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Do you need an 'anti-ageing' hand lift when lockdown is over?

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Hands have always been one of the biggest age giveaways but since Covid-19 the skin on our hands has taken even more of a battering as we strip away its natural lipids with high-alcohol sanitizers and neglect to wear SPF, causing dryness and age spots more than ever before. There's been such high request for specific hand treatments post-lockdown that aesthetic practitioners have been busy adding 'anti-ageing' hand procedures to their treatment menus for when clinics reopen in July.

'We are offering online consultations whilst the clinic is shut and many people have wanted to discuss their hands as well as their facial skin. Increased hand washing due to Covid has caused excessive dryness and often irritation. This is due to soap and alcohol affecting the pH balance of the skin and impairing the skin barrier. Pigmentation on the hands is also a popular concern,' says Dr. Sophie Shotter.

She adds, 'this is twofold. The weather has been incredible and people are sitting outside and enjoying it. This is of course what we should be doing to get vitamin D, but people often don’t cover their hands with sunscreen even though this is one of the most exposed areas, which leads to pigmentation and wrinkling of the hands.

In response to customer demand, Dr. Shotter has introduced two new hand treatments to tackle these concerns, one for at home-use and another, more intense version available at the Illuminates Skin Clinic, which can be booked in advance now.

In clinic

Dr Sophie’s Intense Hand Rejuvenation £600

This treatment includes a brightening peel adjusted to suit the skin and its condition from the NeoStrata Pro System Peel range. This will slough off all dead skin and brighten the surface, whilst stimulating the cells to hydrate and plump the skin from within. Then tiny injections of Volite Skin Booster (a light filler) are administered. Volite is made from Hyaluronic Acid and will fill lines and plump the skin whilst deeply hydrating it. The treatment ends with SkinCeuticals Hydrating B5 Masque covered with a polythene protector and heat mitts to help the product to penetrate.

Patients can expect immediate improvement following the treatment and additional improvements for the following two weeks. Hands will look healthy, even-toned and youthful.

At-Home

Dr Sophie’s Rejuvenating Hand Rescue £110

For those who prefer to treat themselves at home, Dr Sophie has created a kit that includes an at-home peel ideal for hands and a cream that should be generously applied and left on to penetrate as a mask.

Featuring Peel 2 Glow Brightening & Filling, a two-step ampule application, this product dissolves dead skin and brightens the skin ready for the application of the hand mask. NeoStrata Bionic Cream is then applied like a mask and bamboo gloves are provided to cover the hands and keep the cream in place. The product should be left to penetrate  for 20 minutes. Each kit contains enough product for six applications.

Other ways to treat your hands for age spots and wrinkling at home is to layer your usual anti-ageing facial protocol onto your hands each morning. Begin by cleansing with a gentle pH balanced facial cleanser. Apply a vitamin C essence in the morning, which will brighten pigmentation followed by a rich moisturising cream and SPF.

In the evening, swap vitamin C for a retinol serum which will resurface crepey skin texture and firm and smooth the skin, followed by a deeply moisturising mask or hand cream. John Lewis have reported a rise in sales of premium hand creams that go above and beyond the ordinary, such as these three below.

Try these three hand heroes

Sisley Restorative Hand Cream, 75ml, £67

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Augustinus Bader The Hand Treatment with TFC8 £40

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La Prairie Cellular Hand Cream, 100ml, £100.00

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