Longevity has undoubtedly become a key focus in the world of health and wellness.
The overarching idea is a focus on positive, proactive approaches to support ‘health span’ or living well for longer, rather than the reactive care that has long been a mainstay. Now, the skincare industry is leaning into the idea too, moving on from the idea of ‘anti-ageing’ in favour of ‘ageing well’.
In a long-overdue move, we are finally seeing a significant move away from traditional messaging in favour of more positive ideas. Instead of an obsession with holding on to, or regaining, youth, the focus is turning to sustaining our complexion’s glow, vitality and health.
“The anti-ageing approach treats ageing as the enemy and something to be fought or stopped, whilst longevity embraces ageing as natural and focuses on supporting skin health throughout the ageing process,” agrees Gemma Rogers, Education Manager for Estée Lauder. She says the shift is aligned with a broader cultural movement towards body positivity, inclusive beauty standards and wellness-focused approaches as well as an acknowledgement that healthy skin looks different across ages and ethnicities.
“Also, scientific understanding has advanced significantly with research showing ageing as complex and multifaceted. It allows a more modern approach in product creation to address cellular health, skin microbiome and barrier function, rather than just targeting wrinkles.”
What is skin longevity?
Scientists, dermatologists and brand founders – from start-ups to global beauty behemoths – are all singing from the same songbook right now when it comes to skin. The aim is to retain a better quality of skin, for longer, taking steps to proactively shape how your skin ages.
“The concept of skin longevity refers to maintaining the health, appearance and function of skin over a lifetime,” explains Rogers. “It’s a holistic approach that goes beyond just preventing wrinkles and includes preserving the integrity, resilience and overall health as we age.”
Instead of trying to undo the appearance of lines, wrinkles, redness and pigmentation, it’s about helping get skin to a state where those things will have less impact, as well as fortifying skin’s ability to repair itself, and slowing down the impact of the internal and external factors that lead to premature ageing.
These ideas are quickly emerging in the research and subsequent ingredients, formulation and application approaches being seen across the beauty landscape right now.
“There are a few reasons why experts are excited about the concept of skin longevity,” says Rogers. “Breakthroughs in science, genomics and AI have transformed our understanding of ageing skin and have allowed innovation in new treatments and skincare ingredients.”
Epigenetics is one exciting area of exploration. Scientists are seeking to further understand and utilise the way some of how we age is predetermined by genetics, while much more than previously thought is linked to external factors such as diet, lifestyle, stress and environment factors like UV exposure, which have a huge effect on how well we maintain healthy skin. It means your skin’s chronological age, (the number of years you’ve been alive) and biological age (how your skin functions, behaves and appears) are not always in sync.
Predicting future damage and changes is another focus. L’Oréal has just unveiled its Cell Bioprint device, set to be used at beauty counters, that analyses a skin sample gathered from a strip placed onto the cheek for several minutes. Using its complex technology it can calculate skin’s age and provide personalised advice on how to slow down the signs of ageing, foresee potential cosmetic issues before they become visible, and minimise guesswork by helping to predict your skin’s responsiveness to certain key ingredients such as retinol.
The French beauty giant has been working in the field of longevity for a number of years, recently bringing together its research under the banner of L’Oréal Longevity Integrative Science. It has identified elements that define healthy skin and those that impact it, studying
epigenetics, DNA stability, protein preservation, and cellular energy flow. The learnings have been used in development of new products including the predictions of the Cell Bioprint device as well as new release Lancôme Absolue Longevity The Soft Cream.
The moisturiser includes Absolue PDRN, a rose extract inspired by the PDRN (Polydeoxyribonucleotide) derived from salmon, said to improve skin quality, elasticity and resilience, helping kickstart your own skin into boosting its collagen production and increasing cellular turnover.
Estée Lauder too, is active in the field, bringing together a ‘Longevity Collective’, a group of scientists, researchers and thought-leaders it is working alongside to further its approach and developments. Estée Lauder’s Re-Nutriv skincare range is the first to use the brand’s Sirtivity-LP technology, developed alongside scientists from MIT and Harvard, that identifies ingredients that turn on the network of longevity proteins that can optimise youthful skin cell activities, helping skin maintain peak performance.
As further research unfolds, it’s very likely we’ll see even more specific ‘skin longevity’ formulations unveiled, but there are already plenty of ingredients that support cellular longevity.
Other key ingredients
“There are various ingredients to improve skin longevity, some of which are antioxidants, many of them work on improving the skin barrier, others work more deeply by increasing the longevity of the skin’s structural proteins such as collagen and elastin,” says Maria Madadha, Global Training Technician at mesoestetic.
“These ingredients work by slowing down the degradation of collagen and even go beyond that, by stimulating collagen synthesis.”
She says one key ingredient the brand is using to help is shikimic acid. “We have developed an innovative complex that contains shikimic acid amongst other ingredients which increases cell longevity.”
While longevity ingredients are evolving, there’s no magic solution. It’s important not to discount familiar approaches and ingredients known to nourish and protect skin. “The best approach is to follow evidence-based strategies,” says Rogers. “This includes shielding skin from daily sun and environmental damage, maintaining the skin’s barrier with gentle cleansing and moisturising ingredients, including antioxidants in both skincare and diet, supporting collagen production both topically and also through diet, and prioritising sleep
quality which has an effect on cellular repair and skin regeneration.” She says other strategies include managing stress levels (as chronic stress can increase inflammation), staying hydrated and eating skin-supporting foods that are rich in essential nutrients.
Crucial barrier care
Another reason skin longevity has importance beyond aesthetic concerts is that healthy skin serves as the body’s first line of defence against other health challenges. This includes infections; irritations that can cause inflammation; dehydration; wound healing and environmental aggressors such as UV damage that may lead to skin cancers.
It’s why maintaining a healthy skin barrier is a key string in the bow of supporting skin longevity. The outermost layer of our skin, the stratum corneum, or skin barrier, helps keep skin protected and hydrated, regulates body temperature, and prevents damaging elements like bacteria entering the skin. “Skin barrier support is fundamental to skin longevity as a strong barrier maintains essential hydration that keeps skin plump, resilient and functioning optimally,” confirms Rogers.
Gentle, nourishing cleansers, moisturisers, and serums containing ceramides and fatty acids, hyaluronic acid, peptides and antioxidants are always a good idea.
“Niacinamide is another great example of an ingredient that improves skin longevity as it helps strengthen the skin barrier, reduces inflammation and it can also improve elasticity,” she says.
Tips for optimising skin health
Wear SPF daily
Apply a high SPF every day, not only on days it is warm and sunny.
Protect your skin’s barrier
Use nourishing, gentle products that won’t strip or dry out skin or make it more susceptible to UV damage. Limit the use of exfoliating ingredients and acids to occasional use, rather than overdoing them.
Apply antioxidants
Boost your skin’s resilience to damage by including antioxidants in your daily skincare routine. They can be synthetic or derived from nature.
Popular antioxidant ingredients include vitamins A, C and E, resveratrol, niacinamide, bakuchiol, green tea and ferulic acid.
Regulate skin turnover
Applying a product with Retinol or Vitamin A derivatives encourages healthy skin function, improves cell turnover and helps increase collagen and elastin production.
Stimulate collagen production
Try an in-clinic treatment designed to encourage production of collagen and elastin within the skin, like microneedling, or injectable biostimulators such as Profhilo, or polynucleotide treatments.
Get quality sleep
Maintain a consistent sleep schedule and take steps to ensure you’re getting enough sleep – try a darkened room, lower room temperature and no screen time in or
before bed.
