Anti-aging skin care products are very popular today; which is not surprising because we are all living longer and fuller lives so why shouldn't we want to look younger? This is done using skin care products that encourage the growth of the protein collagen which happens to be the main source of the protein used in the connective tissue of skin; twenty-five per cent of the skin's protein is collagen. This area of anti-ageing treatments is connected to another group of products that help people to look young; this group is called antioxidants which are natural chemicals found in many foods and our body.

Although the benefits of vitamin C (an anti-oxidant) are well documented, it is still debated as to what our daily amount should be. Vitamin C formulated skin care treatments suffer with a particular problem of oxidizing on contact with the air which causes a problem for users and manufacturers.

Manufacturers are trying alternative skin care treatments to vitamin C that do not have this oxidization problem or cost as much to produce. However, these anti-ageing skin care treatments are not as effective vitamin C based products, although vitamin E and lipoic acid are also anti-oxidants and have similar effects.

Found in human blood, vitamin E is not only an antioxidant but is designed to boost the immune system's resistance to illness; it helps build resistance against infection like cancer for example. Lipoic acid is found in every single human cell and helps provide energy; it can help reverse much of the damage caused to the skin by ageing.

Another group of products used to reduce the visible signs of aging are phytochemicals which are compounds extracted from various plants and used in many anti-aging skin care products. Phytochemicals prevent occurrence of certain types of cancer; examples of these are:

<ul> <li>Prostate Cancer in Men</li> <li>Cancer of the Breast</li> <li>Cancer of the Bowel</li> </ul>

These are all on the increase around the world.

For some time now it has also been known that the vitamins B5, B6 and B12 also have anti-ageing skin care properties. Although the area of anti-ageing skin care products is huge, more is being learnt about the whole ageing process and about natural products that can reduce the effects it has on our bodies as well as our skin. There is no doubt that what has been learned so far is only a small part of the jigsaw puzzle; with the number of genetic discoveries made in recent years, it is only a matter of time before conquering the effects of age is commonplace.

There may be many challenges still to overcome but in time scientists believe they will succeed in producing more effective anti-ageing skin care products that are less expensive and available to more people. However, man-made skin care regimes should be used only as a supplement; fortunately there is a number of natural anti-aging regimes that can be carried out that do not rely on science. You know all these things but how many do you practice? Regular exercise, restful sleep, drinking plenty of water, eating a healthy diet and keeping your stress levels low are all necessary.

One of the most successful areas of health and beauty is Anti-aging skin care products. as we are living far longer than previous generations it is a good idea to look after your physical appearance. The skin care industry uses beauty products that increase the synthesis of the protein collagen, the main protein in skin which becomes less elastic as we age; collagen is so abundant, it makes up about a quarter of the total protein content of structural protein found in skin. Collagen is related to other natural substances which help to slow down the ageing process; these are known as antioxidants which remove toxins from the body.

Vitamin C is probably one of the better known anti-oxidants in use today but the debate about the daily quota required is ongoing. Skin care treatments that are based on vitamin C, pose the problem of becoming oxidized themselves as they come into contact with air during their usage.

To overcome this problem, manufacturers use alternative skin care treatments that still provide the same benefits but not the high manufacturing costs. Unfortunately the anti-oxidant products used to replace vitamin C are not as effective but as vitamin E and lipoic acid can both have the same effect; this is not too much of a problem.

Vitamin E is a fat-soluble antioxidant and is found in human blood; one particular disease it may help to prevent is certain types of cancer. Another of these is lipoic acid which is found in every cell of our body to help generate energy for us to live; it can also help reduce the aging process which affects the skin.

Phytochemicals aren't produced by the body but are extracted from a number of plants and used in many anti-aging skin care products to combat the signs of ageing. Another benefit of phytochemicals, like those of alpha-lipoic acid, is their ability to reduce the prevalence of certain cancers; for example:

<ul> <li>Prostate Cancer in Men</li> <li>Breast Cancer</li> <li>Cancer of the Bowel</li> </ul>

All of which are on the increase globally.

It has also been discovered that there are anti-ageing benefits to vitamins B5, B6 and B12. The use of anti-ageing skin care products is a huge scientific field to research and has far greater potential than just producing goods that reduce the visible signs of age. There is no doubt that what has been learned so far is only a small part of the jigsaw puzzle; more long term effective methods will eventually be found to reverse or slow down the effects of aging.

Hopefully, these challenges will get resolved in due course and better and cheaper anti-ageing skin care products will be produced. It may be time to learn that not every synthetic anti-aging product is going to work; we must not forget however, that there are many more natural methods we can all use to reduce the signs of aging on a regular basis. You know all these things but how many do you practice? Regular exercise, restful sleep, drinking plenty of water, eating a healthy diet and keeping your stress levels low are all necessary.