this process is known as photoaging — the premature aging of skin due to ultraviolet light (UVA and UVB light to be exact). This damage leads to wrinkles, rough skin texture, hyperpigmentation, and even conditions like skin cancer. [4]
Sunscreen protects against photoaging by blocking UVA and UVB light. It’s important to wear sunscreen every day, and it’s especially important when the UV index is high (at 3 and above). [5]
According to Dr. Dhaval Bhanusali, Therabody’s Chief Dermatologist, “Using a sunscreen daily is non-negotiable.”
For those concerned with hyperpigmentation or dark spots, consistent use is especially important. Dr. Bhanusali recommends tinted sunscreens that offer additional protection by helping shield the skin from visible light, which can contribute to discoloration. [5]
So, after your morning skincare routine, don’t forget to slather on sunscreen (and throw it in your bag to apply every two hours throughout the day).
2. Use a good moisturizer
Don’t underestimate the power of a good moisturizer. These creams, liquids, or gels play a critical role in supporting aging skin as they protect the skin barrier and help prevent water loss.
“A good moisturizer helps retain hydration and supports the skin barrier. It allows the skin to do what it's supposed to — protect you,” explains Dr. Bhanusali.
Over time, the skin’s ability to retain moisture declines as levels of key hydrating compounds (like ceramides, fatty acids, and hyaluronic acid) gradually decrease. [6]
Dry skin appears to show signs of aging faster. This loss of hydration can make fine lines look deeper, skin feel rougher, and the complexion appear dull.
A well-formulated moisturizer helps counter this by replenishing these liquids, pulling water back into the skin using its ingredients like glycerin or hyaluronic acid, and creating a protective seal to reduce water loss. [7]
While moisturizer offers an immediate boost in suppleness and glow, consistent use in the morning and at night also helps aging skin stay more resilient and youthful looking in the long run.
3. Use an antioxidant serum
Antioxidant serums help protect the skin against environmental stressors. They also support your body’s natural collagen production by helping fibroblasts build new fibers and protect existing collagen from damage caused by UV rays and pollution. [8, 9]
Studies show that antioxidant capabilities can help diminish hyperpigmentation and even skin tone when used topically. [10, 11]
Antioxidant serums are primarily for prevention rather than treatment, which is why consistent use of the serum is important.
4. Try a retinoid
Retinoids are vitamin A derivatives that are applied topically to speed up cell turnover. This helps smooth fine lines and wrinkles, improving overall skin texture.
Retinoids also stimulate fibroblasts to produce more collagen and elastin, and they can help regulate oil production and unclog pores. [12]
Topical retinoids are well-studied, with strong evidence supporting their ability to help slow and even improve visible signs of aging.
“Using a retinoid is something all Dermatologists agree on,” notes Dr. Bhanusali. “They are great for stimulating collagen as well as improving acne, texture, dark spots, and scars.”
That said, they may not be suitable for everyone.
Talk to your dermatologist to see if over-the-counter retinols or prescription-strength retinoids (like tretinoin, adapalene, and tazarotene) could be helpful for you. Always avoid retinoids if you are pregnant or planning on becoming pregnant.
5. Use LED light
By now, you’ve probably seen (or tried) an LED light device in the form of a mask that you place on your face or a handheld device that you move across the skin.
LED light therapy is the intentional exposure of skin to specific wavelengths of light. Each wavelength reaches and targets different depths of the skin, depending on how long they are. Delivery of the right wavelengths for the right amount of time is an effective method to promote skin health.
Both red and infrared LED light therapy have been shown to improve wrinkles and texture in addition to skin elasticity and firmness. [13]
Red light is a long wavelength of visible light that can penetrate the skin. This light targets collagen synthesis by stimulating fibroblasts to promote collagen production. Treatment with this light emits a red glow. [13]
Red light therapy is often paired with infrared light therapy. Infrared light has an even longer wavelength than red light, which allows it to reach deeper layers of the skin. While it’s invisible to the eye, you can often feel its effects as a gentle warming sensation. This heat boosts blood flow to the area, supporting circulation and tissue repair at the cellular level. [14]
Blue light therapy is most beneficial for targeting acne. Blue light has a shorter wavelength to reach cells at the surface of the skin. It’s most beneficial for calming acne-prone skin and preventing acne-forming bacteria from thriving on the skin. Avoid blue light if you are prone to hyperpigmentation or melasma. [15]
Combining red and near-infrared light allows treatment to reach multiple layers of the skin, helping to maximize overall benefits. While LED therapy isn’t a replacement for in-office procedures, it can be a useful addition to a healthy aging skincare routine, especially for maintaining results between professional treatments.
When you're looking for an at-home LED mask, make sure it meets these five criteria:
- The LED light wavelengths support your skin goals
- It consistently delivers full-face coverage
- The device provides a therapeutic dosage without becoming unsafe
- Treatment times are efficient
- It’s easy to use as a part of your daily routine
Therabody’s TheraFace® Mask Glo checks all of these boxes. This LED mask delivers a 12-minute sequence of red, red and infrared, and blue light therapy, and its technology has been clinically proven to promote a healthier-looking complexion.
Pro tip: Choosing clinically proven devices gives you confidence that advertised benefits are supported by science to deliver real results to you.
So, when can you expect to see results from this therapy? The more consistent you are, the more likely you are to see results. Many people start to notice results within the first month, with benefits becoming most prevalent around that three-month mark.
This consistency leads to effects that are longer-lasting than other treatments, like getting regular facials, because LED light can reach well below the skin.
6. Use vibration
Vibration is another therapy that at-home devices provide. And it supports the skin by improving circulation.
The best way to apply vibration therapy to the face is with the help of a device like TheraFace Mask. The three vibration patterns and intensities (relax, refresh, and revive) are designed to be effective and soothing, with vibration patterns delivered to your forehead and temples. If you’re looking for targeted support on specific areas of your face, reach for the handheld TheraFace PRO, which allows you to customize your treatment.
7. Support from the inside out
By now, you know that skin aging occurs at the cellular level. And other habits that impact cellular health, including lifestyle habits that have nothing to do with applying a treatment to your skin, can have a major impact.
Prioritize sleeping well: Sleep impacts everything, including your skin. Not sleeping enough or getting poor sleep may lead to decreased elastin and collagen and make your skin more prone to dehydration. [16]
Strength train: One study found that resistance training can increase collagen expression markers. [17] The U.S. Physical Activity Guidelines For Americans recommends that adults engage in strength training (activities that involve pushing, pulling, or lifting weights) at least twice a week, working all major muscle groups. [18]
Eat with skin health in mind: The skin (and hair) is made up of protein. So, getting protein from foods like poultry, meat, dairy, tofu, and legumes daily is important. Omega-3 fatty acids (the type of fat found in fish, like salmon) also support the skin barrier. One study found that eating about 2 ounces of almonds a day helped reduce wrinkles and pigmentation. Researchers attributed these effects to the protein, antioxidants, and omega-3s found in the nuts. [19]
“A healthy lifestyle is the foundation of good skin health and aging well. It’s not just what happens in the office that impacts your skin — what you do at home is just as (if not more) important.” says Dr. Bhanusali.
The secret to healthier-looking skin health is the consistent combination of protecting your skin, using proven treatments, and maintaining healthy habits that keep your skin thriving decade after decade.
Key takeaways:
- Skin goes through many age-related changes (a loss of elasticity and hydration), which can lead to fine lines and wrinkles.
- The right therapies can slow, prevent, and even reverse some of these undesirable changes — giving you a more youthful complexion.
- Top recommendations for a skin longevity routine include using sunscreen, moisturizer, vitamin C serum, retinoids, and at-home devices, including LED light therapy.
- The right at home tools, like TheraFace Mask Glo, may offer even more support beyond traditional topicals.
- The key is to stay consistent with your routine.
Resources:
- Skin anti-aging strategies
- Effect of estrogens on skin aging and the potential role of SERMs
- A Review on Sun Exposure and Skin Diseases
- Antioxidants in Photoaging: From Molecular Insights to Clinical Applications
- EPA: UV Index Scale
- Update on Melasma—Part II: Treatment
- Aging-associated alterations in epidermal function and their clinical significance
- Maintaining skin integrity in the aged: a systematic review
- Ascorbate differentially regulates elastin and collagen biosynthesis in vascular smooth muscle cells and skin fibroblasts by pretranslational mechanisms
- Effect of vitamin C and its derivatives on collagen synthesis and cross-linking by normal human fibroblasts
- Vitamin C in dermatology
- The role of vitamin C in pushing back the boundaries of skin aging: an ultrasonographic approach
- Use of Retinoids in Topical Antiaging Treatments: A Focused Review of Clinical Evidence for Conventional and Nanoformulations
- A study to determine the efficacy of combination LED light therapy (633 nm and 830 nm) in facial skin rejuvenation
- Effect of Blue Light on Acne Vulgaris: A Systematic Review
- National Sleep Foundation's sleep time duration recommendations: methodology and results summary
- Current Guidelines For Physical Activity For Americans
- Prospective randomized controlled pilot study on the effects of almond consumption on skin lipids and wrinkles
