Worried about looking older than you are? Stop making these faces.
Whether you are willing to accept it or not, you are going to age. Fine lines, wrinkles, age spots, sagging...it's all a part of life. But despite its inevitability, there's no need for you to hit the fast forward button on these signs of aging. However, you may be doing just that every time you pucker up, squint, or otherwise contort your face into your go-to selfie pose. Below are the biggest aging culprits when it comes to our selfie habits.
The Duck Face
The duck face was once heralded as the ultimate expression in every girl's selfie repertoire, however, it's popularity has begun to wane. This is partly due to the fact that literally no one other than Kim Kardashian West can actually pull it off perfectly, but also because of the unattractive "smoker's lines" it has been known to cause.
The Serious Raised Brow
The Bunny Nose
It might look adorable and flirty, but having dozens of tiny and finely etched lines across each side of your nose
Blue Light
Ok, is this a facial expression? No, of course not. Although it's just as damaging to your youthful complexion as mimicking the blue steel face from Zoolander when your skin is exposed to too much of it. The blue light emitted by mobile phones is causing a rapid increase in photoaging, and reducing the skin's ability to moisturize itself from the inside. If you don't believe us, navigate to the settings app on your phone and you're likely to see an option to increase the warm light on your screen. The studies are so compelling that even cell phone manufacturers took notice and provided options to reduce blue light. And yes, that orange hue on your phone may be difficult to adjust to at first, but since most of us spend an average of 3+ hours a day with our phones inches from our face, it's time to reduce the blue light on your phone and spare your DNA the damaging effects of blue light. However, we do need to point out that SOME blue light is not always a bad thing, but only when it is delivered in a controlled and limited way. Patients suffering from acne have experienced tremendous benefit from blue light treatment during doctor's visits thanks to it's ability to reduce oil production and kill acne-causing bacteria. But keep in mind that a blue light treatment for acne is a once in a while occurrence that is intended to last no more than 15 minutes at a time, not for an extended number of hours every day. That is when blue light crosses the line from beneficial into damaging.
We know selfies are a fun way to express yourself, but make sure your expressions don't permanently etch themselves in your skin and following our tips will help prevent unnecessary premature aging.