What can you do to retard the aging process? Find out.

Sneaking Up On Forty
© 2000 T. L. Gray

You’ve started to notice those little lines around your eyes, mouth, and between your brows. Your skin doesn’t feel as soft and smooth as it did a few years ago. Your muscles aren’t as toned. Ever so gradually your joints are stiffening up. And you’re suddenly wondering when drug companies started using microscopic print on the backs of medicine bottles. Some days we all wonder how these things little inconveniences managed to sneak up on us. Other days we simply tell ourselves there’s nothing to be done about it—we’re entering middle age, whether we like it or not.
You don’t have to like it. And you don’t have to give in. There’s no way to avoid the aging process, but there are ways to control how you feel and look during the metamorphosis. Using over-the-counter face products containing Retinol can smooth out those little lines.
Retinol is a derivative of Retin-A, which is prescribed by dermatologists to control acne. Because Retin-A is designed to rid the skin of unwanted oils and dead cells, thereby tightening the skin, it’s also used by adults to prevent wrinkles, smooth our depression lines, and remove skin discoloration. It can also be used to control the appearance of age spots on the back of your hands.
Dermatologists will usually recommend using a good moisturizer as well, to counteract the side effects of Retin-A, which include dry, flaky skin, and, with prolonged usage, bursting of small blood vessels, particularly around the nose and cheek areas. For this very reason Dr. Edgar Lopez, a Louisville plastic surgeon, advises adult patients looking to prevent age lines to try over-the-counter products containing Retinol, such as Estee Lauder’s Diminish, first. The dosage of Retinol contained in the product is less than a full-strength prescription of Retin-A, thus reducing the incidence and severity of side effects.
A good reason to consider using over-the-counter Retinol products is cost. A one-month supply of Retin-A can run $30 dollars or more at the pharmacy, and is not covered by insurance in the case of cosmetic usage. Over-the-counter products range anywhere from $30-$60—depending on the size bottle you choose—and contain several months worth of cream. No prescription or follow-up visit to the dermatologist is required, which is mandatory in the case with Retin-A.
Exercise is also a very important component in retarding the age process. If you’re looking to simply tone your body, a quick 30-minute workout five days a week can accomplish this goal. Aerobic activity combined with a mix of hand weights and muscle specific exercises works wonders. Break up the routine by staggering days you work on a particular area.
Diet is also a factor. Watching what you eat and taking care to eat correct portions is key in controlling excessive weight gain. If you’re not exercising or engaged in enough physical activity to support eating three meals a day, cut back on the amount of each meal. Fruit and raw veggies make great between meal snacks. You’ll feel better and have more energy, which is never a bad thing.
As for the microscopic instructions on the backs of drug bottles, well, there isn’t much you can do about that except to pop by your local drugstore and pick up a pair of reading glasses. Compare the hundreds you may spend undergoing an eye exam, purchasing expensive frames and lenses, or contacts, only to discover what you already knew—you need a little help reading—to the six or seven bucks you’ll spend at the local Wal-Mart to solve the problem. This isn’t to say you shouldn’t have regular eye exams. Eye examinations can help diagnose whether or not the problem is confined to close-up work or something more serious. But you have to ask yourself; do I want to spend money on reading glasses when comparable strengths are available for much less? Give the inexpensive solution a try first. If it doesn’t help solve the problem, consult an ophthalmologist.
Unfortunately, we’re not as young as we used to be. As we grow older little aches and pains plague our joints, causing them to grow stiffer with time. Exercise, of course, goes a long way toward helping this problem. The National Osteoporosis Foundation recommends eating a diet rich in calcium and Vitamin D, performing weight-bearing exercises—any activity that works bones and muscles against gravity—refraining from smoking and excessive alcohol use, and taking preventative medications when appropriate. Physicians these days are recommending not only multi-vitamins to replace minerals and vitamins lost through diet, but are steering younger women, 25-30, toward calcium supplements, which help strengthen bones, thereby aiding in the prevention of osteoporosis and avoidance of possible injury.
Dr. Kevin Goben, Chiropractor, advises his patients to try the newest chondroiton/glucosamine compounds. These FDA approved products help rebuild cartilage and can, in some cases, ease the pain of minor arthritic joints, allowing increased range of motion. Naturally, you should consult your physician before taking any kind of medication, but during these days when prescription drug costs are skyrocketing, it’s nice to have alternatives.
Those of us approaching the big 4-0 don’t have to grow old before our time. We can take control by taking care of ourselves. Like the old saying goes, you don’t get somethin’ for nothin’. But neither do you have to spend an arm and a leg to keep 40 from sneaking up on you.