See what Men’s Journal has to say on “10 ways to look younger tomorrow”
These styling tricks, product tips, and expert skin advice will have you looking (and feeling) younger for minimal cost and effort.
We’re all getting older, but the world doesn’t have to know it. Last year, Americans spent more than $1.3 billion on surgical and nonsurgical cosmetic procedures. And cosmetic surgery for men alone is up an astounding 375 percent in the last two decades, according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, with age-disguising facelifts and eyelid lifts among the most popular treatments. But the good news is that you don’t have to shell out mega bucks or go under the knife to wipe a few years off the clock. These styling tricks, product tips, and expert skin advice will have you looking and feeling younger for minimal dollars and effort.
Brighten Your Smile
Yellow teeth are an unmistakable sign of aging. Used to be, teeth whiteners made your chompers look abnormally blue and ridiculously fake. But now, even OTC products can give you a smile just one or two shades lighter than the one you’ve got. They’re affordable and easy to use, but some work better than others. Designed by the former head of the American Society for Dental Aesthetics, Supersmile Professional Whitening System is the real deal. It includes a toothpaste and an accelerator paste for more dramatic results, and should be used twice a day for three weeks to see solid results.
Get a Real Haircut
Your haircut can add or drop a decade from your looks. And as the saying goes, you get what you pay for. “Guys will spend all of this money on a suit and tie and brag about a $25 haircut,” says Vaughn Acord, celebrity groomer and founder of V76 by Vaughn. “A lot of men don’t realize that the products and services for a more expensive cut can make the difference in how old they look.” Even if shelling out c-notes for a haircut on a regular basis isn’t in your budget, Acord advises doing it once and mining your stylist for all the advice you can get. “Guys will come in and spend $300 for a cut and never come back, but they’ve invested in having an expert guide them.”
Give Your Eyes a Lift
“Men have stronger facial muscles so forehead lines and crow’s feet become very prominent around 40 years old,” says Heather Woolery-Lloyd, M.D., a dermatologist in Miami. Also, the skin around your skin is delicate, making it more susceptible to environmental stress. “Most men show aging in their eyes first starting in their mid-thirties to forties,” says Paul Jarrod Frank, M.D., a cosmetic dermatologist, in New York City. “Men want to avoid looking tired, so first thing I consider is volume enhancement around the eyes.” To do this, Dr. Frank uses fillers, such as Restylane, an injectable gel that gives immediate, painless results and can last up to a year. “You will leave that same day looking like you got 10 hours of sleep,” he says. Restalyne costs $250–$700 per treatment.
Skip the Shadow
On young men, a five o’clock shadow is sexy, in that I-don’t-care-what-you-think-about-me kind of way. On older men, it looks like you had trouble waking up, perhaps drank too much Scotch, and are in need of a nap. Keep your face clean shaven or sport a well-manicured beard to avoid unnecessary aging effects. Also, ditch the ZZ Top approach: “When they’re too long, they can start to age you, especially with gray hair popping into the beard,” says Acord.
Erase the Wrinkles
If your face is showing deep wrinkles, it’s time to bring out the heavy guns. “Men tend to want more of a quick fix versus women, so I try to recommend treatment options that the least amount of maintenance as possible,” says Dr. Frank. One such fix: Botox. “I’ll inject Botox into the forehead area where there are wrinkles. Patients can be treated within minutes and with no downtime. The procedure is fully reversible, safely absorbed, and requires re-treatment every four to six months.” Botox costs $300–$500 per treatment.
Moisturize
Lifestyle factors such as extended periods of time in the sun or wind can exacerbate the proliferation of wrinkles. “Men tend to get more sun damage on their foreheads instead of the beard area, because shaving is a daily exfoliator,” says Dr. Frank. Prevention is key: “I recommend a good moisturizer like the Lab Series Age Rescue+ Water-Charged Gel Cream, which is ideal for extra hydration, especially during winter.”
Live Happy
As you get older, you receive an increasing number of birthday cards that remind you age is “a state of mind.” And though trite, this is also true. Somewhere between your job, your kids, and your taxes, you may have lost that carefree thing people associate with youth. Getting it back is a tall order. But you can do your part to reduce the amount of stress in your life with such activities as yoga, running, or even meditation. True, all of these require time, and lack of time may be the very thing causing you stress. But researchers at UCLA found that just 12 minutes of yoga a day over the course of eight weeks lowered the body’s inflammatory response — a marker for stress, aging skin, and several chronic diseases. Got 12 minutes? Sure you do.
Trim Down
One of the biggest contributors to aging has nothing to do with grooming styles or facial treatments. A study of more than 50 pairs of twins found that for people under the age of 55, being overweight was associated with looking older (measured by signs of skin aging). Researchers at Case Western Reserve School of Medicine reported that this was likely because excess weight causes jowls to sag and the face to lose its tautness, associated with a younger look. Ready to get started? Here’s our six-week weight loss plan.
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