Does ethnicity play a role in aging?

Krizia from www.myBeautyMatch.com

Project Runway Canada’s host, Iman, has been very vocal in her statement that: “black don’t crack”. If this is the first time you’ve heard of this saying it refers to the fact that many black women don’t show any signs of aging such as deep wrinkles and sagging skin simply because they are genetically blessed.

Well, study after study has proven that aging is 80-90 per cent related to lifestyle and not genes. On the subject of blacks never aging, I’ve seen my fair share of blacks who had deep wrinkles and sagging skin. If you smoke, drink heavily, worship the sun … you will age and it will show … regardless of your ethnic makeup.

That said, different ethnicities will show different signs of aging. Iman is not entirely wrong in her assessment. If you are black and if you take care of your skin, exercise, eat well, stay away from fast foods, don’t smoke, don’t drink heavily and if you don’t partake in recreational drugs, you should be able to hit your 70s and still fool people around you in thinking that you are 20 years younger.

Black beauties (as I like to call them) are born with an integrated anti-aging and protective photo-protective shield called melanin.

Melanin (the substance that gives skin its colour), plays a huge part in how different ethnicities show the signs of aging. Lighter and fairer complexions are very much susceptible to aging faster because harmful UV rays from the sun can penetrate their skin more easily and deeply. As a result, their skin loses moisture more quickly, and collagen breaks down more rapidly than in a thicker, darker skin.

Just in case you were wondering, melanin is found at the bottom of the epidermis. It acts as barrier against the rays that damage the dermis, acting as a built-in sun filter and considerably slowing down the signs of aging.

That said, although darker-skin beauties might not have to worry as much about photo-aging, they still have concerns about skin cancer, as melanin does NOT protect the skin against skin cancer.

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