How Do I Choose the Best Skin-Firming Products?

The best way to choose effective skin-firming products is to learn which ingredients are the most effective at helping to firm skin, and to make a habit of reading product labels for those ingredients. You'll also want to consider your skin type, and whether a lotion, cream, or serum would be most effective for you. Products like this — sometimes called "cosmeceuticals" — aren't always subject to the same governmental oversight as pharmaceutical products, so may not be tested thoroughly; it's best to choose a brand that has a strong reputation and studies to back up it's claims.

Vitamins are not only good for the health but, when applied topically, they can also be good for the skin. Vitamin E is an ingredient found in many skin-firming products, as it appears to have natural healing properties that can help to heal skin damage. When buying a skin-firming lotion that contains vitamin E, make sure the vitamin E is natural, because synthetic forms do not have the same skin firming properties. Vitamin C helps to stimulate the production of collagen, which helps the skin stay smooth and elastic; this improved production may result in firmer, younger-looking skin.

Coenzyme Q10 is an anti-oxidant, so it can help fight the harmful free radicals that can break down the collagen and elastin in the skin. There are some indications that coenzyme Q10 can help reduce wrinkles, tighten sagging skin, and make the skin feel softer and smoother. Topical retinoids are a form of vitamin A that may be used to treat wrinkles by causing the top layer of skin to peel away, encouraging the growth of new, firmer skin in its place.

Once you've chosen the ingredients that you're interested in, you'll want to consider the form of skin-firming products that you want: lotions, creams, and serums are the most common. Lotions tend to be thinner and water-based, which is often better for people oily skin. Creams are often oil-based and better for drier skin; they tend to have more moisturizing ingredients, and may be easier to apply to targeted areas due to their thickness. The oils in creams may not allow the skin-firming ingredients to be as effective, however. Serums, like lotions, are water-based, but tend to penetrate the skin more deeply and often contain the most concentrated ingredients.

Consumers must take care when buying skin-firming products because such products do not always undergo truly rigorous testing to prove the validity of the claims made by manufactures. One way to find a good skin-firming product is to seek out studies done independently to test the claims of beauty product manufacturers. You'll want to consider the brand's reputation as well, since companies with a good reputation will often do more research to back up their claims.