There are many ways to reduce the effect of the aging however it cannot be completely avoided. There are some creams available in the market for the same. They could sometimes show side effects. Some examples of such chemical creams that can be used for anti-aging are Hydroderm, Athena, etc.

Since the chemicals have chances of showing side effects, many women worried about their wrinkles and saggy skin opt for the homemade remedies. There are many such methods that have been using for long. The one disadvantage in using the homemade anti-aging creams is that the results are generally shown after a long time of using it.

The first best homemade cream for anti-aging is the honey. It is known to be a very good natural wrinkle remover. It can be applied directly to face but for best results, the following instructions can be followed:

• First the face is washed with some lukewarm water. This is done so that the pores on the face are opened up for the honey to seep through and be more effective.

• Then apply honey in a thin layer all over the face.

• After thirty minutes, wash it with water gently.

• And finally rub the entire face with an ice cube.

The next home remedy is using the coconut oil. From time immemorial, the coconut oil has been used for the body and skin massage. It has had many medicinal values. The oil can be properly massaged throughout the face following the circular patterns. This can be done at night before sleeping. Make sure the oil is slightly heated so that the results are shown faster.

The third homemade cream would be the mashed up bananas. The bananas are readily available everywhere and therefore can be used for reducing the wrinkles on the face.

• Take few bananas and smash it up so that it forms a paste.

• Put this paste all over the face generously and uniformly.

• Let it remain for about twenty minute and then wash it off.

• Pat the face to dry.

Lemons can also be used for shedding the wrinkles. Other citrus fruits can also be used for the same purpose depending on their availability. They can be dried and kept on the face for some time and then washed off. This has to be done quite often for best results.

The other ways to prevent wrinkles is to change the lifestyle. The eating habits can be changed and be more of anti-oxidants that delay the outcome of skin aging. The cooking oil can also be changed to a much healthier one.

Beside her is a cooler containing several bottles of spring water and a fresh fruit salad of watermelon, cantaloupe, and honeydew for lunch. Next to her on the sand is a pair of well-used sneakers for the 2-mile walk she takes along the water’s edge every day.

There are no wrinkles or stretch marks marring her perfect body. And she’s determined that there never will be. She’ll do whatever it takes to defy aging until the day she dies.

What are the odds that she’ll make it? Better than they were a decade ago. Back then scientists had already found the reasons that we deteriorate into wrinkles, bags, age spots, flab, and life-threatening conditions. The reasons were, and still are, genetics, disease, environmental factors such as smoking and diet, and the aging process itself. Today these scientists also know that every single one of these factors may be directly influenced and perhaps even altered by getting enough of the right kinds of vitamins and minerals.

A Chemical Blitzkrieg

Both the diseases that contribute to aging and the physical and mental “dam­age” that we associate with old age seem to be triggered by a lifelong blitz­krieg of damaging molecules that affect us on many levels.

Age Spots

These molecules, sometimes called free radicals by scientists, are sent zinging through our bodies by cigarette smoke and chronic infection as well as by the normal cell metabolism that converts the carbohydrates and fat we eat into the energy required to power our cells. Yes, just eating your daily breakfast normally produces untold numbers of these harmful molecules. There’s no way to avoid them completely.

Unfortunately, free radicals have the nasty habit of stealing electrons from your body’s healthy molecules to balance themselves. In the process, they damage cells and their DNA, the genetic blueprint that tells a cell how to do its job. And without a perfect copy of that DNA blueprint, a cell doesn’t know what it’s supposed to do. Yet biochemists estimate that every cell in the body is hit 10,000 times every day by free radicals.

Depending on how badly they’re hit and how quickly they’re returned to service by cellular repair squads, the cells may mutate or die. And when either of these events happens, it may initiate the underlying biochem­ical processes that cause many of the diseases that accelerate aging: heart disease, high blood pressure, Parkinson’s disease, cancer, cataracts, diabetes, and even Alzheimer’s disease.

Skin DNA

Some scientists also believe that free radicals affect the aging process even more directly. In fact, there’s a growing consensus that aging itself is due to free radical reactions.

The idea is that there may be an accumulation of damage from the con­stant cellular bombardment by free radicals. A cell gets hit once, the cellular repair squads come to the rescue and cut out the damage to the cell’s DNA blueprint, and the cell bounces back into action. But when the cell gets hit over and over again, there may come a point at which the repair squads can’t patch everything back together the way it was. So the cell continues to do its job, but not as well as it had been.

If it’s a skin cell, for example, you might end up with wrinkled skin rather than smooth, polished skin. If it’s an eye cell, maybe you just can’t see as clearly as you used to.

In any event, scientists have found that up to 40 percent of all of the proteins in an older person may be damaged by free radicals. Proteins are involved in myriad functions in the body, from guiding chemical reactions to supplying energy to maintaining the body’s structures.

And that, plus the fact that studies indicate that damaged proteins shorten the life span of laboratory animals, has led some scientists to suspect that free radicals may directly cause aging.

Researchers have shown that d-alpha-tocopherol, natural vitamin E oil, can prevent inflammation and skin damage if applied before sun exposure.

Vitamin E oil can be bought over the counter in drugstores, as can vita­min E-fortified creams. Research has shown that if the cream or oil contains at least 5 percent vitamin E, it can also be effective in reducing post—sun damage.

You can also reap some of vitamin E’s sun-protective properties by taking supplements, suggest by dermatological surgeon and

dermatologist in private practice in New York City. “It’s highly effective as an anti-inflammatory agent, and it reduces sun damage to the skin,” says professional beautician recommends that people take 400 IU of vitamin E daily in the natural form of d-alpha-tocopherol.

Sun Burn Skin

Good dietary sources of vitamin E include polyunsaturated vegetable oil, wheat germ, spinach, and sunflower seeds.

Try Up Selenium Sun Protection

You might want to boost your dietary intake of the antioxidant mineral sele­nium as well. Selenium can prevent solar damage, pigmentation, and dark spots, but because the selenium content of water varies across the country, not every­one is getting enough to be beneficial, citing the Southeast in particular as an area deficient in selenium.

To quench the free radicals caused by sun exposure and to prevent skin damage, doctor recommends daily supplements of 50 to 200 micrograms of selenium in the form of 1-selenomethionine. Your dosage depends on where you live and whether you have a family history of cancer.

Sun Burn Problem

Selenium can be toxic in very high doses, so if you’d like to try this therapy to protect your skin, you should discuss it with your doctor before taking any more than 400 micrograms a day. Children should not take extra selenium until they have their adult teeth.

To get more selenium in your diet, try tuna; a 3-ounce can serves up a full 99 micrograms. Or treat yourself to an ounce of baked tortilla chips for a whopping 284 micrograms.

In general, vitamin C is important for keeping the skin younger look­ing, recommends a safe daily vitamin C intake of about 300 to 500 milligrams to maintain skin quality.

Studies have shown that just a minimal amount of ultraviolet rays can deplete exposed skin of vitamin C by 30 percent. Exposure to the ozone in a polluted city can decrease levels of vitamin C by as much as 55 percent. Med­ical researchers have also found vitamin C to be of some help when applied topically. It has been shown to significantly reduce the amount of so-called free radical damage that occurs from sun exposure. Free radicals are naturally occurring unstable molecules that steal electrons from the body’s healthy mol­ecules to balance themselves. Unchecked, they can cause significant tissue damage.

Antioxidants—vitamin C is one—neutralize free radicals by offering their own electrons and so protect healthy molecules from harm.

Since vitamin C prevents skin damage from sun exposure, it’s reason­able to suspect that it can also prevent the consequences of that damage, including wrinkling and age spots,” says reseracher.

One such topical vitamin C product is Cellex-C, which is available in a 10 or 17 percent vitamin C lotion or cream. It can be purchased without a prescription from dermatologists, plastic surgeons, and licensed aestheticians (full-service beauty salon operators) and by mail order from Cellex-C Inter­national. For optimum sun protection, the product should be applied once a day along with a sunscreen, according to doctor, whose patented technology led to the development of Cellex-C.

To remove an age spot, dermatologists often recommend applying the strongest dosage of retinoic acid that you can tolerate directly on the spot. The area will proceed to peel, and after a few months, the spot should dimin­ish and possibly even disappear.

In a 9-month study of 83 people with age spots, researchers found that people treated with a retinoic acid gel experienced lightening of these spots after 1 month. After 9 months, 57 percent of those treated with the gel showed significant lightening of their age spots.

Retinoic acid can be even more effective when used in combination with other treatment. We often have people apply glycolic acid in the morning and retinoic acid at night. Or combine it with a bleaching cream.

Skin Problem

Retinoic acid cream comes in a variety of concentrations, but it’s avail­able only by prescription, so you’ll need to work with your dermatologist to find the dosage that’s right for you.

And because retinoic acid continually sloughs off the outermost, dead layer of skin, it can not only eliminate existing spots but also nip new spots in the bud. The downside of this process is that an area of skin previously sheltered from evaporation and the elements is exposed. That’s why a com­mon side effect of retinoic acid is dry, sun-sensitive skin that can be irritated and scaly. Though this effect typically diminishes with time, if you’re using retinoic acid, you’ll likely need a moisturizer. Sunscreen is also a must once you start using retinoic acid.

But as we age, many of us do begin to see spots, especially on our hands, feet, and face.

And whether we call them liver spots, age spots, or sun spots, the reac­tion is likely the same: We want a spot remover.

Technically known as lentigines, age spots are the result of excess pig­ment being deposited in the skin during years of sun exposure. So along with treatment, dermatologists also recommend avoiding exposure to the sun.

Though the majority of age spots are harmless blemishes/that require no more than a trip to the dermatologist, early stages of skin cancer can masquerade as innocent-looking age spots. If any spot enlarges, thickens, changes color, has an uneven rather than a round edge, bleeds, or itches, have it checked by a doctor. For extra protection, also include a skin exami­nation in your annual checkup.

The good news is, if your spots really are just age spots, dermatologists today have an assortment of treatments at their disposal that can fade them, if not remove them completely. These include topical application of a vita­min A acid called retinoic acid.