Written by Margaret Kontras Sutton, M.D.
It is often said that looking at someone’s hands will reveal their true age. I believe this to be true for many reasons. Our hands take the most wear and tear of any other places on our bodies. We wash our hands many times a day making them vulnerable to physical and chemical irritation and increasing our chances of hand rashes. Our hands come into contact with the many harsh and allergy-promoting agents in our environment. While we cover our faces with the shade of our wide-brimmed hats, our hands may be exposed to sun for hours on end. Let’s face it, our hands are our workhorses and take a lot of abuse.
So I have devoted a four-part blog on what we can do to keep our hands looking their best possible selves:
Part 1)Understanding the Ways the Hands Show their Age and How to Prevent These
Part 2)Products to Use on the Hands
Part 3)Procedures to Improve Appearance of the Hands—Lasers
Part 4)Procedures to Improve Appearance of the Hands—Fillers
Part 2, Products to Use on the Hands
Hands are prone to rashes due to our frequent hand washing and our contact with potential irritants throughout our day. The best way to combat dry skin and hand rashes is to use a mild cleanser for hand washing. There are many non-soap cleansers that we can recommend. After washing is the best time to apply a moisturizer to smoothen skin scale and to assist the skin in holding in moisture. Patients love our Sutton Ryan Ageless Hand Cream for soft hands. Click here to learn more or purchase!
Fingernail ridges going parallel to the long dimension of the nail are a sign of an aging nail and are extremely common. While they cannot be prevented they can be sanded smooth so as not to be noticeable. Triangular nail files have three sides which can sand, buff, and shine the nail.
DermMend is a moisturing cream containing additional ingredients to decrease the bruising which is commonly seen on the hands and arms of older individuals. This over-the- counter product is available at our office. I have had many patients tell me how it really makes a difference for them. Click here to learn more or purchase!
Of course the most important anti-aging agent would be the use of sunscreen on the backs of the hands. This will help in the prevention of those nasty brown spots as well as the thinning and crepe-paper like appearance of the skin. An SPF of at least 30 is recommended. One of our favorites is the Skin Medica Total Defense and Repair. Click here to learn more or purchase!
The next two weeks I will be discussing some non-invasive procedures to consider for hand rejuvenation—lasers and fillers.
This photo shows a patient who mixes her Skin Medica TNS Essential Serum on her left hand (right on photo) before applying it to her face. What a difference you can see!
