Wrinkles in your 20s? Here's how to stop them!

I’m only 27, but I’m already starting to see the beginnings of wrinkles! Are there any products that can help me stop them from setting in?

From the Editors of Las Fabulosas

Photo: @iStockphoto.com/aldomurillo

Nothing damages skin like the sun’s powerful rays, so upping your SPF year-round and wearing sunglasses and wide-brimmed hats are a definite must. But picking the right facial products can be tricky with the variety of options available on the market. Luckily, Robyn Vandenberg, director of skin care at the Baumann Cosmetic and Research Institute in Miami shares some of her favorite ingredients to keep your skin perked and toned throughout the day:

1. Fine lines and wrinkles: Vandenberg suggests over-the-counter products with retinol (aka vitamin A), which helps boost skin-plumping collagen. “It’s the only ingredient that will topically reduce pesky creases,” she says.

2. Redness: Look for products with soothing ingredients. Vandenberg recommends the medicinal herb feverfew, the antioxidant green tea and the mildly astringent grape seed oil extract, which aids with skin repair.

3. Age spots: Look for products with organic ingredients that will lighten skin gently, such as the mushroom extract kojic acid, licorice root, mulberry extract and vitamin C.

4. Acne: “Lots of our patients over-exfoliate,” says Vandenberg, “making the condition worse because they’re spreading the bacteria.” Treat existing acne with plant-based salicylic acids, or dry greasy skin with sulfur.

Shirley Velásquez  is an editor and writer at ELLE magazine. She has contributed to Woman’s Day, Glamour, InStyle, Latina, The New York Sun, and Border-line Personalities, an anthology of essays written by Latina writers. She is a frequent contributor to Las Fabulosas.