Fight Wrinkles with This Breathing Exercise

Take a deep breath. Now let it out. Breathe in again. Breathe out. In. Out. Slowly. Evenly. Feel better? More relaxed?

Good. You might look better when you are done, too, because studies show that stress does more than rumple your mood. It may actually help rumple your face, too.

Time on Your Side
According to RealAge skin expert Amy Wechsler, MD, author of The Mind-Beauty Connection, stress can cause wrinkles. How? By increasing the production of cortisol -- a stress hormone that also stymies collagen production, one of the natural substances skin needs in order to plump itself, repair itself, and keep wrinkles at bay. In addition to deep breathing exercises, chill out with this fun activity from grade-school music classes.

Another antiwrinkle strategy? Increase your beta-endorphins. Dr. Wechsler shows you how with this 9-Day Renewal Plan from her book.

3 More Feel-Better, Look-Better Tips

• Don't skimp on sleep. Sleep deprivation exacerbates stress and a haggard appearance. Try these sleep-inducing tips and tools.
• Have more sex. Besides boosting beta-endorphins, making love and cuddling with your significant other increases levels of the tension-squashing, feel-good hormones prolactin and oxytocin. Find out how sex reduced people's blood pressure in a study.
• End the love affair with your couch. Exercise jacks up your beta-endorphins, too. And it also releases pent up energy and increases blood flow -- all of which your skin will love. Try this 10-minute workout.

Find more skin-saving strategies at the RealAge Simply Beautiful Skin Center.

The Mind-Beauty Connection. Wechsler, A., New York: Simon & Schuster, 2008.