A Good Skin Care Regime for People in their 50s.

By your 50s, you are probably starting to notice some unwelcome changes to the skin on your face —early fine lines, some brown pigmentation spots, dry, inflamed, and tired-looking skin. Especially if you are an outdoors person and have fair or Mediterranean-type skin.

The good news? With the right treatments, you can make a significant improvement- you won’t look like you’re 20 again, but your skin’s texture and appearance will be so much better!

Now before you look at all this and think My God how am I going to remember/work out how to do all this, I have put the directions into a table format, which most people find easier to read and understand. And after the tables I have explained how the different products I have recommended work.

I have written separate articles explaining :

Retinoids

Cleansers

Moisturizers

Peptides

Eye creams….

Which give you a lot more information about all these products.

Daily Anti-Aging Skincare Regime for 50-Year-Old Adult-  Budget-Friendly Essentials

 

Summary Table of Treatment Regime for the Week- more involved and expensive-for someone with more damaged skin that needs serious rejuvenation!

 

Here’s a bit more about the products I have recommended:

Morning Regime

Your first treatment of the day- Splash your face with lukewarm water (hot water can strip away natural oils) and cleanse with something gentle like CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser

Massage the cleanser in small circles.

 Your Daily Shield

While your skin is still slightly damp, use your vitamin C serum. This powerful ingredient serves a dual purpose—it helps build collagen (the protein that gives skin its bounce) while protecting against environmental damage.

Apply 3-4 drops of something like Timeless Vitamin C + E Ferulic Acid Serum to your fingertips, then gently press—don’t rub—into your skin. Imagine you’re delivering little packets of protection to every cell.

Then- Hydration

Next, apply a hydrating serum containing hyaluronic acid. This molecule can hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water, instantly making skin look plumper and less lined.

The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 is a good choice. Apply a few drops to damp skin, and you might actually feel your skin drinking it in. Pay special attention to areas where wrinkles are most noticeable—often around the eyes and mouth.

Next- Moisturizing

Lock in that hydration with a moisturizer suited to your skin type. For normal to dry skin, CeraVe Moisturizing Cream provides ceramides that help restore your skin’s natural barrier. If you’re on the oilier side, try Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel for lightweight hydration.

Take your time with this step. Massage the moisturizer into your skin using upward motions.

Please see my separate article about moisturizers if you want to know more about these important products for your skin health, and which moisturizers are best for dry, “normal” or oily skin.

Sunscreen Is Your Most Powerful Anti-Aging Tool

Sun protection is essential, even on cloudy days or when staying indoors (yes, UVA rays penetrate windows!). Apply a broad-spectrum SPF 30-50 as your final step.

La Roche-Posay Anthelios Melt-In Milk Sunscreen SPF 60 feels lovely on the skin without leaving a white cast. Use about a quarter-sized amount for your face and neck, and remember to reapply every two hours when outdoors.

Think of sunscreen not as a chore but as an investment and protection for your long-term skin health.

In the Evening- Repair & Renewal

Thorough Cleansing

In the evening, you need to remove compounds like sweat, dirt, pollution, chemicals in the air etc from your face properly.

If you wear makeup or sunscreen (which you should!), consider double cleansing.

Start with a balm or oil cleanser like Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm. Massage it into dry skin and watch as makeup and sunscreen melt away. Follow with your regular gentle cleanser.

Retinoids: The Gold Standard

Three nights a week, apply a retinoid product. If you’re new to retinoids, start with a gentle over-the-counter option like Differin Gel (adapalene 0.1%) or The Ordinary Granactive Retinoid 2% Emulsion.

Apply a pea-sized amount to your entire face, avoiding the immediate eye area. Be patient—retinoids work by communicating with your skin cells, encouraging them to behave more like younger versions of themselves. This treatment takes time, but the results are worth it.

If your skin is already accustomed to retinoids, you might consider talking to a dermatologist about prescription-strength options like tretinoin.

Peptides: The Messengers

On nights when you’re not using retinoids, apply a peptide serum like The Ordinary “Buffet” or Paula’s Choice Peptide Booster. Peptides are like little messengers that tell your skin to produce more collagen and elastin—the proteins responsible for skin’s firmness and bounce.

Apply a few drops and gently press into your skin. Imagine these tiny messengers getting to work, encouraging your skin cells to build stronger support structures beneath the surface.

Finish Your Day with a Rich Night Cream

You need a richer night cream than you might use during the day. Something like Cetaphil Rich Hydrating Night Cream with Hyaluronic Acid provides intensive moisture while you sleep.

For the delicate eye area, apply an eye cream like RoC Retinol Correxion Eye Cream using your ring finger (it naturally applies the least pressure). Tap gently around the orbital bone-don’t go above the ridge of bone you can feel just below your lower eyelid, and don’t pull or tug at this delicate skin.

As you apply your final layer of moisture, aim for a good night’s sleep. Your skin does its best repair work while you’re dreaming.

Weekly Treatments: Extra Care

Gentle Exfoliation

Once a week, help your skin shed dead cells that can make wrinkles appear more pronounced. Skip harsh physical scrubs and opt instead for chemical exfoliants like Paula’s Choice 8% AHA Gel or The Ordinary Lactic Acid 5% + HA.

Apply to clean, dry skin in the evening, then follow with your moisturizer. Skip other active ingredients that night to avoid irritation.

Think of exfoliation not as scrubbing away imperfections, but as revealing the fresher skin waiting underneath.

Hydrating Mask

Another evening each week, treat your skin to deep hydration with a mask like Fresh Rose Deep Hydration Sleeping Mask or Laneige Water Sleeping Mask.

Apply a generous layer after cleansing, then either tissue off the excess after 15-20 minutes or leave it on overnight. Wake up to skin that looks noticeably plumper and more radiant.

Tips About Using the Products:

• Retinoid nights: Use only a pea-sized amount. If new to retinoids, start with twice weekly and gradually increase.
• Exfoliation night: Skip retinoid and other active ingredients this night.
• Hydrating mask night: Apply as final step, either tissue off excess after 20 minutes or leave overnight.
• Active ingredients: Wait 1-2 minutes between layers to allow absorption.
• Sunscreen: Reapply every 2 hours when outdoors.

Seasonal adjustments: Use richer moisturizers in winter, lighter formulations in summer

How to Introduce Active Products

• Months 1-2: Focus on establishing the routine with gentle products
• Months 3-4: If no irritation, increase retinoid strength or frequency

Months 5+: Consider adding targeted treatments for specific concerns

Monthly Professional Treatments

Book a facial that includes lymphatic drainage massage, which helps reduce puffiness and temporarily tightens the skin. Or learn facial massage techniques you can do at home—tools like jade rollers and gua sha stones can enhance your routine.

Depending on your comfort level and budget, treatments like Microneedling, Radiofrequency treatments, or light Chemical Peels can stimulate collagen production more dramatically than home care alone.

Radiofrequency waves penetrate deep into the skin. This causes the tissue temperature to increase to 40-45 degrees, and as a result, collagen contracts, causing rapid mild tightening. Over the following 3-6 months, new collagen forms, with progressive improvement in skin laxity. Elastin fibres are also reorganized and strengthened, causing long-term skin and under-skin firmness. Radiofrequency can be combined with microneedling.

Prime candidates for this treatment are people with skin laxity ( looseness) problems on the face, neck and jawline.

Talk to a board-certified dermatologist about options that might be right for you. Remember that these are enhancements to—not replacements for—your daily care.

Did you know that you can improve your skin significantly by switching from a cotton or synthetic pillowcase to a silk one?

Cotton pillowcases get covered with dead skin cells, oils, saliva, sweat and all sorts of bacteria, making them a dust mite breeding ground and pore-clogging machine. The creams you use at night are less effective because some of them are rubbed away on a cotton pillowcase.

The friction from cotton can irritate your skin, causing it to be dry and creased, while encouraging acne-like breakouts ( due to sweat and oil retention).

Some synthetic satin pillowcases can have a smooth surface, but they aren’t as good for your skin as silk. Silk is a natural fiber that is more breathable, moisture-wicking, and low-allergy

Synthetic satin, on the other hand, may not be as breathable, can trap moisture and heat, and may not be as gentle on the skin.

 Blissy silk pillowcase ( voted #1 for quality and price) -are made with pure 22-Momme Mulberry Silk – one of the highest weight silks there is – and therefore the highest quality.

Something else that may surprise you: I’ve had several patients who decided to shave their face every 2-3 days, not because they were too hairy, but to exfoliate with a blade razor, and they all swore their skin was much better. This is a lot cheaper than using exfoliant creams but has the same effect- by removing dead skin cells and opening blocked pores, thus preventing early breakouts before they become established.

Some patients only used a blade razor lightly brushed over their skin, while others found they needed a shaving oil or gel. There are many options. You should avoid perfumed products as they can cause skin irritation.

Kiss My Face 4 in 1 Moisture Shave by I Herb ( “ Softens, Smoothes, Hydrates & Soothes”) is a good choice.

Beyond Skincare: Whole-Body Approaches

Hydration

Drink plenty of water throughout the day. Well-hydrated skin appears plumper and shows fewer fine lines. Keep a water bottle nearby as a reminder (preferably not plastic! The damage to our bodies from microplastics is horrific. )

Nutrition

Include plenty of antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables, omega-3 fatty acids from fish and nuts, and protein for collagen building. Your skin is built from the inside out, after all.

Sleep

Prioritize quality sleep—it’s called “beauty sleep” for good reason. Your skin cells regenerate most actively between 10 PM and 2 AM. Create a restful bedroom environment and establish a calming pre-sleep routine.

It’s important you get the sleep your body needs. Some people need only six hours a night, some need closer to 12. Some people are larks (naturally wake up early, at 5-6 am) while others are owls (naturally wake later, even after 9 am). So if possible, you need to follow your natural sleep cycle- yes, it can be modified, if you have a job, that means you need to get up at 5 or 6 am, but you won’t be running at 100% and will probably feel tired and grumpy a lot of the time.

Your sleep will be much more refreshing if you follow your body’s innate rhythms.

Following our natural biorhythms is being increasingly recognized as being essential for optimum physical- including skin- and mental health. Chronic sleep deprivation is very bad for you- it causes increased risk of diabetes, heart disease, depression and stroke, even in younger people (under 50), as well as overall poor performance. There is also evidence that many motor vehicle accidents are due to poor concentration, from lack of sleep.

I don’t want to alarm you, but there are many reasons why your skin might age more quickly than you like:

Leading Causes of Premature Skin Aging:

• Sun Exposure (Photoaging) – #1 Cause
• Smoking—Major Accelerator
• Environmental Pollution
• Poor Lifestyle Habits
• Inadequate Sleep
• Chronic Stress
• Poor Nutrition
• Repetitive Facial Expressions with Expression Line Formation
• Hormonal Changes
• Genetics (Intrinsic Aging)
• Chronic dehydration causes more obvious fine lines, more sensitive skin, and a dull appearance.
• Inadequate Skincare
• Poor sun protection – UV damage adds up from early childhood onwards
• Harsh cleansing   – strips natural protective oils- especially common OTC soaps.
• Lack of moisturizing – which caused a damaged barrier function
• No active ingredients =missed opportunities for prevention/treatment
• (Don’t forget that overtreatment can do more harm than good!)
• Excessive exfoliation – damages skin barrier
• Too many strong creams or serums cause irritation and inflammation
• Inappropriate products – for skin type or concerns

I have had patients who worked under an air conditioning vent in an office, and the employer was too stingy to have it serviced. But when he realized that having half his staff off work every week with “the flu” was not good for his productivity, he finally got the air conditioning system cleaned. The environmental assessment revealed that the air conditioner was releasing mold and harmful bacteria throughout the office.

Within a week, no one (well, the occasional person) was off work with a cold or flu- many workers also noticed their chronically inflamed skin improved dramatically. So it’s worth considering getting and using an air filter at work, you will be protected from other people’s germs, and other pollution, and will feel so much better.

Stress Management

Find ways to manage stress that work for you, whether it’s meditation, yoga, walking in nature, or simply taking five deep breaths when tension builds. Chronic stress accelerates skin aging through cortisol production.

SUPPLEMENT PROTOCOL

Oral Supplements

For Skin Health

• Collagen peptides: 2.5-10g daily
• Hyaluronic acid: 120-240mg daily
• Ceramides: 40mg daily
• Astaxanthin: 4-12mg daily
• Resveratrol: 100-500mg daily

For Hormonal Support for Women

• Phytoestrogens: Soy isoflavones, red clover
• Black cohosh: For menopausal symptoms
• Evening primrose oil: For skin hydration