In this article:
What is biological age vs chronological age?
What is the role of genetics vs. environment in the ageing process?
How is skin’s biological “age” measured?
Why is skincare important for our health?
Which skincare ingredients help skin's healthy longevity?
Skincare routine to promote skin longevity
What are other ways to promote skin’s longevity?
If it feels like your social feeds suddenly shifted from “glass skin” and “slugging” to overnight conversations about “skin longevity,” you’re not imagining it. The skincare world has officially entered its future-focused era, and the concept of skin longevity is starting to pop up everywhere, from your dermatologist’s office to your local Sephora aisles.
But what does "skin longevity" actually mean, outside of the advertising and influencer fluff? Is it just a fancier way of saying anti-ageing, or is something bigger going on?
The short answer (and then the long answer, because that’s how we do it at Paula’s Choice): Longevity skincare isn’t about chasing youth or trying to freeze time; it’s about strategically supporting your skin so it functions at its best for as long as possible. It’s less focused on quick fixes, and more focused on utilising specific ingredients to set your skin up for a stronger, healthier, more resilient future.
Ahead, we’re breaking down what skin longevity really means, and why it really matters.
What is biological age vs chronological age?
Your skin’s chronological age and biological age are not the same thing (have we lost you yet? Hear us out!) Longevity skincare focuses on measureably slowing your rate of biological ageing. Your rate of biological ageing may be younger or older than your chronological age. More specifically, biological ageing refers to the physiologic age of all the cells and tissues in the human body due to the amount of accumulated damage (1, 2). It’s an incredibly complex process that involves more than just changes due to “getting older.”
Chronological age is simply the passage of time —the number of candles on your birthday cake. But, biological ageing, as you can tell from above, is a bit more involved than that.
Biological ageing is impacted by genetics, lifelong environmental factors (sun and pollutant exposure) that influence physical and mental health and years of lifestyle choices such as diet, exercise, socialisation and supplementation. These factors have an epigenetic influence, meaning they have the power to reversibly change how your genes work. These epigenetic changes impact how well your skin makes collagen, elastin and a host of other things that keep your skin looking young. Longevity skincare works at the molecular level to help prevent or reverse these visible changes associated with biological age.
Although there are several biomarkers associated with ageing (from telomere length, cell senescence, oxidative stress and protein dysregulation) many researchers think the unifying factor for all of them is DNA damage (3). DNA (dioxyribonuclecic acid) is a specialised molecule found in every part of the body, including skin. It’s a literal template for all cell functions (including skin cell functions), containing specialised instructions that tell cells how and when to divide, multiply and repair themselves.
Internal and external sources of DNA damage play pivotal roles in every aspect of ageing, including how skin ages (4, 5). As such, anything we can do to limit this damage and encourage visible repair will have a positive effect on biological ageing.
"The skin is not just our largest organ; it's a crucial shield against DNA damage,” says Dr. Matt Kaeberlein, an expert in skin longevity. “Protecting our skin with broad-spectrum sunscreen and other high quality skincare products is essential in safeguarding our body's genetic blueprint."
What is the role of genetics vs. environment in the ageing process?
The role of genetics in the ageing process has hereditary, lifestyle and environmental links. As mentioned above, epigenetics is a major factor since it causes unwanted changes to cells and the body (and skin’s) capacity to endure stress (6).
But ultimately the exact role genetics plays in the ageing process is complex. And despite all that we’ve learned in recent years about the relationship between genetic and environmental ageing, there’s still a lot we don’t know (7).
The environment we live in strongly affects the ageing process, leading to what’s known as extrinsic (external) signs of ageing: think wrinkles, discolourations, sagging and texture changes to skin over many years (8). Environments can vary from hot, humid climates close to the equator to dark, cold locations far up north, but all environments are pro-ageing.
Not surprisingly, the biggest culprit in environmental ageing is exposure to UV light. Other sources, such as blue light and airborne pollutants, cause their own damage, worsening the skin breakdown that cumulative sun exposure triggers (9).
In essence, the older we get, the greater the decline in the skin and body’s abilities to keep us looking and feeling healthy due to cumulative damage. This damage can also trigger certain unwanted genetic changes which would’ve otherwise remained inactive (10).
How is skin’s biological “age” measured?
If you couldn’t tell by now, measuring skin’s biological age isn’t as easy as counting the years that’ve passed since birth.
There are a few ways to measure skin’s biological age, with the most common being “ageing clocks.” These computerised clocks use specific biomarkers to predict the biological age of a person’s whole body (11). Detailed machine learning is involved since computations are based on a broad dataset from people of all ages, creating a baseline from which biological age can be (reasonably) determined.
To date, none of these ageing clocks are considered an exact science due to numerous variables that can skew results plus not being able to account for every conceivable biomarker of ageing. Remember, there’s still so much we have to learn about the ageing process.
Despite this limitation, ageing clocks can still be helpful since you can act on the things within your control to reduce your biological age if you find out it’s higher than your chronological age.
Fascinating fact: skin’s biological age can be different from the biological age of your other organs. Based on your genes and history of environmental damage, your skin’s biological age may be greater or less than that of your heart or lungs.
Measuring the biomechanical properties of skin is another way to predict its age. For example, you can measure changes in skin’s water content, collagen density, collagen fragmentation (both impact skin thickness) and elasticity (ability of skin to return to its original shape when stretched) to get a better idea of skin’s biological age. Factors such as amount of sun damage and lifestyle choices like smoking are noted for significant premature ageing of skin (12).
Why is skincare important for our health?
As the body’s largest organ and first line of defence to pro-ageing external stressors, like UV rays, our skin plays a key role in whether the entire body’s longevity is healthy or hindered.
Although our talk of environmental and genetic impacts on skin might be frightening, the truth is: Much of how skin looks and feels as we age is within our control. Skincare really can improve skin’s longevity by extending its health span—the amount of time skin’s normal health is maintained (13, 14). But skincare also has an indirect benefit: by protecting skin’s surface from damage and visibly repairing existing damage, your skin is better able to protect your entire body, enhancing its healthy longevity, too.
By far the most important product for skin longevity is sunscreen. Unprotected exposure to UV light not only causes visible changes on skin (sunburn, uneven tone, fine lines and wrinkles) but also suppresses its immune system. This sets off a chain reaction which leads to chronic inflammation throughout the body, causing premature cell senescence, a process when cells stop dividing and instead send inflammatory messages to nearby healthy cells (14). Carefully timed senescence is helpful, but premature senescence ratchets up skin’s biological age.
Which skincare ingredients help skin's healthy longevity?
Along with daily use of sunscreen, there are many skincare ingredients that can promote healthy longevity alongside a youthful look. Although not an exhaustive list, some of the best longevity skincare ingredients include (15):
- Exosomes
- Retinol/various retinoids
- Vitamin C
- Vitamin E
- Peptides
- Niacinamide
- Antioxidant-rich plant extracts like pomegranate, soothing green tea and resveratrol plus many other non-fragrant plant extracts
- Algae (numerous types—there isn’t a single best)
- Ceramides
Look for these and similar ingredients in leave-on skincare products that you apply once or twice daily. Leave-on products, like moisturisers and serums, allow these ingredients more time with skin so they can really work their magic. And of course, avoid irritating ingredients since they’re hostile toward healthy skin longevity.
Skincare routine to promote skin longevity
The right skincare products really can make a difference in visibly slowing ageing at the molecular level! The very concept of a longevity skin routine is to help skin better withstand and visibly recover from changes due to the passage of time and environmental exposure. Here’s an example of this type of AM and PM skincare routine consisting of research-supported products:
AM steps:
- Wash your face with a gentle cleanser
- Apply a antioxidant-rich, soothing toner
- Apply a vitamin C serum or niacinamide treatment
- Apply a peptide treatment
- Finish with a broad-spectrum sunscreen
PM steps:
- Wash your face with a gentle cleanser
- Apply a soothing, antioxidant-rich toner
- Apply a leave-on AHA or BHA exfoliant
- Apply a retinol or retinoid treatment
- Apply a moisturiser suitable for your skin type
- Apply an eye cream formulated for your eye-area concerns
Following this type of routine will result in skin that shows renewed smoothness, clarity, radiance and firmness. Signs of past damage will fade from view since lines, wrinkles and uneven texture are softened. Best of all, this preventive and reparative approach will help your skin age smarter, not harder!
What are other ways to promote skin’s longevity?
Along with following a reparative, protective, antioxidant-packed daily skincare routine that includes sun protection, there are several other things you can do to help extend skin’s youthful longevity and leave you looking refreshed (16):
- Maintain a consistent sleep schedule and take steps to ensure you’re getting quality sleep (darkened room, lower room temperature, no screen time in bed).
- Eat a mostly plant-based diet (Mom was right, you need to eat your veggies). Consistently eating healthy foods helps decelerate biological ageing.
- Exercise regularly based on your physical abilities and interests—get outside and get moving; being sedentary is anti-longevity.
- Socialise. Routinely connect with other people in person, doing activities you enjoy. Social isolation and loneliness take a documented toll on skin’s appearance (17).
- Talk to a medical longevity expert about supplements proven to address the hallmarks of ageing (18). Vitamin D3 is a big one, as are NAD precursors such as nicotinomide riboside and nicotinamide mononucleotide. We also like astragalus, spermidine, curcumin and resveratrol. Make sure your health care provider approves any supplement you’re considering.
Learn more about anti-ageing.
References for this information:
- JMIR Aging, April-June 2022, pages 1–15
- Nature, April 2021, pages 695–703
- eLife, January 2021, pages 1–17
- Nature, April 2021, pages 695–703
- Journal of Cosmetic Science, September-October 2020, pages 321–350
- Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy, November 2022, pages 1–22
- Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Molecular Basis of Disease, July 2019, pages 1718-174
- Scientific Reports, November 2021, pages 1–13
- Frontiers in Pharmacology, July 2019, pages 1–17
- International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, December 2022, pages 1–13
- Aging Cell, June 2022, pages 1–14
- Biogerontology, June 2022, pages 275–288
- Journal of Clinical Medicine, September 2017, pages 191–201
- Inflammation Research, June 2022, pages 817–831
- Molecules, October 2022, pages 1–29
- Frontiers in Psychology, February 2022, pages 1–19
- PLoS One, December 2020, pages 1–9
- Frontiers in Genetics, April 2022, pages 1–28
