In her famous essay, I Feel Bad About My Neck, writer Nora Ephron laments about how no one tells you what happens to your neck as you age. She is referring to the fact that when you hit your mid 40’s (give or take a few years, depending on your genes and sunscreen habits), your neck suddenly—and seemingly overnight—becomes loose, saggy and etched with wrinkles. Ephron goes on to explain that people’s necks will always reveal how old they really are.
Back in 2006, when Ephron published this essay in her best-selling book, that may have been the case. But recent advancements in science and technology have made neck treatments more potent and effective. Now, neck treatments can both help prevent your neck skin from showing signs of aging and reduce the appearance of damage that you may already have.
Why neck skin is different from face skin
Part of the reason the neck seems to age so fast and egregiously is because we ignore it for most of our lives. It doesn’t occur to us to slather our necks with creams or protect them with sunscreen—and all of this neglect catches up to us. But it also has to do with the skin itself: neck skin is thinner and even more delicate than the skin on the face. The neck area contains less collagen, which makes it especially prone to sagging and wrinkles. There are also fewer oil glands in neck skin, so the neck can become dry and rough—and the drier the skin is, the more obvious wrinkles appear. Neck skin is actually more similar to the skin on your chest (which is also super delicate and prone to criss-cross wrinkles and crepiness) than the skin on your face.
Try these tips for a younger-looking neck
To keep the skin on your neck looking healthy and youthful, it’s important to adopt some simple lifestyle changes. For example, when weather permits, wear a turtleneck-style top or scarf as often as possible to block the sun’s harmful rays, especially if you’re spending a lot of time outside. Additionally, try to sleep on your back at night, as snoozing on your stomach can put added stress on the neck resulting in neck lines. Also, maintain good posture (chin up!), and make sure your computer screen is at eye level (slip a book under your laptop to raise it if needed) so you aren’t always craning your neck forward to look at it. And if you need one more reason to stop staring at your phone all day, keep in mind that glancing down at that little screen every few minutes chips away at the limited amount of collagen in your neck.
Combining these lifestyle habits with neck treatments that are specifically formulated to firm, sculpt and smooth will give you optimal results. Generally speaking, neck treatments tend to be thicker and richer than face creams to combat chronic dryness. Plus, they’re packed with powerful ingredients that can visibly improve the appearance of your neck without being overly harsh or irritating due to the thin and fragile neck skin.
If you’re dealing with a “turkey” neck (loose skin that can become droopy and wrinkled) or a double chin (an extra layer of fat below your chin), try this firming, jaw-sculpting cream. Using our proprietary liquid crystal delivery system to help ingredients penetrate deep within the skin, this formula contains powerful ingredients like peptides, which stimulate collagen production in the skin, and encapsulated caffeine, which energizes the skin (encapsulating the caffeine ensures that the ingredient is released into the skin in a slow and targeted manner). Apply the cream to your neck, chin and jawline area by massaging in gentle, circular motions. Use this cream both morning and night.
Cold Plasma Plus+ Neck & Chest Broad Spectrum SPF 25
With an airy, whipped texture, this cream is lighter than the Cold Plasma Plus+ Sub D/Neck and targets both the neck and chest. The chest is especially prone to sun damage, which can result in dark spots, crepiness and criss-cross lines. This product contains proprietary Vitamin C Ester, an antioxidant that helps smooth, brighten and even skin tone. It also has vitamin B3, which lightens the appearance of dark spots and revives dull-looking skin, and SPF 25 to give your neck and chest an extra layer of sun protection. And, like Cold Plasma Plus+ Sub D/Neck, Cold Plasma Plus+ Neck and Chest packs peptides to fortify your skin and firm your neck). Using a gentle, circular motion, apply the cream to your upper chest and continue moving up the front of your neck. Keep going until you have full coverage on the sides and back of your neck, too. Since the cream contains SPF, apply it only in the morning.
This kit contains Cold Plasma Plus+ Sub D/Neck and Cold Plasma Plus+ Neck & Chest to keep you covered both day and night. You get the sculpting superpowers of Cold Plasma Plus+ Sub D/Neck to firm your neck and tighten up your jaw area, along with the brightening and smoothing effects of Cold Plasma Plus+ Neck & Chest. Apply the Cold Plasma Plus+ Sub D/Neck in the morning, followed by the Cold Plasma Plus+ Neck & Chest. And then smooth on the Cold Plasma Plus+ Sub-D/Neck again before bed to firm and tighten your neck while you sleep.
While these neck products complement each other and are best when used together in the Day to Night Neck Duo, each will improve the texture and appearance of your skin, giving you jaw-dropping results.