Dr. Jeffrey A. Nerad, Ophthalmic
Plastic & Cosmetic Surgeon at the
Cincinnati Eye Institute
Keeping your youthful appearance requires skin analysis and education. The Face and Eye Aesthetic Center is here to educate you in the steps to maintain your facial skin health.

As you age, the regeneration of the skin surface slows, resulting in uneven color and less glow. The skin is made of layers of tissue. The top layer is called the epidermis, and underneath is the dermis, a tough supporting layer of the tissue that contains proteins that give the skin its strength and resiliency. Two of those proteins are collagen, responsible for strength, and elastin, responsible for resiliency. And beneath it all is a layer of fat that fills out the face.

Gradually, the skin's proteins diminish, causing a loss of elasticity, which results in wrinkles and creases and a loss of collagen and subcutaneous fat, which causes the skin to sag. The overall effect is deflation, and our eyes are drawn to the "hills and valleys" rather than the pleasant curves of a younger face.

At the Face and Eye Aesthetic Center of the Cincinnati Eye Institute, doctors understand how early that process begins and can show patients how to slow the process and return your youthful essence.

Sunscreen is a must for all ages, especially children. You get most of your sun exposure before age 20, not knowing the price you will

Sunscreen is a MUST for all ages.
pay later in life. Prescription medications like Retin A improve skin surface turnover and help restore collagen, resulting in improved color and texture. For wrinkles that form, injections of Botox can relax the underlying muscles and smooth the contour of the skin. The soft facial contours can be restored with the natural material, Hyaluronic Acid, which is responsible for plumping the skin tissue.

Surgery also has a role. The old style cosmetic procedures that aimed to pull the loose skin tight gives that all too familiar stretched, unnatural look that you recognize in many older celebrities. Today's procedures are aimed at restoring a natural look. Some procedures, like blepharoplasty, which removes sags and bags around the eyes, can be combined with simple laser treatments to improve skin color and diminish wrinkles.

Aging is a process. It might seem like you went to bed with the smooth glowing skin of a teenager, only to awaken the next morning with the wrinkled and dull skin of a much older person. But aging does not happen overnight. It is a gradual process, which means it is never too early to start fighting the signs of aging. The Face and Eye Aesthetic Center welcomes visitors to schedule a complimentary skin analysis in its center, located in the Cincinnati Eye Institute, to learn more.