In light of Mother’s Day, it seems fitting to talk about skin care-- specifically, anti-aging skin care. Why? Because it’s one of the best investments we can make in our own self care and confidence, yet it’s usually one of the first things to fly right out the window when we’re busy taking care of everyone else.

On that note, we’re not just talking about products that make your skin glow. We’re also talking about simple changes you can make in your lifestyle that enhance the effects of your products and help you feel better overall.

We’re all about natural beauty here, so the more we can do to feel beautiful from the inside out the better.

What’s the best anti-aging skin care routine?

This is the million dollar question, isn’t it? It seems like every product offers some miraculous quick fix, and it’s hard to know who and what to trust. You go online and see tons of mixed reviews on products that seem to be one woman’s holy grail and a waste of money for the next. What gives?

Lifestyle

Before we talk products, it’s important to take stock of your lifestyle. We all want there to be a cream or serum that will make up for sleepless nights, a poor diet, and stress. While using

products can certainly be better than nothing, making those important lifestyle changes to support your overall health is key for any anti-aging skin care routine.

Sleep

Beauty sleep is real, ladies. In 2013, Estee Lauder commissioned a scientific study on the effects of insufficient sleep on the skin. They found that people who didn’t get enough sleep or who got poor quality sleep “had increased signs of skin aging and slower recovery from a variety of environmental stressors” (Science Daily). Essentially, a lack of sleep can accelerate the skin’s visible signs of aging and increases the amount of time it takes for skin to recover from UV exposure. Put simply, there’s no anti-aging skin care line on the market that can compete with a lack of sleep. So basically, this is reason number 23394823 to finally get that 7-8 hours of sleep whenever you can.

Hydration

Your skin texture and how your skin ages has a lot to do with genetics, but making sure you stay regularly hydrated can actually help to minimize dull, uneven skin.

Make no mistake: this isn’t because the water you drink will magically plump up your skin. Studies have shown that drinking water can make a slight difference in the elasticity of your skin, especially when you’re starting from a place of significant dehydration, but it doesn’t really make a substantial difference in the overall appearance of your skin.

The reason that staying hydrated is important is more about helping your body efficiently flush out toxins than anything else. When your body is working at full capacity, you feel more energized, feel less stressed, you sleep better, and you’re less likely to binge on carbs and sweets that can dampen your glow. Therefore, hydration is everything when it comes to

anti-aging skin care.

Diet

No, it’s not just a myth: sugar speeds up aging. When sugar is elevated in the body, it stimulates the “covalent cross-linking” of collagen fibers (yes, collagen-- that stuff that makes your skin look young and juicy!), which makes it harder for them to repair themselves. No one would make you give up your morning donut just to scare you! The effects are real.

It’s unrealistic to think that any of us can follow a dedicated, anti-aging skin care diet all of the time, but making sure that the majority of the food you eat is whole and nutritious can make a huge dent in your efforts. To simplify it, cut back on the refined carbs, alcohol, and caffeine and amp up your intake of fresh fruits and vegetables, lean meats, and healthy fats (we probably didn’t even have to tell you that). Done and done.

Anti-aging skin care products

Ah, finally, the easy part! (Kind of.)

Just like you can’t rely on products to do all the work in your anti-aging skin care routine, you also can’t just rely on your lifestyle changes to do all the work, either. That’s why when you put the two together, magic happens.

Ingredients

Your anti-aging skin care products are definitely not where you want to skimp on quality ingredients. Making sure that you use non-toxic, natural products will be the difference between making a great investment in your anti-aging skin care routine and wasting your money.

Ingredients like phthalates, parabens, and sulfates that are typically present in conventional anti-aging skin care products can cause long-term health issues and most notably, can disrupt hormonal balance. All of the products that Southern Magnolia Minerals creates are completely free of toxic chemicals, so you never have to worry that you’re penetrating your skin with harmful ingredients.

Some of the best, natural anti-aging skin care ingredients that we use are:

• Jojoba oil
• Hyaluronic acid
• Acai berry
• Niacinimide
• Natural glycolic acid
• DMAE
• MSM
• Pomegranate
• Vitamin C

  All of these help to safely moisturize, brighten, and detoxify the skin.

  Routine

  Cleanse, tone, and moisturize, right? Almost.

  When your goal is anti-aging, exfoliation and treatment need to work their way into your routine. As a general rule, you can exfoliate every other day, which turns out to be about 3 nights per week. Keeping your skin exfoliated helps your serums, moisturizers, and other treatments sink into your skin to do their job.

  With most treatments, it takes a few weeks to really notice the effects. Nothing is an overnight fix, so give new products time before you decide to move onto a different one.

  Another important tip is to keep it simple. Don’t use too many products at once, because you won’t know which ones are actually working. More isn’t always better in this case.

  Okay, so how do I get started with an anti-aging skin care routine?

  This Mother’s Day, we’re offering you a free $78 value skin care gift box when you spend $50. It comes with

• Skin Brightening + Lightening Facial Serum, 20 ml
• Hydrating Botanical Facial Day Cream, 1 oz
• Acai Berry Antioxidant De-Puffing Eye Cream, 1 oz
• Acai & Pomegranate Awakening Night Cream, 2 oz
• Southern Magnolia's Vanilla Moisturizing Vegan Lip Balm Deluxe Sample
• Product Instructions
• And a beautiful red lip gift box to store all the new goodies!

This is the perfect starter kit for someone who wants to start taking a more proactive approach to their anti-aging skin care routine, or someone who wants to start making the transition into healthy, natural, cruelty-free skin care products.

You can check out the rest of our anti-aging skin care products here.

What’s your anti-aging skin care routine? Leave a comment and share with your friends!