What Causes Wrinkles, and How Can We Prevent Them? | b clinic Skip to content

What Causes Wrinkles, and How Can We Prevent Them?

We all start to lose some of our youthful glow at some point. But certain lifestyle choices and habits can cause the skin to age prematurely. There are also effective preventive measures and skin treatments that can help to slow down and even reverse visible signs of ageing like wrinkles, fine lines, and dull skin.

The Causes of Wrinkled Skin

The body produces less of the proteins collagen and elastin as we get older. In our youth, skin is more flexible and firm, bouncing back into place. When we get older, the loss of collagen and elastin means skin becomes less firm and lines and wrinkles become visible. 

Several factors can also accelerate the ageing process and cause wrinkled skin to form, including:

  • Genetics
  • Smoking
  • Sun exposure
  • Dehydration
  • Weight loss
  • Sleeping position
  • Stress

Wrinkles typically form in the areas that move the most due to facial expressions. Smiling, squinting, and frowning can all cause lines that grow deeper the older a person gets. 

When Do You Get Wrinkles?

We often think of wrinkles as a sign of middle age, and many people find that wrinkles and lines become more visible in their 40s and 50s. But your body actually starts to produce less collagen around age 25, causing fine lines and wrinkles to begin to appear. It’s important to take care of your skin as early as possible to keep your complexion looking fresh and youthful. 

What Causes Forehead Wrinkles?

Wrinkles on the forehead are the result of the contraction of the frontalis muscle above the eyebrows. This muscle contracts when you raise your eyebrows or frown, causing the skin to lift and wrinkles and folds to appear on the forehead. As we age, the skin loses elasticity, and these lines become visible even with a neutral facial expression. 

One of the most effective ways to treat wrinkles resulting from muscle contraction is an anti-wrinkle injection treatment. You can read more about anti-wrinkle injections and how they can treat frown lines here. 

Does Smoking Age Your Skin?

Yes. Smoking has been proven to cause premature ageing of the skin. The University of California conducted a study of 1,100 people to see how smoking affected the severity of wrinkled skin. After taking sun exposure and environmental factors into account, the study showed that wrinkling started to become more severe for smokers around the age of 30. For smokers aged between 40 and 49, wrinkled skin was likely to be as severe as a non-smoker in their 70s. 

How Can We Prevent Wrinkles?

While genetics and environmental factors contribute to the ageing of the skin, you can help to prevent wrinkles with the right skincare regime and cosmetic treatments. 

There are lots of ways to improve the texture of the skin and encourage collagen production to help reduce the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines. 

Antioxidant Creams and Serums

Eating fresh fruit and vegetables rich in antioxidants can benefit your overall health, but you can also apply products containing antioxidants directly to your skin. Creams and serums containing Vitamin C and E can help to reduce the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines.

These products work even better when combined with micro-needling. The small punctures caused by the micro-needling enable the active ingredients of the cream to penetrate the deeper layers of the skin to produce more impactful results.

Exfoliating Treatments

Your skin is continuously regenerating and replacing older cells with fresh new cells. The older cells on the surface of the skin can sometimes appear dull and uneven in tone, which makes wrinkles and fine lines look more prominent. This can be particularly noticeable in people with dry skin. 

Exfoliating products and treatments help to remove the top layer of old skin, revealing the fresher younger layer underneath. You can include an exfoliating scrub as part of your skincare regime, and visit b clinic for a medical microdermabrasion treatment for a deeper exfoliation. The therapy uses refined crystals to remove old and dead cells as part of a three-step skin rejuvenation process. 

Stimulate the Body’s Healing Process

Medical grade peels and laser resurfacing treatments are some of the most effective treatments for preventing and improving the appearance of wrinkles. These procedures work by stimulating the body’s natural healing mechanism. 

A medical grade peel will remove the top layers of skin, and encourage the body to produce new fresher, healthier skin. There are lots of different laser resurfacing treatments that work by targeting the deeper layers of skin and kickstarting the body’s healing process. 

How Can I Prevent Sleep Wrinkles?

Sleep wrinkles are caused by the repeated pressure of sleeping on your side, with the skin folding and causing vertical lines. Because we spend around a third of our lives asleep, these folds become reinforced and visible during the day when we are awake. 

The easiest way to prevent sleep wrinkles is to sleep on your back. Using a memory foam pillow can also help to ease the pressure on the face that causes sleep wrinkles. While your sleeping position can cause wrinkled skin, it’s not considered as significant a contributor as overexposure to the sun’s UV rays or smoking.  

How Can I Prevent Mouth Wrinkles?

Mouth wrinkles form as the ligaments in the lower face weaken, and the skin and fatty tissue in the cheeks start to droop and sag. While this can’t be prevented entirely without a cosmetic procedure, there are certain things you can do to delay lines around the mouth forming. 

We’ve already mentioned how smoking ages the skin, and the mouth area is where this is most noticeable. It can be challenging to quit smoking, but your doctor should be able to help you create a plan to stop.

You can also delay the formation of mouth wrinkles by avoiding the use of drinking straws, making sure you stay hydrated, and reducing your stress levels and intake of alcohol and caffeine. 

If you already have mouth wrinkles or laughing lines, dermal fillers may be an effective treatment to restore volume and smooth the skin around the mouth and chin.

Can You Reduce Wrinkles Naturally?

One of the most effective ways to naturally reduce the appearance of wrinkles is to have a good skincare regime. Make sure you cleanse your face twice per day and use a quality moisturiser and anti-age serum that is designed for your skin type. Regular exfoliation will also help to reduce the appearance of wrinkles by removing the old skin that makes lines more noticeable.

While these at-home treatments can help to reduce wrinkles naturally, you will need an in-clinic cosmetic treatment to achieve a younger and fresher complexion. 

Can Wrinkled Skin Be Reversed?

No treatment can completely reverse the ageing process, but several therapies can improve the health of the skin and stimulate the production of new collagen to enhance the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines. 

During your consultation at b clinic, your practitioner may recommend a combination of the following procedures.

Medical Grade Peel

One of the most popular procedures to treat visible signs of ageing, a medical grade peel removes the top layer of your skin to reveal a fresher and smoother layer underneath. We may recommend a one-off procedure or series of treatments to tackle deeper wrinkles. 

Medical Microdermabrasion

Medical Microdermabrasion helps to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles by intensely exfoliating the skin using fine crystals. A vacuum suction nozzle is used to remove any dead cells and crystals and to stimulate the body’s lymphatic drainage. The final stage is to apply an anti-ageing serum rich in antioxidants.

Micro-Needling

Micro-needling is one of the most effective treatments for treating deep wrinkles. The procedure works by using a state of the art DermaPen to create micro-wounds in the deeper layers of the skin.

The body produces collagen and elastin to heal these tiny wounds, resulting in smoother, firmer, and younger-looking skin. You may need a series of treatments to achieve the best results from micro-needling. 

Dermal Fillers

If your wrinkles and skin folds are caused by volume loss, your clinician may recommend dermal fillers.

The procedure works by injecting a hyaluronic acid-based gel into targeted areas of the face to lift and smooth the skin to reduce the appearance of wrinkles.

Results can be transformative, but the body will absorb the filler product over time. You may need to return to the clinic for a filler top-up every 6 months to maintain your results. 

Anti-Wrinkle Injections

Anti-wrinkle injections, are an effective treatment for the removal of fine lines and wrinkles caused by muscle contraction in the forehead, around the eyes, mouth, and other areas of the face.

The procedure works by relaxing the muscles that cause the wrinkles and folds to form. Results can last from 3 to 4 months, depending on the area treated. 

Laser Skin Rejuvenation

There are a range of laser skin rejuvenation treatments to help reduce visible signs of ageing and encourage the production of new collagen and skin cells. Depending on the severity of your wrinkled skin, your clinician may recommend a series of Picosure Laser treatments or a more powerful Fractional Laser.

For clients with deep folds and stubborn wrinkles, a Revlite Laser Peel may be the most effective treatment for achieving your desired results.