How to Reduce and Prevent Frown Lines

Guest Writer Karen Lombardo

Frown lines are a part of the human aging process. However, the onset of the stages of menopause, starting with peri-menopause in your 30s, plays an active role in the appearance and amount of frown lines and wrinkles.  We have all experienced that first look in the mirror, pulling our skin back and asking, “Is that a frown line?”

What are frown lines?

Before we get to that, let’s talk about the frown itself- what is a frown? According to Merriam-Webster, a frown is defined:  as contracting the brow in displeasure or concentration; to give evidence of displeasure or disapproval by or, as if by facial expression.  It is quite negative when you think about it.  Other terms include scowl, glare, gloom, and grimace. Yikes!

How many muscles does it take to frown? The experts weigh in at anywhere from 10 to 50 muscles. (Smiling sure seems like a better option!) Therefore, in our gloom and grimace, we are engaging muscles that are creating frown lines, worry lines, eyebrow wrinkles, and stress lines. 

Frown lines and wrinkles are inevitable with age. Your skin elasticity is diminished, and the ability to bounce back is reduced. Sadly, it is a natural (whether we would like to come to terms with it or not) process for women over 40 to experience frown lines and wrinkles. Frown lines can make us appear older than we are. They are treatments and beauty regimens that can offset the profound appearance of frown lines. We will talk about that shortly.

What are elevenses or 11 lines?

Frown lines, aka 11 lines, are lines that appear as parallel line wrinkles in between your eyebrows that result from squinting, frowning, and fundamental facial contractions. They appear after years of muscle contractions.  Healthline refers to the 11 glabellar lines as “horizontal indentations stretching across your forehead. They may intersect with another category of wrinkles called frown lines.” 

Typically, frown lines are the vertical lines between your eyes, while glabellar lines appear above your eyebrows and run horizontally.

Frown lines don’t just come from making sad faces. When you smile, laugh, or look worried or surprised, the glabella muscles tug and pull the skin that covers them. Injectables such as Botox® is a viable treatment for frown lines and 11 lines. The injections minimize the ability of the muscles to move and contract, thereby smoothing out the lines. The area is less likely to frown, reducing the return and severity of these frown lines. Botox and other injection options last about four months. Adding a healthy and consistent beauty regimen will improve the overall appearance of your skin.

How did I get frown lines?

Frown lines, just like wrinkles, can tell a story. Worry, stress, and life, in general, can create these unwanted lines on our faces. There are four contributing factors to the appearance of frown lines:

1. Overexposure to sunlight. Today’s woman is yesterday’s girl who sat in the sun with baby oil, no sunscreen, and no hat. The intense UV rays tear down the elasticity and collagen in the skin, opening the door for frown lines!
2. Smoking impedes oxygen and blood flow circulation throughout the body and face. 
3. Stress - say no more.
4. Your mother’s genes. Yes, your DNA and heritage can play a part in wrinkles and frown lines.  

Believe it or not, we have been frowning almost since birth. The change occurred when our bodies began menopause, and the physical and emotional changes in our bodies affected our ability to minimize frown lines and wrinkles.  So, what can we do about it?

How to get rid of frown lines

What are the best treatments for frown lines? Remedies to eliminate frown lines include injectables, exercise, and over-the-counter products. Let’s start with the most straightforward ways.

• Hydrate!  Hydration is essential to our mind, body, and the most significant organ- our skin.The effects of peri-menopause on our skin and a decrease in estrogen and progesterone expose women to early skin aging. Let’s go back to the beginning and set a regimen for skin hydration from the inside by mindfully fueling our bodies. Once we have created a practice to deliver our skin and bodies to a hydrated state from the inside, it is time to make a skin care program for our menopause faces and bodies on the outside. Use the Caire Serum to help hydrate and plump skin for a younger-looking glow.  Caire works rapidly, so you can feel how to moisturize your skin from the inside out.
• Use a face roller.  The Caire hand-polished stone Face Ritual Roller effortlessly soothes and depuffs while improving the benefits of our anti-aging Serum (or other treatment) application, penetration, and effectiveness. Not only does it feel like an individual facial massage that helps you feel relaxed and calm, but it can improve blood circulation, decrease puffiness, and even improve your mood. Immediate skin benefits include smoother, brighter, more defined skin.
• The three “S’s.” Sleep, sunscreen, and supplements. Sleep refuels your skin and body; sunscreen goes without saying, and supplements that include omega-3 fatty acids help skin hydration. 

How to stop frowning

We can all hear our mothers telling us to stop frowning. Our faces naturally frown. Concentration, smiling, concern, and even love can cause a frown line or wrinkle. 

Are there exercises to reduce frown lines? Yes, facial exercises can soften lines and improve appearance. Livestrong.com suggests a few:

• The corrugation eraser. A corrugation muscle, aka frowning muscle, can be smoothed out. To smooth frown lines, firmly press your fingertips on your corrugations and massage the area vertically for 30 seconds. Then massage the area horizontally, over the eyebrows, and toward the temples. Finally, place your fingertips directly over your corrugations and massage your lines in a circular motion for 30 seconds. Take care not to dig your fingernails into your skin.
• The "surprise me" facial exercise has multiple benefits, according to Annelise Hagen, New York City-based yoga instructor and author of "The Yoga Face." It can smooth the brow area, de-wrinkle the forehead, and firm and lift the ring muscles around your eyes. Open your eyes wide as in surprise, but do not wrinkle your forehead. Look at a point on the horizon for 10 seconds. Repeat the exercise five times. Not only is this exercise easily mastered, but you can perform it anywhere.

Do smiles cause wrinkles and frown lines? Dr. Anthony Rossi, a dermatologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and Dr. Marc Glashofer, a New York-based dermatologist, spoke with Time magazine. 

“When it comes to your smile, the largest of the lines that form are the “nasolabial folds”—those big parentheses of skin that arc downward from the sides of your nose to the corners of your mouth, explains Dr. Marc Glashofer, a New York-based dermatologist. Those folds appear every time you smile. And as you grow older, those happy-face grooves don’t fade away once you stop beaming, Glashofer says.

Of course, you could also try to limit your smiles. But you’d be forgoing the immune system-boosting, stress-lowering benefits of a good laugh. “I would never tell anyone to avoid smiling,” Glashofer says. “You are truly blessed to have an abundance of smiles in your life.”

We agree. Please keep smiling!

Take care of your skin, and it will take care of you!

Remember, your skin is the largest organ in your body. Therefore, we must do all that we can to make sure that it remains healthy even as we begin to get older.  If you think you are too young to get frown lines or wrinkles, think again, as fine lines can start appearing in your late twenties.

While every woman's pre, active, and post-menopause skin experience is authentic and their own, remembering that there is a community of women experiencing the same journey as you can be comforting. Here at Caire Beauty, we care about the women who purchase our hormone-defying skincare products and recognize the positive impact our products can have in your life.

Try out the Caire age-defying skincare products and join a community of women who are taking back their power and falling in love with their skin all over again! We promise you won’t be disappointed!