Does our attractiveness influence the way we are perceived by others?
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Introduction
We advocate for holding onto your beauty and youthfulness for as long as possible. There are lots of reasons why you would want to do this, including feeling confident and attractive. In a world where we are constantly bombarded by images of beautiful people, which unfortunately are often ‘facetuned’ or enhanced, we may feel under pressure to be beautiful to fit in and be accepted.
In this article, we are going to focus on a different aspect of why it is beneficial to put effort into your looks, which is that your level of perceived attractiveness can influence how others judge your personality and how they treat you. We will look at the evidence to support this and we will look at what you can do to maximise your attractiveness as you get older.
Science of how our attractiveness affects ourselves and others
According to the 2000 study, “Maxims or myths of beauty? A meta-analytic and theoretical review”, attractiveness influences development and interaction. They demonstrate that attractive people are judged more positively, they are treated more positively than unattractive people, even by those who know them; and attractive people exhibit more positive behaviours and traits than those considered unattractive.
In the 2015 study, “Beauty in Mind: The Effects of Physical Attractiveness on Psychological Well-Being and Distress”, they discuss the social and economic advantages of perceived facial attractiveness when young and how it is not surprising that these aspects of appearance may play a role in the development of positive self-regard, self-confidence and agency. They talk about a study that showed when men spoke to women on the phone that they believed were attractive, the men were more outgoing, humorous, confident, and socially adept.
There is also the halo effect, which is a cognitive attribution bias, often referred to when we make the assumption that physically attractive people are more intelligent. Studies show that physically attractive people get lighter prison sentences and have better prospects for the future.
So if the data shows that attractiveness has all sorts of benefits for our own self-esteem, how we are treated by others and how we get on in life, let’s now look at practical steps we can take to maintain attractiveness as we advance in years.
Our top #10 tips for holding onto your youthful looks
#1 Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT)
Many women are still reluctant to take HRT as they think that the ‘natural menopause’ approach is better. The Seeoran team have spent a lot of time researching HRT, including speaking to medical professionals, and our understanding is that the data shows that, at least as far as the age of 60, the advantages of HRT outweigh the disadvantages, for most women. We don’t see HRT as something to relieve symptoms; we believe that there are very serious and real consequences for the female body of allowing the levels of oestrogen and progesterone to decline, including rapid loss of bone density.
We would encourage all of our readers to consider HRT as an option and to talk to your doctor about it when you reach perimenopause in your mid-40s. Your levels of oestrogen affect your skin and hair, and HRT will help you to stay youthful for longer.
Check out our article Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) – impact on your skin, hair and energy levels
Various hormone replacment medications
#2 Vitamin C Serum
According to MedicalNewsToday, good sources of Vitamin C are strawberries, kiwi fruit, broccoli and potatoes. Vitamin C is needed for the growth, development and repair of all body tissues, including building collagen so it is very important to consume plenty of it in your daily diet.
We encourage our readers to use Vitamin C serum on a regular basis. It is inexpensive and easy to apply. It promotes collagen production, reduces hyperpigmentation and brightens the skin.
Check out our article Vitamin C – why you really need it to slow down skin aging!
Vitamin C and Hyaluronic Acid Serum
- Vitamin C supports collagen production, blended with Botanical Hyaluronic Acid, Vitamin E face oil & 20+ ingredients in this advanced formula designed to target the most common signs of aging including brightness, firmness, fine lines, frown lines, wrinkles, acne scars,dark spots & sun spots.
- This product has thousands of reviews from customers and is made with the highest quality ingredients that will brighten, smooth, and moisturise your complexion while repairing sun damage and evening out skin tone. They also naturally lift and firm your skin and fight dryness, dullness, tightness, loss of firmness.
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#3 Sunblock
Wearing an SPF daily is 101 of any anti-aging strategy, as well as protecting skin by covering it with protective clothing and hats.
Check out our article 7 Things You Absolutely Must Know About Using Sun Protection (SPF)
- This sunscreen keeps the skin both nourished and protected.
- It is lightweight and spreads across the skin easily without looking heavy or greasy.
- Melts into the skin with ease and leaves a radiant glow.
- Specifically made for sensitive skin needing high-protection.
- Great on your face and neck under foundation.
- Won't leave stains on clothing.
- A little goes a long way!
#4 Facial treatments
We have written a lot about different treatments because some of them really are very effective when done consistently over time. These include microneedling, radiofrequency, microcurrent and red light therapy – and they can all be done at home rather inexpensively. We also love face exercise, yoga and gua sha.
We believe that any treatment that is stimulating the blood flow to the tissues of your face is helpful, as is keeping the underlying muscle toned, and any treatments that stimulate the production of collagen are excellent.
We encourage you all to pick one, two or three of these and do them regularly. It is so easy to do most them while you are watching TV – keep a little bag beside the sofa with your gua sha, a hair band, some face oil and anything else you decide to use.
Radiofrequency, Gua Sha & Microcurrent Devices
#5 Hair
We’ve done a whole article on the importance of keeping your hairstyle and hair quality youthful. We did this based on a meme comparing Jennifer Lopez at 50 with Blanche from the Golden Girls at the same age, looking at the impact of their hair styles.
Check out our article Top #5 Hair Tools & Hairstyles That Will Make You and Your Hair Look Younger
Shark FlexStyle 5-in-1 Air Styler & Hair Dryer
The Shark HD440UK FlexStyle is a versatile and powerful hair styling tool that can transform from a hair dryer to an air styler with ease. It comes with five styling attachments that allow you to curl, straighten, volumize, smooth, and define any hair type.
The Shark HD440UK FlexStyle also comes with a sturdy storage case that is perfect for travel or storage. It is designed to prevent heat damage to your hair, and it can be used with or without heat, depending on your preference. Its touchable heat feature allows you to style your hair without worrying about damaging it.
Overall, the Shark HD440UK FlexStyle is a great hair styling tool that is perfect for anyone who wants to achieve salon-quality styling at home. It is an excellent investment that will save you time and money in the long run, and it is a great alternative to the more expensive Dyson hair styling tools.
#6 Exercise
Exercise is critical to staying young for so many reasons. Increasingly, the research seems to be suggesting that exercise is even more important than nutrition. Exercise has even been shown to have an impact on our cognitive function.
Resistance training is super important because, as we get older, we lose muscle so we have to work hard to keep it in place. Cardio is also important and long walks are a good way to get your cardio in. Just staying active throughout the day helps – go for a walk on your lunch break, get up from your desk once an hour and take the stairs rather than the elevator.
Check out our article Strong Bones, Stronger You: The Incredible Link Between Resistance Training and Bone Density
#7 Nutrition & supplements
We touched on nutrition when we talked about Vitamin C above. A healthy, balanced diet is incredibly important. We love foods like Greek yoghurt, berries, eggs, fish, salads, whole grains, nuts and seeds.
If your diet is mainly refined carbs, like processed breakfast cereals, bread, pasta, biscuits, cakes and sweets, you are likely to age at a pace more rapid that someone eating a diet high in low GI carbs, protein, good fats and fibre.
If your diet is not as optimal as you would like, do consider supplements. Our team are fans of Vitamin D3, K2, a good B complex and Magnesium supplementation. We do need Vitamin D3 as our main source is the sun and, in many countries, we don’t get enough sunshine.
Check out our article Our top 5 foods anti-aging foods
- 30 Servings (60 Capsules)
- With Benfotiamine Dietary Supplement
- Supports Mood and Energy Production
- Non GMO, Soy Free, Gluten Free
#8 Sleep
The bottom line is that we need at least 6 hours sleep a night to allow our minds and bodies to recuperate. Some people sleep very easily and others find it more difficult. There are lots of things you can do to improve your sleep such as winding down early, an hour before the time you want to sleep, and wearing glasses to block blue light emitted from screens or limiting screen time completely. It is also a good idea to think about the temperature in your bedroom as ideally it should not be too warm. There are supplements you can consider like Magnesium and Melatonin.
Check out our article Sleep Soundly, Age Gracefully: The Role of Melatonin in Healthy Aging
- Tap the touchpad once for the 8 min mode and twice for the 20 min mode. Synchronize your breath with the blue light projected onto the ceiling: breathe in as it expands.......and exhale when it retracts.
- You may find that the expiration time is longer. It's intentional. It helps to create the feeling of fatigue that leads to falling asleep.
- At the end of the exercise (8 or 20 minutes) Dodow turns itself off. You will then be in the ideal conditions to fall asleep in the position of your choice.
- By synchronizing your breath (abdominal) with the light pulse, Dodow gradually takes you from 11 to 6 breaths per minute.
- According to several studies, this rhythm is optimal for stimulating the baroreflex - a reflex that will rebalance your autonomic nervous system to bring you to a state of rest quickly.
#9 Makeup
There are lots of ways to use makeup to look younger and we recommend checking out the New Beauty article “15 Ways to Look Younger Instantly with Makeup”. Here are a few of our top tips:
Keep up with trends: if you are still doing your eyeshadow like Sue Ellen from the show Dallas in the 80s, it is time to update your techniques. These days there are so many tutorials on Instagram and YouTube that there is no excuse for outdated makeup!
Eyebrows: these make a big difference to your face; the bigger and fuller they look, the better. As we age, we lose eyebrow hair – typically young women in their 20s have fuller eyebrows. You can use makeup to thicken your brows, you can consider hair regrowth serums and you can also get semi-permanent tattoos.
Avoid emphasising fine lines: make sure to avoid powders or heavy eyeshadows that are going to sit in creases and lines.
#10 Clothes
As with makeup, keeping abreast of trends is important – but there is a balance where you don’t want to dress too young for your age. Again, there are lots of influencers these days who can help us figure out what we should be wearing.
Conclusion
We are all for embracing our age but we strongly believe in looking as good as we possibly can. As we discussed above, there are really good, practical reasons to look as attractive as possible as it can impact how you feel about yourself and how others treat you.
When we talk about looking as good as possible, we’re not talking about fillers or surgery, although a little botox doesn’t hurt! We really are talking about just looking after yourself as well as possible – and developing good habits to support this. As you get older, what you look like on the outside reflects your overall health and biological age. The bottom line is that when you are healthy, you will probably have a biological age that is lower than your chronological age – and you will look younger than others in your age group.
What do you think? Is it important to hold onto our youthful looks or should we embrace looking older? Should we just be happy with how we look and not worry about what others think?