Through the hustle and bustle of daily living, sailing through transformational milestones one by one, you’ve hit your 30s. You’re no longer that fresh-faced 20-something which means your skin may be starting to show subtle signs of wear and tear. That’s why preparing your skincare routine to age gracefully is priority #1.
Top Anti-Aging Creams for Every Skin Concern in your 30s
Anti-aging concerns can be broken down into 3 main categories. To help you understand what to get, this article will cover:
- Best General Anti-Aging creams: These creams cover a combination of aging concerns.
- Creams for Wrinkles & Fine Lines
- Creams for Dryness
- Creams for Pigmentation
Best Creams to Prevent Aging
“Prevention is better than a cure.” These creams provide a combination of anti-aging treatments all in one! They're also great for preventing the effects of aging.
Drunk Elephant Lala Retro Whipped Cream
If stress and sleep deprivation are making your skin feel papery and dull, this cream by Drunk Elephant will whip it back into its best shape. Loaded with six rare African Oils, Sodium Hyaluronate, and Omega Acids, this moisturizer restores your skin’s full vitality and plumpness. It also contains Plantain Extract to brighten dull skin tones while the antioxidant-rich Fermented Green Tea safeguards against fine lines and boosts your skin’s elasticity for a firmer look. Users were wowed by the positive transformation of their skin after using it religiously for a few weeks.
philosophy Ultimate Miracle Worker Multi-Rejuvenating Cream Broad Spectrum SPF 30
This miracle worker not only hydrates but also contains sun protection to fight off the damaging effects of UV rays, making it the ultimate daytime cream for normal to dry skin types. Users loved how the moisturizer leaves a dewy glow to their face and is a balm against the wintery temperatures. After consistent use, look forward to an improvement in your skin’s clarity and firmness with the Bi-Retinol and active plant cells embodied in this cream that promotes collagen synthesis to rejuvenate your skin. It also minimizes the appearance of wrinkles and enlarged pores for a more refined skin texture.
Fresh Lotus Youth Preserve Face Cream With Super 7 Complex
Using a proprietary Super 7 Complex, this cream drenches tired-looking skin in rich moisture to plump it up and reduce the appearance of fine lines. And if you want a healthy glow, this cream is further fortified with Maca Root Extract to enhance your skin’s natural radiance. The cream’s texture feels sheer but luxurious enough to coat your skin in hydration all day. It’s great for normal to combination skin types to keep the dry areas well-moisturized without exacerbating the oily patches. Fans of this cream swear by its efficacy in firming and brightening their complexion to help them look younger.
Perricone MD Photo Plasma Broad Spectrum SPF 30
This anti-aging cream is the antithesis to stubborn fine lines, wrinkles, and saggy skin. Infused with the antioxidant Astaxanthin, this cream prevents wrinkle formation and boosts the skin’s internal moisture levels for enhanced skin suppleness and smoothness. It also contains Vitamin C to brighten up dark spots while Alpha Lipoic Acids firms up your skin. This cream’s potency in fighting off signs of aging has been experienced by countless users. In fact, a tester who had applied the product on the deep furrows between her eyebrows noticed a dramatic improvement the very next day! And if you want to enjoy the anti-aging effect of this cream during the day, the adequate level of SPF 30 in it allows you to do so.
Algenist Overnight Restorative Cream
We stan a moisturizing cream that does all the work for us while we sleep so that we get to wake up to firmer and more radiant complexion when morning comes. Algenist’s cream does this for you as the rich, silky formula harnesses the skin-regenerating power of Alguronic Acid to promote cell renewal during the night. It’s combined with skin-nourishing peptides to induce greater collagen synthesis which helps restore your skin’s natural firmness while plumping up the skin to fade signs of aging. Users woke up to clearer and smoother skin, as well as noticing a dramatic reduction in their fine lines and wrinkles. Definitely worth the splurge!
Best Creams for Wrinkles & Fine Lines
Years of expressing yourself and inevitable changes in your skin elasticity may show itself in these natural creases. These creams support and ease this natural progression.
Shiseido Bio-Performance Advanced Super Revitalizing Cream
Besides fading wrinkles and crow’s feet, you also want to make sure that sagging skin is the least of your concerns. Enter Shiseido’s anti-aging cream which contains the brand’s patent-pending Bio-Revitalizing Complex that reinforces your skin's elastic fibers. The end result is firmer, tighter skin with a healthy bounce. The rich texture of the cream also keeps your face soft and hydrated to smooth out fine lines, making this a treat for drier skin types. A dime-sized amount goes a long way which makes it worth the hefty price tag.
RoC Retinol Correxion Deep Wrinkle Anti-Aging Retinol Night Cream
For those who are mad about retinol, check out this Retinol-based cream by RoC. The oil-free formula consists of stabilized Retinol to boost collagen production and fade away wrinkles and laugh lines. Zinc, Copper, and Magnesium are also added to stimulate the production of new cells for a more youthful complexion. Lastly, if you are still dealing with adult acne, you will be assured to know that the combination of Retinol and Glycolic Acid in this night cream will unclog pores and reduce breakouts to help you heal more quickly as you sleep. The last thing you need is for the acne to develop into unsightly PIH scars.
Best Creams for Dryness & Hydration
As our bodies age, we naturally produce new cells at a slower rate, not to mention less collagen and elastin. This makes our skin drier than it used to be. Staying hydrated and moisturized is of utmost importance at this age.
Olehenriksen Sheer Transformation Perfecting Moisturizer
Suitable for all skin types, this oil-free cream is rich in antioxidants to wrap your skin with lasting hydration. To improve the appearance of dark spots and pigmentation, it contains skin-illuminating Licorice to improve your skin tone. Pea Extract is also added to enhance your skin’s elasticity and prevent it from sagging. Its silky and slightly dewy texture goes on the skin smoothly and is absorbed completely. That’s why users love using this under their makeup to give them a nice, healthy glow without causing their foundation to pill or ball up.
Mary Kay TimeWise Repair® Volu-Firm™ Day Cream Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 30
If your skin has been acting up and feeling more sensitive lately, try this soothing cream by Mary Kay. Using the brand’s patent-pending Volu-Firm® Complex, this cream is formulated with plant stem cells and peptides to enhance your skin’s collagen-producing ability. As such, it strengthens your skin’s firmness and moisture levels, while making frown lines and crow’s feet less noticeable. The added SPF in it also provides you with protection against UV radiation that has been known to cause sunspots and add to existing skin damage. Its velvety texture glides onto your skin smoothly and layers well underneath makeup for a more made-up look.
Murad Hydro-Dynamic Ultimate Moisture
Just like its name, Murad’s cream delivers a surge of moisture to your skin, thanks to the infusion of Shea Butter, Avocado, Sunflower and Olive Fruit Oils. And that’s not all. Using an Advanced Hyaluronic Acid technology and Coconut Extract, this moisturizer boosts your skin’s moisture retention abilities to hold in the water so that you enjoy 24-hour hydration. If you still need more proof of its anti-aging capabilities, most reviewers noticed their fine lines and wrinkles were less visible within just one week of use.
Best Creams for Dull Skin & Pigmentation
Our skin may look dull due to the build up of dead skin. This is, again, because it is not developing new cells at the rate it used to. On top of that, if you haven’t been diligent about sunscreen over the years, you may start seeing sun spots. These products help peel back the years off your skin.
Caudalie Resveratrol Lift Face Lifting Soft Cream
If you haven’t heard of Resveratrol, now is the time to do so. Naturally occurring in red wine and cocoa, this antioxidant has immense anti-aging benefits such as neutralizing free radical damage and preventing the breakdown of collagen. That’s why Caudalie packed this superstar ingredient in its time-release formula to ensure 24-hour nourishment is delivered to your skin in order to combat aging. And to further add to its anti-aging potency, this cream is infused with micro Hyaluronic Acid and a peptide composition to replump and recontour dull, tired skin. The cream also contains mattifying and blurring soft focus powders so that you can use it as a makeup primer too.
Peter Thomas Roth Un-Wrinkle Night Cream
Described as the best anti-aging cream they’ve ever used by the brand’s loyal fans, it’s easy to see why they feel this way. Packed with a potent boost of eight powerful anti-aging peptides, Retinol, Glycolic Acid, and vitamins, this night cream stimulates your skin’s natural cell turnover, sloughs off dead skin to reduce fine lines and uneven patches, and adds back your skin’s much-needed moisture to keep it plump and healthy. Users like the soft, glowing radiance their skin gets when they wake up in the morning so that you know this cream has been hard at work all night.
Best Eye Creams to Combat Anti-Aging
The skin around your eyes are more delicate, thinner, and drier than the rest of your face. If you are most concerned about the effects of aging in this area, you should try creams specifically formulated for your eye area.
Caudalie Polyphenol C15 Anti-Wrinkle Eye and Lip Cream
While looking for anti-aging facial creams, don’t skimp out on protecting the skin around the eyes and lip area too. This gel cream can be used on your under eyes to reduce existing lines and prevent the full-blown formation of crow’s feet. It sinks in quickly to leave your skin soft and hydrated, without stinging or burning your eyes. The formula is also great at brightening up dark eyebags to make you look less tired. Some reviewers even experienced amazing results within just a couple of days of using this product. The moisturizing cream also works wonders on chapped lips by leaving them hydrated without a greasy, tacky film.
AmorePacific Moisture Bound Rejuvenating Eye Treatment Gel
This luxurious eye cream deletes the years from your the delicate area around your peepers. Infused with hydrating Bamboo Sap, the lightweight formula sinks in quickly to plump up the skin around your eyes for a more youthful look. The cream also contains the brand’s exclusive 5-Hydra Complex™ to create a barrier that will keep the moisture in your skin. It also fades away fine lines and dark circles and is great at depuffing stubborn eye bags. One user even noticed her wrinkles fading away after three weeks of consistent usage.
Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Eye Cream
For a drugstore alternative, Neutrogena’s fast-acting eye cream is a must-try according to dermatologists. Using a potent blend of anti-aging Retinol SA, Glucose Complex, and Hyaluronic Acid, this cream delivers what it claims by rapidly reducing the first signs of aging. Users can vouch for the efficacy of this cream as one individual mentioned that her dark circles had brightened noticeably within a day while another experienced a significant reduction in her under-eye puffiness after a few weeks. Get this if you are on a shoestring budget but want proven results.
How Your Skin Ages During Your 30s
As we grow older, it’s natural for our body’s metabolism to slow down. During this process, our body’s natural ability to produce collagen and elastin decreases. These two proteins are vital to keeping youthful and supple skin, however. Your skin gets drier and starts sagging when they’re reduced.
This increased dryness means those laugh lines at the corners of your mouth and the crinkles at the ends of your eyes are starting to settle into permanent wrinkles.
In addition, if you have not been diligently using sunscreen, dark spots could be visible.
Last but not least, all the late nights you pulled most likely caused the dark circles and puffy eye bags that never seem to go away.
All these physical changes are pretty scary to hear about, but using the right products and following a good skincare regimen will help reduce the effects of aging.
A Skincare Regimen for 30 Year Olds
According to dermatologists, there are 3 essential steps to add to your daily skincare routine when you hit your 30s. 1: Cover yourself in sunscreen. 2: Layer on antioxidant-rich serums. 3: Apply an anti-aging cream. That means your daytime skincare regimen should look like this:
Cleanser
This one is a given no matter how old you are. A good cleanser will take off the dirt and pollutants from a hard day of achieving your dreams.
Gentle Exfoliator
As you grow older, the rate of new skin cell production slows down. That means there may be a build-up of dead skin just sitting on top of your skin. Once a week, you should exfoliate the dead skin cells away to reveal healthy fresh skin.
Toner
Don’t skip this lightweight step! This is a good chance to boost hydration and clear your pores. This will maximize absorption of the amazing ingredients coming in the next few steps.
Antioxidant-Rich Serums
Serums are highly concentrated supplements that targets very specific concerns. They are real life power-ups and your new best friend. Below, we will cover the best ingredients to look for in an anti-aging serum or cream.
Anti-aging Cream
Hopefully you have found a good anti-aging cream for your skin concerns. As always, when you introduce a new product in your routine, give it a few weeks for your skin to adapt to it. Doing so will minimize skin irritation and allow you to see if there are any positive improvements.
Anti-aging Eye Cream
Eye creams are specifically formulated for this delicate part of your face. If the majority of your concerns are in the eye area, you should invest in an eye cream. Check out our article on Best Eye Creams for Wrinkles.
Sunscreen
Applying adequate sun protection on your face is key to stopping premature signs of aging from becoming too visible. Always apply a sunscreen with a level of SPF 30 or more even when you are indoors. This is because even though your windows can block out the UVB rays, UVA radiation can still stream in and give you sunspots.
Lifestyle Tips: How to Prevent Skin Aging
Besides investing in the right skincare products and formulating a daily routine that works for your skin, there are other things you can do to hold back skin aging, starting with your lifestyle. The basis for healthy, youthful skin starts with healthy habits and self-discipline.
- Don’t Rub Your Eyes: We know that the delicate area around our eyes is the first place that skin aging will show up in the form of ghastly crow’s feet. If you always rubbed your itchy eyes in an aggressive manner, it’s likely that wrinkles will pop up sooner than later.
- Get More Sleep: Sleep is the ultimate weapon your body has against aging. As you sleep, your body has time to repair and rejuvenate itself which is reflected in the skin. Part of this repair process means that your skin gets to make more collagen which keeps wrinkles and sagging at bay. Aim for 7 to 8 hours each night so as to keep the healthy glow on your face.
- Avoid Sleep Wrinkles: If your favorite sleeping position is to sleep on your sides or on your stomach, it’s time to stop now. These positions mean that your face is pressed into the pillow which will create sleep wrinkles. These sleep lines are less likely to fade over time and may actually become permanent one day. Try getting used to sleeping on your back from now on. And if you just can't stop, side-sleepers should try using a silk pillow case
- Skip the Alcohol & Cigarettes: Yes, these substances are harmful to your body but do you know that they cause your skin to age faster too? Alcohol is super dehydrating which shows up in drier, tighter skin that becomes more prone to fine lines. Cigarettes are another contributing factor to wrinkle formation and skin dullness.
- Get Enough Exercise: Besides flooding your system with feel-good endorphins, exercise can also make you look good. Getting your blood pumping improves circulation and nourishes the skin cells to keep them healthy and youthful-looking.
- Watch Your Diet: Stock up on the fresh produce like fruits, vegetables, and sustainably sourced fish and meat. After all, you are what you eat. At the same time, go for foods that are rich in omega-3 fatty acid and antioxidants to boost your skin’s natural collagen levels. This will keep your skin smooth and supple so that wrinkles and pigmentation don’t stand a chance.
The Anti-Aging Ingredients You Need
You can look at the ingredients in the cream to make sure the product targets a specific concern. And if you feel like your skin can use an extra boost of a certain ingredient, serums are a great complement to your new cream.
Brightening:
- Vitamin C: 5 to 15% of water-soluble L-Ascorbic Acid boosts your skin’s natural collagen production to brighten and even out your skin tone. It also prevents and treats UV-induced skin damage.
- Niacinamide (Vitamin B3): promotes cell regeneration to fade pigmentations and improve a dull, uneven skin tone.
- Hydroquinone: this skin-lightening agent reduces the production of melanin which improves skin clarity over time. It is commonly used in treating acne scars, freckles, melasma, and age spots.
- Licorice Extract: this is a natural alternative to hydroquinone as it inhibits the pigmentation-causing enzyme in our skin. As such, it helps to lighten dark spots, under eye circles, and age spots. It’s also ideal for sensitive skin types.
Tightening:
- Retinol: reduces the appearance of wrinkles and UV-induced pigmentation, as well as avoiding the loss of skin elasticity. It also has the added benefit of keeping your skin clear from breakouts. Note - it’s best not to use retinol-containing skin products if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding.
- Polypeptides: it stimulates your skin’s collagen synthesis to boost the skin’s elasticity and plumpness.
- Resveratrol: this natural antioxidant compound neutralizes free radical damage to prevent the breakdown of collagen. As a result, it’s effective in eliminating wrinkles while firming up sagging skin.
Pore Clearing:
- Glycolic Acid: this active compound has the smallest molecules among all alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs). As such, it can penetrate the skin easily to exfoliate the external skin layer in order to reveal a brighter and younger-looking complexion. It’s great for banishing fine lines, acne, and dullness.
- Lactic Acid: compared to glycolic acid, lactic acid has a bigger molecular size and thus less likely to irritate the skin which makes it more suitable for sensitive skin types. This AHA also helps to refine pore size and decongest clogged pores for a smoother texture.
- Tea Tree Oil: its anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties make it ideal for treating and preventing zits and pimples. It also helps in fading redness and acne scars to improve skin clarity.
Moisturizing:
- Hyaluronic Acid: it enhances your skin’s collagen production and assists in retaining moisture internally. This will then reduce the appearance of wrinkles and discoloration while improving your skin’s suppleness.
- Ceramides: naturally occurring in the skin, ceramides are the ‘glue’ that hold your skin cells together in order to form a protective barrier that holds moisture within your skin. As such, they are a key component in restoring a compromised skin barrier and delaying the first signs of skin aging.
These ingredients will give you a headstart in deciding what kind of products you will need to relieve your skin concerns.
Wrap Up
To reduce aging in your thirties, it’s necessary to evaluate your current skin care routine. But if you are already noticing small signs of aging on your face, you don’t have to worry either. Look at what concerns are showing up and choose a product to minimize and prevent them from coming back. Making changes to your lifestyle is also essential in keeping your skin healthy and youthful for as long as possible.