The bad news: wrinkles are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to dealing with aging skin. The good news: knowing is half the battle! Once you realize that piling on the anti-wrinkle cream should be just one tool in your arsenal, you’ll be better equipped to care for your skin in the long term.

As you’ll hear us say time and time again, the best way to approach skin care is from the inside out. It’s not uncommon for this fact to come up in our offices on any given work day: one of us is usually glowing from a cleanse or groaning from too many glasses of bio-dynamic chardonnay the night before. Both activities are readily seen in the complexion.

Keeping skin youthful and glowing is part of vibrant overall health, but we love having a little extra advice from skin care experts too. We regularly hear beauty insiders getting a little intense about their favorite products – and the creams by 37 Extreme Actives have popped up more than once. Intrigued by how these 37 wonders work, we asked the brilliant (and gorgeous) woman behind the brand, Dr. Macrene to share more about what these 37 ingredients are fighting so hard to counteract…

• 6 Signs of Aging Skin and The Ingredients That Fight Them

• Laxity

  Due to weakened collagen and elastin fibers, loss of fat and muscles, and gravitational pull, it’s not surprising that you will begin to see signs of sagging skin: sagging eyelids, drooping eyebrows, hollowness under the eyes, folds around the mouth and marionette lines, jowels, and sagging of the neck.
  Look for skin strengtheners that thicken skin like Peptides, Sodium Hyaluronate, Barley Extract (EGF-like)

• Elastosis

  Caused by sun-damage to the deeper skin, manifesting as yellow discoloration, tiny yellow-white bumps, and poor texture in the undereye area, upper lip, and cheeks.
  Fight aging in the cellular level with Polyphenols, Mushroom, Bark, Cocoa Extracts

• Discoloration

  Otherwise known as freckles, sun spots, dark spots, and brown spots, skin discoloration is mostly due to sun exposure and can fail to fade. Restore luminosity with Glucosamine, Ergothioneine, Arginine, Amino Acids.

• Redness/Broken Capillaries

  Broken capillaries are the result of the widening and narrowing of the capillary walls, which ultimately results in a tear. When the capillary tears, the blood seeps to the surface of the skin. Besides genetics, alcohol, hormones, and injuries which can lead to broken capillaries, skin damage is a big concern. The skin around the face is more susceptible to damage than in the rest of the body. Therefore, broken capillaries around the face are very common. Damage caused by wind, sunburn, temperature changes, and even your glasses pressing on parts of your face can cause broken capillaries to form. Soothe redness with Bisabolol, Coffee, Yerba Mate Tea, Feverfew.

• Wrinkles

  When you age, a couple of things happen to your skin - skin produces less lipids; the cells’ ability to repair themselves decreases; the rate of cell turnover decreases and there is a reduction in the underlying fat and water content due to atrophy and loss of water retention. Skin moisture can decline up to 10 percent per decade.  Coupled with a decrease in collagen production and thinning of elastin fibers, the result are fine and coarse lines on face and neck. Look for ingredients such as Plankton, Blue Algae, Micrococcus, and Arabidopsis Extracts for DNA defense and anti-aging benefits.

• Keratosis

  There are a couple of different types of keratosis, which is a growth of keratin in the skin. These rough patches and growths on the skin are due to sun and aging. To prevent or decrease your chances of keratosis be sure to include anti-oxidants in your daily skincare routine. Anti-Oxidants like Ferulic Acid, Resveratrol, Vitamins C & E help prevent sun damage

• Textural changes

  As skin is aging and sun damage occurs, cells in the top layer of skin are not dividing and exfoliating normally so they're stuck on skin which makes skin more opaque. Light isn’t able to bounce off, hence skin is not as luscious and glowing as before. Eventually, aging and additional sun damage will cause the roughness to worsen.
  Make sure to exfoliate often and protect the skin’s barrier function. Maintain skin protection with Dimethicone, Squalane, Sunflower, Sandalwood Extracts and keep skin hydrated with products that contain Sodium Lactate, Glycerin, Soy Lecithin.