Fighting crow's feet: Giving up is not an option

Is there actually a worse word than "crow's feet" - seriously! Especially when you talk about laugh lines or wrinkles. That sounds so much nicer.

When the resilience wears off

In this blog article, we want to take a closer look at the development of crow's feet. And how you can prevent them or banish them from your face. Yet the characteristic lines around the eyes are a source of sympathy. Psychologists have discovered that they make our faces livelier. The lines reflect positive emotions and are perceived as an expression of joie de vivre and humor. But... ... they also represent the loss of tone in our skin. At a young age, these wrinkles only reveal themselves when we laugh - hence the name. Later, they remain on the face even when facial expressions are relaxed - and take on the characteristic, radiant permanent shape. The reason is quickly explained: the tissue under and next to the eyes is particularly thin. There are hardly any lipid depots here, i.e. fat reserves that push up from the inside. From the mid to late 20s at the latest, the areas of deficiency increase, i.e. the skin becomes thinner. As bad as this sounds, this process is part of natural aging. It simply cannot be stopped. Or to put it kindlier: Stopped only with lot of motivation and plenty of initiative.

Every day takes its toll

Perhaps a few words of understanding. To make it clear that we are talking about a kind of competition against oneself. It's not just a lack of fat that causes laugh lines to turn into crow's feet. The extremely active eye muscles also stress the tissue. After all, we all blink around 50 times a minute, up to 14,000 times a day. If we allow ourselves eight hours of sleep. Otherwise, our eyelids close even more frequently. In addition, we laugh 15 to 20 times a day - from smiling to laughing heartily. Again, the skin around the eye is stretched. Not so nice - many will think now. But who wants to deny themselves a good time - just so that nothing creases.

Prevention and correction

So let's get to the point: what does the fight against crow look like? There is actually plenty of hope to win this contest. Again and again. After all, only cosmetic surgery offers a permanent solution. But if you don't want to look like your facial skin is pulled together at the back of your head... you can resort to gentle and risk-free measures. Since prevention and correction are often not so far apart, we now name the best tips as a combination package. For the sake of completeness, the possibilities of aesthetic medicine are also mentioned in the lower part of this article.

Yes, the triumph of hyaluronic acid continues. There is hardly anything better to combat lines and wrinkles. The active ingredient moisturizes and thus prevents dry skin. The smaller its molecules (up to oligo-, i.e.: micro-) hyaluronic acid, the deeper it penetrates the skin - and binds water there. An internal polishing effect is certain. If you want to do everything right, you put on eye pads, just under the eyelids. This brings additional cooling. Hyaluronic acid is also suitable for the eye area so well, this acid does not trigger irritation of the sensitive area.

Eye pads are a must!

In the paragraph before eye pads are already briefly mentioned. Even without hyaluronic acid they are absolute helpers in the crow's foot emergency. For example, if they are soaked in aloe vera. Fresh from the fridge (here they can wait 20 minutes for their use), they provide the skin with moisture and coolness. A panacea against dark circles, thick eyes - but just also against crow's feet, pardon: laugh lines.

Not without my UV protection!

Actually, every reader of our 48grams blog should already know this: Women do not leave the house without UV protection. Even if the sun does not show itself outside, the radiation exposure on the skin remains. Ergo: aging is promoted. So, ladies (and yes, gentlemen, too): Buy sunscreen. Ideally with a combined UVA/UVB protection.

Vitamin C - the daily salvation!

A real anti-aging miracle are products that have a high vitamin C content. The C is an antioxidant - protects the skin significantly against harmful free radicals. These are caused, among other things, by stress, the consumption of smoked products of all kinds, alcohol and the previously mentioned UV radiation. In summary, vitamin C prevents premature aging of the skin.

You are what you eat!

We can't say it often enough: A person's lifestyle can be seen in their (facial) skin. If you turn nights into days, if you can't keep your hands off alcohol and cigarettes, if you have to survive stress at work every day, if you don't exercise enough and don't drink enough water... you'll have a hard time maintaining a youthful, fresh self. At least beyond the age of 30. By then, at the latest, the body's ability to regenerate begins to wane. Nevertheless, there is one factor that makes everything even worse: the wrong diet. The visit to the burger roaster, the quick noodle in the evening, the ready meal from the foil - actually absence of freshness and vitamins must be emphasized in this list again. Honestly spoken: If you water your roses with waste oil, you don't have to expect blossoms.

The miracle of the DIY mask

Now, before we get to the aesthetic medicine options mentioned above, here's a tip for the DIY generation: yes, there are also home remedies for crow's feet, both for prevention and combat. We advise masks made of curd or avocado. However, the popular cucumber slices from the refrigerator also serve their purpose. If you have it on hand, you can try pure aloe vera. If you take these tips to heart with nice regularity, you will experience visible results.

Opportunity: Aesthetic Medicine

Of course, we know that these "long shot" variants cost a certain amount of patience. Those who have neither the time nor the inclination to resort to natural remedies can seek advice from a dermatologist (no, NOT a cosmetic surgeon). Here we present ways to scare the crow away from your face. With long-lasting effect:

1. Hyaluronic acid

• A simple procedure, but also very effective: the specialist injects a hyaluronic gel into the tissue - e.g. under the eyes. The result shows almost immediate. The skin is plumped up from the inside, wrinkles disappear. Goodbye crow's feet. At least for about six months. Then the procedure must be repeated. Cost: from 250€.

2. Microneedling

• A quite painful procedure. The dermatologist passes a small roller equipped with fine needles over the desired areas of the skin. This results in fine wounds - which stimulates the production of collagen or elastin. These endogenous active ingredients automatically begin the fight against wrinkles. Another advantage: in the phase after micro-needling, creams and serums are absorbed much better - thus developing a stronger effect. Cost of such a treatment: 200 to 300€.

3. Botox

• The classic among wrinkle fighters. In use for many years - and yes, very effective. Of course, also against crow's feet. But the big disadvantage remains the same: Botox is injected directly into the muscle, causing it to "freeze." At least for the period of 5 to 6 months. Although the wrinkles are then (largely) eliminated, the same is true for facial expressions. The cost of a crow's foot treatment with Botox is around 200€.