Hello! Dr. Ryan here, and it’s time for another mailbag Friday. Every week, right before we head into the weekend, I take some time to answer questions from two lucky customers who write to me and ask for my advice to help them see the results they want in their complexion. My first question this week comes from Gladys in Grand Rapids, MI.
Q: Hello Dr. Ryan! I have a lot of wrinkles around my lips and smile lines because I used to smoke. Is there anything I can do to get rid of them?
A: Hello Gladys! Lip lines are fairly common as you start to age, and they can be tough to treat since there aren’t a lot of products out there made especially for them, but I definitely have some great suggestions to help you out!
People develop wrinkles for many different reasons, but when it comes to lip lines it’s often because of smoking or puckering your lips too often, like when you use a straw!
These wrinkles may make you feel down about your appearance, but they're not actually as difficult to treat as many people think…
That’s because everyone has this idea that you need a product specifically made for the lip area to help reverse those wrinkles, but the truth is you can use a facial cream or even an eye serum to help you solve this problem.
Instead of focusing on where the product is supposed to be used, focus on the ingredients!
You want to find ingredients like peptides which will help your skin produce more collagen to create a more plump, smooth look.
Peptides are super powerful when it comes to helping reduce wrinkles, and my Repair and Release Cream is chock-full of them!
Another ingredient you can turn to is Dragon Fruit Extract which I have in my Eye Recovery Serum.
This ingredient is not only great at helping iron out wrinkles, but it also helps to repair the damage done to your skin, which is a great ingredient if you used to smoke.
Smoking can really damage your skin, but I understand it’s a tough habit to kick. As long as you’re using ingredients to help repair the damage done, you’re much better off!
Other than that, don’t feel afraid to test out your facial cream and eye serum around your lips. You’d be surprised at how well they work in this area!
My next question comes from Jenny in Springfield, MO.
Q: Hi Dr. Shelton. Where I should be applying my Eye serum? Is it only supposed to be for under my eyes?
A: Hi Jenny! Thanks for reaching out to me! The answer to this question is an interesting one because it really depends on a few different things…
Applying your eye serum underneath your eyes only is probably the most common way people do it.
Of course, this is usually the area that needs it most, so it makes sense.
What a lot of people don’t know is that you can actually get a lot of benefits from applying it to your eyelids and your brow bone.
Depending on your genetics, you may start to notice your eyelids starting to droop and become more hooded, or you may not notice much change in this area at all.
If you’re worried about the skin above your eyes, you can certainly start applying it in that area.
One thing I will say, though, is that a lot of people don’t find it too comfortable wearing eye serum on their eyelids. You may find it a bit sticky each time you blink, which can be rather annoying!
Having said that, there’s no harm in testing it out to see how it feels.
Another thing I like to warn people about is getting the product in your eyes.
Whether you’re applying your eye serum to help fade under-eye circles or help lift the skin around your brow bone, always make sure you’re not getting it too close to your eyeballs.
Getting anything in your eyes is never comfortable, so be careful in this area!
To wrap everything up, you can certainly use your eye serum above your eyes if you’re worried about signs of aging here and if you don’t find the feeling of it too annoying.
If you’d like to continue using it under your eyes only, that’s completely fine too!
