Beauty By Numbers

The latest skincare research is paving the way for a more prescriptive approach as you grow older. Consider this your guide to the ingredients to employ - and the ages to introduce them - to keep your skin looking and feeling healthy.

- CHLOE BURCHAM

Hands up if you're as loyal to your moisturiser as you are to your hairstylist? How about the pot of eye cream you bought because a friend told you that's what you should be using after you most recent Big Birthday?

You're in good company. The idea that skincare products have a decade attached to them is well-ingrained in the beauty industry. It's a response to research - we know that the gradual depletion of the protein collagen is the reason your skin loses elasticity as it ages - as well as being an effective marketing strategy ('best skincare routines for your thirties'). And now? "Rather than looking at your age group, some of the most exciting research that's been carried out by brands is based on the way lifestyle factors, such as sleep patterns and pollution, affect the skin," says Millie Kendall, founder of the British Beauty Council.

Of course, trying to pinpoint a definitive age at which skin changes 'isn't an exact science', cautions Dr Ewoma Ukeleghe, a medical and cosmetic doctor, since the ageing process varies from woman to woman. But, she adds, by looking at what we know about women's lifestyles, alongside research, it's possible to take an age-based approach to filling your bathroom cabinet. With that in mind, we asked the experts to tell us the ages that really count in skincare.

25

What's Going On