When New York dermatologist Elyse Love, MD was interviewed by The Cut last month, she made a solid statement about the “abandoned area of the neck,” stating that the forgotten step of many modern skin-care routines might be a “millennial problem” in the future.
Saddle Brook, NJ dermatologist Dr. Fredric Haberman doesn’t mince his message on this one: “Caring for your neck should be a part of your everyday skin-care routine, because the neck and chest are susceptible to the effects of gravity, expression and sun damage, but more so as the skin is thinner and more delicate.”
Plus, he says, this one area is likely to age quicker than the face, which translates to deeper wrinkles and sagging below the jawline.
“Regular application of neck cream is key to combating early signs of aging, allowing you to maintain a youthful appearance,” Dr. Haberman says. “However, neck cream application is as much about when you apply it as how you apply it. Generally, I would recommend vitamin C serum or pads in the morning and retinol at bedtime. Proper application of mineral sunscreens every two hours and moisturizers.”
Davie, FL dermatologist Marianna Blyumin-Karasik, MD is also on board with below-the-face skin care, but she thinks this is a generation that gets it: “Based on my personal clinical experience, current interest in neck care is more profound than in the past,” she says. “I think people, including Gen Ys, are a lot more open to a variety of skin-care products and procedures for their face, and they often realize quickly that if they do not take care of neck aesthetics, the adjacent neck/décolleté areas look very much in discord.”
To that end, to preserve harmony, whenever having a cosmetic consultation, she recommends a comprehensive approach to rejuvenation—including the neck and hands areas, which she says, along with the face, “represent the most obvious areas of aging process” of our skin. “There are excellent cosmetic procedures now available to treat body areas such as biostimulatory injectable (Radiesse), Laser treatments (Picoway Resolve), Energy Devices (Profound), etc. Skin care is a great foundation with protective sunscreen and repairing neck creams (she likes Skin Better Techno and Defenage Neck Perfection).”
Finally, Bloomfield Hills, MI dermatologist Linda C. Honet, MD says it will be interesting to see how the new generation ages.
“Since social media has raised such positive awareness about skin health and skin rejuvenation in recent years, many men and women who are currently in their twenties and thirties are seeking aesthetic and dermatological care much earlier on and without judgement. This proactive-preventative skin-care attitude and skin-health trend may certainly narrow the gender gap of when we see the first signs of aging.”
The bottom line, says Louisville, KY, dermatologist Tami Buss Cassis, MD regardless of the data, this is one area you don’t want to omit.
“If the numbers are true, they will regret it! All of my fellow patients and friends do is work on our necks. I knew better, and I still wish I would have taken better care of my neck and chest when I was younger.”
