How to Fight Environmental Effects on Your Skin

This post was sponsored by RoC^® Skincare as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central.

I’m all about aging gracefully, focus on the “gracefully” and begrudgingly accepting of the “aging.” Many of the healthy living tips I share have the added benefit of slowing down the signs of aging. Lifestyle plays a major role in how our skin ages. Unfortunately, environment plays a big role as well, and we don’t have as much control over that. Fortunately, there are some things we can do to fight environmental effects on your skin and today I’m sharing those tips with you.

How Does Environment Affect Your Skin?

This year, RoC^® Skincare partnered with Sperling’s Best Places to research environmental, occupational and lifestyle patterns that relate to skin aging. This study revealed the most wrinkle-prone cities in the top metropolitan areas for the year 2040. 

According to the RoC® Wrinkle Ranking, the area where I live (near DC) ranks #7 in the list of most wrinkle prone cities in America! Like other large metropolitan areas, the congested commuting and low air quality take a toll on our skin.

Areas with high heat and low precipitation also result in premature fine lines and wrinkles since the air dries out your skin.

If you happen to live in an area where a lot of people smoke, you’re also at risk of developing aging skin earlier than those in non-smoking regions.

How Do I Prevent Environmental Effects on my Skin?

We’ve already identified the environmental factors that contribute to premature aging. So, the first thing you can do is to fight environmental effects on your skin is to confront each one head-on.

If you live in a city with poor air quality, use an air purifier in your home and if possible, at work. Make sure to change your home and car air filters regularly.

If you live in a dry, hot region, use a humidifier to keep your skin from drying out.

Since smoking can prematurely age your skin, quit smoking and avoid being around people who smoke. Not only will you look younger longer, you’ll live longer too!

More Ways to Fight Environmental Effects on Your Skin

Drink lots of water! Staying hydrated moisturizes your skin from within.

Eat foods rich in antioxidants to fight free radicals that can damage your skin. Good sources of antioxidants are berries, spinach, walnuts, and beans.

Use sunscreen to prevent ultraviolet rays from damaging your skin.

Apply moisturizer regularly. Your best defense against wrinkles and fine lines is moisture. And you can skip the super expensive department store brands.

I’ve tried dozens of them (including a couple that were over $100) and the one that gave me the best results is one I found at Target! (Pro Tip: Moisturizer is especially effective if you remember to exfoliate once a week with a face scrub.)

I use RoC® RETINOL CORREXION products not only because they’re super affordable and easy to find, but also because they work better than anything I’ve tried. You can see the results for yourself in this post I wrote last November after my first month of use. I loved the night cream so much, I also started using the Daily Moisturizer with Sunscreen and the Eye Cream.

RoC® products are effective because they’ve been developing anti-aging products for over 50 years and were the first to stabilize and patent pure retinol in a cosmetic product 25 years ago. The aluminum tubes that all RoC® retinol products come in is designed to protect retinol from light and keep it stable. The fact that they’re able to do all this and keep their products reasonably priced is the reason I use RoC® products and recommend them to everyone I know.

Is your city on the list of one of the most wrinkle prone? If so, don’t pack your bags yet. Try some of the tips above and you should be able to fight the negative effects of your surrounding area. Even if you’re not in a wrinkle-prone area, most of these tips will improve your health and the health of your skin.