Anti-aging: An old concept rethought

Creams, serums and face masks with an anti-aging effect are a promise for radiant, wrinkle-free and youthfully fresh skin without cosmetic interventions into old age. Sounds kinda too good to be true, don't you think? We think it's high time to do away with traditional beauty myths. You want to know what you can really do to counteract skin aging? We'll tell you!

Photo by Yan Krukov from Pexels

We often receive messages from customers who tell us: « I've been using your products for a long time, but I can't tell whether they have an anti-aging effect. » This is because we reject the anti-aging term and do not want to use it in connection with our products.

What does anti - aging effect mean - and what doesn't?

Let's first clarify the terminology: What does the buzzword anti-aging want to convey to us and what is actually behind it? Anti-aging is primarily a term from the advertising industry . There it is used to make us believe that the human aging process can be stopped, even partially reversed. With regard to our skin, according to this promise, it is possible to make visible signs of skin aging such as wrinkles disappear and thus visually rejuvenate our skin.

Well, we don't mean to be spoilsports, but you might have guessed it: neither the one nor the other is true. Anti-aging advertising by cosmetics manufacturers whose products are advertised with the promise of "undoing" are exaggerated representations . We should urgently become aware of this, as unfortunately many women still believe in the rejuvenating effect and are frustrated when it does not occur.

The aging process of our skin cannot be undone and cannot be stopped. If that were the case, it would ultimately be like discovering the elixir of life. But since we don't have this miracle potion at hand, we'd rather deal with what anti-aging actually means or can do. Anti-aging is the attempt to counteract the natural aging process of the skin with preventive measures and thus delay or slow it down . Anti-aging does not mean "preventing old age", but rather "delaying old age".

👆 So we keep in mind: Anti-aging as a marketing term is equated with rejuvenation, i.e. the artificial reset and suspension of the natural aging process. On the other hand, what anti-aging can actually do is delay the aging process by means of preventive measures.

What really helps against wrinkles?

Now that we know what cosmetics can't do, it's time to look at what they can still do these days. The be-all and end-all of any skin care routine is good basic care . It is also the most effective cosmetic measure to slow down skin aging. Let's take a look at what that means in detail.

The base:
Skin care that cares and protects

1. Care: Avoid drying out
Ensuring the basic supply of our skin with moisture and fats (lipids) is essential to maintain its natural protective function and metabolic processes. Environmental influences and excessive care of the skin through frequent showering and cleaning remove moisture and fats from the skin, which weakens the skin barrier. The skin becomes more permeable, its protective function decreases and it ages faster.

2. Protection: Against UV rays, cold and wind
One of the best remedies against premature skin aging is and remains sun protection . It has now been proven that UV radiation causes wrinkles. In addition to the sun, cold and wind can also damage the skin and accelerate its aging process. Protection should therefore always come first.

Sunscreen Tip: Finding a good mineral sunscreen is not easy. We have tested many and recommend the products from the Pai Skincare and Mádara brands . They can be wonderfully combined with the basic care from FIVE.

The plus:
Skin care with pro-aging ingredients

In the course of the anti-aging boom, a new trend towards cosmetics based on active ingredients has developed in recent years. Products with highly concentrated pro-aging ingredients such as retinol, vitamin C or acids are advertised. This ongoing trend towards skin care as a medicine has its benefits, but also its pitfalls. 

👆 Active ingredients are the substances in your cosmetic product that go beyond the general, caring character and aim for a specific effect or address a specific problem.

Advantages of active ingredient-based cosmetics:

• Can be individually and transparently adapted to special needs.
• Expands knowledge of how skin care works.

Disadvantages of skin care with active ingredients:

• Requires precise knowledge of your own skin and its needs.
• May cause damage to skin if used or dosed incorrectly.
• Does not replace the basic care, but can only supplement it.

For the reasons mentioned, you will not find high concentrations of active ingredients such as retinol or acids in our FIVE care products, but you can mix them with them without any problems. And because we keep receiving inquiries about this, we are listing the following two active ingredients that we can recommend as a basis for our FIVE facial serum and FIVE facial oils :

Vitamin C Booster by Pai Skincare

• Highly concentrated dose of vitamin C
• For a radiant complexion and against pigment spots
• Three tropes in the morning

Provitamin A from Mádara

• Natural retinol from sea buckthorn, cloudberries and rowanberries
• Supports collagen synthesis
• One to three drops in the evening
• Caution: Retinol can make the skin dry and scaly

Note: Both of the products mentioned here are currently only available online in the brands' shops. However, you can mix the FIVE products with any active ingredient product of your choice.

👆 The A and O in skin care is and remains good basic care with skin protection. A separate active ingredient care is not a must, but a plus, because basic skin care products usually already contain active ingredients. At FIVE, for example, hyaluronic acid and high-quality vegetable oils with specific effects, also for mature skin. In addition to basic care, they provide your skin with vitamins and antioxidants.

Good care is the best pro-aging

Two of the world's best-known actresses showed us that anti-aging and a youthful appearance are not the be-all and end-all. Andie MacDowell showed up at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival with a graying silver mane and anything but wrinkle-free. And Emma Thompson made a great statement at this year's Berlinale by advocating the acceptance of unretouched female bodies and calling on women to stop being "brainwashed" when it comes to supposed ideals of beauty .

Aging is a matter of opinion
Being beautiful and feeling comfortable in your own skin is by no means a question of age, quite the opposite. Rather, it is a question of attitude towards aging. The goal should be not to regard this process as something genuinely negative, but as a phase of life that, like all others, has its ups and downs.

No more false promises
The misuse of the term anti-aging in the advertising industry and the unrealistic message it conveys suggest that the word should finally be removed from our vocabulary and replaced with more accurate paraphrases. Best aging , i.e. aging as well as possible, or age prevention , preventing old age, are suggestions that are much closer to reality.

So we can see that there is a lot going on at the moment to clarify the myths of the beauty industry and to expose false or exaggerated promises as such. We think: That is absolutely right and important! 

We say no to:

• Beauty myths and false promises.
• The demonization of aging.

We say yes to:

• Information about the possibilities and limits of cosmetics.
• Aging with a positive mindset.

There are no miracle cures
With all of this, let's never lose sight of the fact that skin care is only a comparatively small part of the bigger picture when it comes to preventing premature skin aging. Diet, good sleep, exercise and a healthy, balanced lifestyle in general have a much greater effect on the aging process of your skin compared to the selective effects of care products.