Five ways to make your skin look younger naturally
Wednesday, December 14, 2011 by: Danna Norek

(NaturalNews) You don't need needles, surgery or expensive procedures to get younger looking skin. You can take years off of your appearance without surgical or chemical intervention by following a few guidelines. These practices will help you maintain smoothness, tone and integrity year after year.

The most popular procedures these days can often leave patients with a look that is anything but natural. Chemical peels can make the skin appear waxy. Injections of fillers and muscle-freezing toxins can make the face appear frozen and unnatural. In short, there are not any natural looking options found in a medical office.

Avoid refined sugar and simple carbohydrates

Refined sugar consumption triggers a process called glycation in which the sugar molecules attach themselves to proteins. This results in harmful new proteins appropriately coined "AGEs" (advanced glycation end-products) that cause harm to all cells in the body.

They also make collagen proteins more rigid. The result is reduced elasticity in this important structural skin protein. Wrinkles and creases can then form more easily due to repeated expression and environmental damage.

High intake of refined sugar and processed carbohydrates compromises the whole underlying structure of the skin. It accelerates the process of aging by reducing the integrity and resiliency of the skin's "foundation".

Avoid sleeping on your side

Sleeping on your back actually helps you to avoid wrinkles. Side sleepers often inadvertently add creases and wrinkles due to the prolonged pressure put on the facial skin.

Back sleepers wake in the morning to a crease and line free face. This is because they don't have a pillow pushing up against their skin all night. Sleeping on your back can also prevent "cleavage wrinkles" in women.

Exfoliate often

Frequent exfoliation helps to increase cell turnover. This means that new cells are continuously brought to the surface of the skin. The result is a smoother and more radiant appearance since dead cells dull the skin.

Exfoliation also has a positive effect on collagen production. Mechanical exfoliation with a facial scrubbing pad or specially textured cream triggers the skin to produce more collagen. This is helpful since we stop producing abundant amounts of this important protein in our mid twenties.

Choose your sunscreen wisely

We unquestionably need sunlight to produce vitamin D. However, too much UV exposure can result in sun damage. Excessive sunlight exposure can cause age spots, accelerate wrinkle and fine line formation and compromise firmness and elasticity.

This is due to the free radicals that excessive sun exposure creates. These destructive molecules roam the body and destroy or damage healthy skin cells. This accelerates the aging process.

Choosing the wrong sunscreen can do more harm than good. Avoid any sun block with the vitamin A derivatives "retinol" or "retinyl palmitate". They both accelerate tumor growth and promote cancerous cell growth when paired with UV exposure.

Other cell damaging ingredients to avoid in sunscreen include PABA, parabens, oxybenzone, avobenzone, octisalate and triethanolamine. These chemicals have been linked to hormonal disruption and cellular irregularities.

Get deep, restful sleep

Our nightly sleep cycle is the time when our bodies produce human growth hormone (HGH). Human growth hormone is responsible for the majority of our youthful characteristics. It helps keep skin smooth and supple, the hair deeply colored and soft, and energy levels high.

We produce this important hormone most heavily during the deeper stages of the sleep cycle. This means that if your sleep is interrupted, you won't produce as much of this important hormone. A good night's sleep also gives the appearance of vitality and improves the skin's color and tone.

Learn more: Five ways to make your skin look younger naturally