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Skin Care By The Decades: Your 60s
Discover expert tips for healthy skin in your sixties!

Whether your 60s have you feeling relaxed, confident or sexy, taking care of your skin is still key, and Dr. Michelle Hines, Director of Product Formulation and Global Upstream Research, has all the science-backed beauty tips and skin care facts you need for looking 60 and fabulous in this last installment of our Skin Care by the Decades series! If you’re not in your 60s yet, read one of these articles for information that you can apply to your daily routine for healthy, glowing skin!

Skin Care by the Decades: Your 20s
Skin Care by the Decades: Your 30s, 40s and 50s
Skin Care Routines 101
Safe Skin Care Facts

Dr. Michelle Hines Director of Product Formulation and Global Upstream Research a smiling black female scientist in a lab coat in a scientific setting
How does my skin change in my 60s?

Here are a few of the ways your skin changes in your 60s:

• The skin is thinner and more fragile.
• Cell turnover slows, diminishing the skin’s natural radiance and leading to the accumulation of dry, dead skin cells on the skin surface.
• The top skin layer, the epidermis, thins and becomes more translucent, resembling crepe paper, with wrinkles and creases becoming much more noticeable.
• The skin produces less oil after menopause, making it harder for the skin to stay moisturized and resulting in dry skin.
• Skin’s natural collagen and elastin production is reduced, leading to loss of skin resilience and elasticity. This also deepens existing skin creases and new lines appear.
• Large, pigmented spots, also called age spots, may also appear in sun exposed areas of the skin.
• In addition, the jawline and lower face begin to sag due to the loss of collagen and changes in skin volume.
Luxurious textures of various Mary Kay skin care products
What does a good skin care routine look like in my 60s?

To combat the effects of skin aging, a consistent regimen with gentle cleansing, enhanced hydration and protection from the sun are more critical than ever.

CLEANSER
The skin surface is composed of fatty acids that are needed to support the moisture barrier. Some cleansers can remove these natural skin fatty acids which could lead to an increased loss of skin moisture. So be gentle to your skin when cleansing. When you cleanse, make sure you use a cleanser that leaves skin feeling hydrated.

MOISTURIZER
Hydrate your skin every day, especially right after cleansing, to help restore the skin’s moisture barrier. Select moisturizers containing ingredients to help reduce skin dryness. Choose day creams with SPF to protect thin skin from ultraviolet rays. And select night creams containing ingredients like retinol and alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) to support skin proteins, like collagen and elastin.

SUN PROTECTION
You still need to protect your skin even at this stage in your life. The skin becomes more delicate as we age so it’s more important than ever to protect skin from damage caused by the sun.

Keep Your Skin Healthy
Protecting Your Outer Self

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Illustration of a woman putting lotion on her face.
People say that beauty’s only skin deep; it’s what’s on the “inside” that counts. Our insides are certainly important, but skin is your first layer of defense against the outside world. Skin can also give important clues to your overall health. Learn to take good care of your skin, so your skin can keep taking good care of you.

Skin protects your body in many ways. “The skin provides a barrier to protect the body from invasion by bacteria and other possible environmental hazards that can be dangerous for human health,” says NIH dermatologist Dr. Heidi Kong.

Skin plays other roles, too. It contains nerve endings that let you feel when an object is too hot or sharp, so you can quickly pull away. Sweat glands and tiny blood vessels in your skin help to control your body temperature. And cells in your skin turn sunlight into vitamin D, which is important for healthy bones.

Skin can also alert you to a health problem. A red, itchy rash might signal allergies or infections, and a red “butterfly” rash on your face might be a sign of lupus. A yellow tint might indicate liver disease. And dark or unusual moles might be a warning sign of skin cancer. Be on the lookout for unexpected changes to your skin, and talk with your doctor if you have concerns.

Your skin can become too dry if you don’t drink enough fluids or spend too much time in sunny or dry conditions. “While washing hands is important for good hygiene, washing your hands too much can also lead to dry skin,” Kong says, especially if you wash with hot water and harsh soaps. To treat dry skin, use moisturizing creams or lotions, and use warm instead of hot water when you bathe and wash your hands. You can also try using a humidifier to make the air in your home less dry.

The sun can damage your skin as well. Sunlight contains ultraviolet (UV) light that causes sunburn and makes your skin age faster, leading to more wrinkles as you get older. “There’s a strong link between UV exposure and skin cancer,” Kong adds. So protect your skin from the sun. Wear hats and other protective clothing, use sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 30, and restrict your time in the sun during the late morning and early afternoon hours, when sunlight is strongest.

Many skin researchers like Kong are studying the skin’s microbiome—the bacteria and other microscopic organisms that live on your skin. Some of these microbes can be helpful. Evidence suggests that they boost the body’s infection-fighting immune system and help keep you healthy. “But there are some skin diseases with known associations with certain microbes,” says Kong. “We’re trying to understand how those microbes differ between healthy people and people with skin diseases.” In the long run, scientists would like to find ways to support healthy skin microbes while reducing harmful ones.

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