Changes in your skin

More fine lines develop as collagen and elastin start to break down in the skin and the delicate skin under the eyes begins to thin.  You may also notice that your skin starts to look less radiant than it did in your 20's. Your skin cells will gradually lose their elasticity and moisture and the skin's surface will become slightly drier. Most of us are beginning to see the fine lines creeping in around the eyes and expression lines are starting to etch their way onto the skin.

Changes in your skin

You can still have young looking skin if you've looked after yourself and have good genes.  But, more collagen and elastin is lost in this decade, which means your skin is less resilient and less able to plump itself back up, so sags, jowls and creases begin to show. Cell turnover slows even further and lines that first appeared in your 30s may be looking deeper. Also sun damage can really start to show on the face, chest and hands and many of us will also notice brown marks on our skin for the first time.

Changes in your skin

By now, the skin starts to acquire true character: fine lines and wrinkles may deepen into folds.  Oestrogen levels are falling, which affects the moisture holding capacity of the skin - it now becomes drier, thinner and more fragile. Skin can sag and droop because the production of collagen and elastin fibres is extremely slow. This is also the time when you will see more irregularities in your complexion - age spots, areas of pigmentation and broken blood vessels.