28 Jun 2007, ST, Urban
Liver spots and crepey skin on your hands can give away your age. The experts tell Urban what you can do to hide your years
We use 'em, abuse 'em and neglect 'em. It's no wonder our hands show signs of ageing faster than our faces. Not only are they most exposed to ultraviolet rays - honestly, how many people use sunscreen on their hands - they take a beating from all kinds of aggressors.
As plastic and hand surgeon Ivor Lim says: 'Our hands are one of our primary sensors, and because we tend not to keep them covered, it leaves them exposed to sun damage, skin wrinkling or even trauma like burns (like cooking oil splatter) and cuts that can result in scars or post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation. All these factors can make them look pigmented, marked and therefore old.'
One major culprit lies in the home. Says Lynne Lim, Kose's assistant general manager of marketing: 'Most people don't wear gloves when they do household chores. That exposes their hands to household and industrial chemicals like detergent and plant fertilisers.'
Couple that with dryness caused by air-conditioning and chronological ageing, and little wonder our hands can look the worse for wear.
For already maturing women, the liver spots and crepey skin give away their true age, no matter how many peels, Botox jabs or facelifts they get.
Thankfully there are more preventative and reparative aids like light therapy (heat energy is used to remove marks or tighten skin) and anti-ageing hand creams to stop the tell-tale signs.
Even better news: Asian skin is thicker than Caucasian skin and that means Asians have a couple of years more before we lose skin elasticity that causes wrinkling, says Dr Lim.
'The intrinsic pigmentation in Asian skins also helps to protect against sun damage and is less prone to scarring than Negroid skin,' he adds.
What happens to hands as we age?
In your 20s
Dryness, hardened cuticles and brittle nails are the most common problems, says Brenda Loke, marketing and PR manager of French beauty house, Clarins. The great culprits: Wearing and removing nail polish constantly and the dehydration caused by air-conditioning.
In your 30s
The ageing of hands (as perceived by their appearance) becomes more obvious from the late 30s, says Dr Lim. Sun exposure strips natural skin emollients and can cause liver or age spots. You start to see skin wrinkling due to loss of elasticity.
In your 40s
The fat under your skin thins out. The tendons, bones and veins stand out more making hands look gnarled, says Dr Lim.
In your 50s and above
Skin sags and is dull-looking. Pigmentation worsens and nails become brittle. The skin loses the ability to retain moisture and hands feel dry and rough, says Jennifer Chia, sales and marketing manager of PharMed, the local distributor of Palmers hand-care products. If symptoms persist, they become irreversible after 60.
How to make hands look younger
Some problems are easier to treat than others and don't need more than a good hand cream to fix. For example, dehydration and fine lines that result from that.
Paraffin waxing, says Chia, can soften skin and reduce the appearance of fine lines, too.
Pigment changes like liver spots can also be prevented by using sunscreen and keeping one's hands covered. To remove age spots, procedures such as radiofrequency light therapy and laser therapy are done, says Dr Lim.
Constant hydration and wearing sunblock can also help prevent the loss of skin elasticity. But if you already have crepey skin, then consider radiofrequency treatments like Thermage or Refirme that use heat energy to tighten and firm the skin.
To restore subcutaneous fat - a normal consequence of ageing and not preventable - a fat transplant can be done, using your own tummy or thigh fat.
'OUR HANDS DRY UP EVERY TIME THEY COME INTO CONTACT WITH WATER. GET INTO THE HABIT OF APPLYING HAND CREAM THROUGHOUT THE DAY, EVEN AT THE OFFICE'
- Lynne Lim, Kose’s assistant general manager of marketing
Easy DIY treat
- Exfoliate hands with a mild body scrub. Do pick one with microbeads, not coarse pit granules, as they are less drying. Work the scrub in thoroughly from fingers to elbows.
- Rinse off and apply a face mask to hands. Go for a cream-based hydrating formula, since this will put moisture back into skin. Leave on for 10 minutes.
- Rinse off with warm water, and apply a hands and nail cream from fingers to wrist, right up to the elbows. Don't neglect the cuticles.
Slather Up
Here are hand treatments that do good and are absorbed fast so you can still open doors and not leave grease marks all over your things.
Clarins Age-Control Hand Lotion SPF15, $37, from Level 1 Tangs Orchard:
The milky lotion is so lightweight it feels like you haven't got anything on. But it brightens and softens your skin instantly.
Sally Hansen Age Correct Retinol Hand Creme, $15.10, from Watsons:
Reportedly helps to diminish the appearance of fine lines and fade discolouration.
Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula with Vitamin E Therapeutic Hand Cream SPF8, $17.80, from Guardian Pharmacy:
Hydration and sunscreen in one, it can also be used on the lips.
Cosme Decorte Hand Renew Treatment, $60, from Level 1 Takashimaya:
This anti-ageing moisturiser for hands evens out dull, patchy skin, and firms and smoothens, too.
Inselene Golden Olive Natural Therapy Water Drop Essence Hand Cream, $12, from Robinsons Raffles City and The Centrepoint:
The balm transforms to water as you massage it in and can be used to soften scruffy heels and elbows, too.
Talika Hand Ritual Kit, $117, from Spa Lon, 02-04/05 Chijmes:
The two-part kit comes with a scrub (left) that uses salt and sugar crystals to take off dull skin and prep it for the repair action of the serum. The latter also helps to brighten the skin and reportedly reduces and prevents the formation of wrinkles and dark spots.
Liver spots and crepey skin on your hands can give away your age. The experts tell Urban what you can do to hide your years
We use 'em, abuse 'em and neglect 'em. It's no wonder our hands show signs of ageing faster than our faces. Not only are they most exposed to ultraviolet rays - honestly, how many people use sunscreen on their hands - they take a beating from all kinds of aggressors.
As plastic and hand surgeon Ivor Lim says: 'Our hands are one of our primary sensors, and because we tend not to keep them covered, it leaves them exposed to sun damage, skin wrinkling or even trauma like burns (like cooking oil splatter) and cuts that can result in scars or post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation. All these factors can make them look pigmented, marked and therefore old.'
One major culprit lies in the home. Says Lynne Lim, Kose's assistant general manager of marketing: 'Most people don't wear gloves when they do household chores. That exposes their hands to household and industrial chemicals like detergent and plant fertilisers.'
Couple that with dryness caused by air-conditioning and chronological ageing, and little wonder our hands can look the worse for wear.
For already maturing women, the liver spots and crepey skin give away their true age, no matter how many peels, Botox jabs or facelifts they get.
Thankfully there are more preventative and reparative aids like light therapy (heat energy is used to remove marks or tighten skin) and anti-ageing hand creams to stop the tell-tale signs.
Even better news: Asian skin is thicker than Caucasian skin and that means Asians have a couple of years more before we lose skin elasticity that causes wrinkling, says Dr Lim.
'The intrinsic pigmentation in Asian skins also helps to protect against sun damage and is less prone to scarring than Negroid skin,' he adds.
What happens to hands as we age?
In your 20s
Dryness, hardened cuticles and brittle nails are the most common problems, says Brenda Loke, marketing and PR manager of French beauty house, Clarins. The great culprits: Wearing and removing nail polish constantly and the dehydration caused by air-conditioning.
In your 30s
The ageing of hands (as perceived by their appearance) becomes more obvious from the late 30s, says Dr Lim. Sun exposure strips natural skin emollients and can cause liver or age spots. You start to see skin wrinkling due to loss of elasticity.
In your 40s
The fat under your skin thins out. The tendons, bones and veins stand out more making hands look gnarled, says Dr Lim.
In your 50s and above
Skin sags and is dull-looking. Pigmentation worsens and nails become brittle. The skin loses the ability to retain moisture and hands feel dry and rough, says Jennifer Chia, sales and marketing manager of PharMed, the local distributor of Palmers hand-care products. If symptoms persist, they become irreversible after 60.
How to make hands look younger
Some problems are easier to treat than others and don't need more than a good hand cream to fix. For example, dehydration and fine lines that result from that.
Paraffin waxing, says Chia, can soften skin and reduce the appearance of fine lines, too.
Pigment changes like liver spots can also be prevented by using sunscreen and keeping one's hands covered. To remove age spots, procedures such as radiofrequency light therapy and laser therapy are done, says Dr Lim.
Constant hydration and wearing sunblock can also help prevent the loss of skin elasticity. But if you already have crepey skin, then consider radiofrequency treatments like Thermage or Refirme that use heat energy to tighten and firm the skin.
To restore subcutaneous fat - a normal consequence of ageing and not preventable - a fat transplant can be done, using your own tummy or thigh fat.
'OUR HANDS DRY UP EVERY TIME THEY COME INTO CONTACT WITH WATER. GET INTO THE HABIT OF APPLYING HAND CREAM THROUGHOUT THE DAY, EVEN AT THE OFFICE'
- Lynne Lim, Kose’s assistant general manager of marketing
Easy DIY treat
- Exfoliate hands with a mild body scrub. Do pick one with microbeads, not coarse pit granules, as they are less drying. Work the scrub in thoroughly from fingers to elbows.
- Rinse off and apply a face mask to hands. Go for a cream-based hydrating formula, since this will put moisture back into skin. Leave on for 10 minutes.
- Rinse off with warm water, and apply a hands and nail cream from fingers to wrist, right up to the elbows. Don't neglect the cuticles.
Slather Up
Here are hand treatments that do good and are absorbed fast so you can still open doors and not leave grease marks all over your things.
Clarins Age-Control Hand Lotion SPF15, $37, from Level 1 Tangs Orchard:
The milky lotion is so lightweight it feels like you haven't got anything on. But it brightens and softens your skin instantly.
Sally Hansen Age Correct Retinol Hand Creme, $15.10, from Watsons:
Reportedly helps to diminish the appearance of fine lines and fade discolouration.
Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula with Vitamin E Therapeutic Hand Cream SPF8, $17.80, from Guardian Pharmacy:
Hydration and sunscreen in one, it can also be used on the lips.
Cosme Decorte Hand Renew Treatment, $60, from Level 1 Takashimaya:
This anti-ageing moisturiser for hands evens out dull, patchy skin, and firms and smoothens, too.
Inselene Golden Olive Natural Therapy Water Drop Essence Hand Cream, $12, from Robinsons Raffles City and The Centrepoint:
The balm transforms to water as you massage it in and can be used to soften scruffy heels and elbows, too.
Talika Hand Ritual Kit, $117, from Spa Lon, 02-04/05 Chijmes:
The two-part kit comes with a scrub (left) that uses salt and sugar crystals to take off dull skin and prep it for the repair action of the serum. The latter also helps to brighten the skin and reportedly reduces and prevents the formation of wrinkles and dark spots.
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