How Many Years Can You Sleep Off?
Now this is hilarious: Check out this site and scroll through the slide show images of famous people we all know (without being plastic surgeons) have had a nip and tuck - or two. The article, which talks about the quest to live longer and look younger, takes a funny stab at the "ugly" pursuit of youth. And I mean ugly!
These days, it doesn't take much to get a brow lift or a Botox injection. Does your forehead have tracks running across it? Do your cheeks sink in a little? Are your lips on the thin side? Well, there's a fix for all that... but you won't necessarily look twenty-something again. I guarantee it. You may fall prey to the "trout pout"; the frozen forehead; the surprised- or sinister-looking brow line; and plastic portrait worthy of a wax museum. Several sites have emerged to poke fun at celebrities' plastic surgeries gone wrong - or at least they appear to have gone overboard.
Sometimes it's not even surgery that does it, but just too many trips to the happy dermatologist with a needle in hand. Maybe these people actually like the way they look. Who knows? The point is, modern technology can only do so much. And old technology still works: eat well, exercise, take good care of your skin without resorting to weird products and procedures, and get a good night's sleep.
Ah, but not many people mention this last secret.
What if You Got Enough Sleep?
Here's something to think about: if you slept like a baby every single night since birth, and got every hour you needed, how would you look at age 70? I know, that's not going to happen. But it's a thought. Imagine what you'd look like if your skin were never damaged by the sun. Or you never smiled. Or you never ate doughnuts and fast food. Or you never...lived a real life.
I'm going to take a guess that if truly slept well for the majority of your life, you'd age beautifully and could even take about 5 years off your face by the time you're 70. We know that sleep is our zone of rejuvenation. It allows us to replenish our cells, spur new cellular growth (like collagen!), and feel refreshed and energetic enough the next day to make healthy choices, such as working out and eating well. All of which bodes well for keeping up appearances.
Besides, those who look like they are "aging gracefully" win my vote. (As an aside, I write this post on the same day that the "exhaustion" factor in the Clinton vs. Obama war is making headlines. The candidates are getting sloppy with speeches, forgetful of past events - Clinton in Bosnia - and noticeably haggard. Obama's hair is grayer now than it was just a year ago. All this before even potentially getting into the White House!)
Unfortunately, there seems to be an inverse relationship happening between sleep and cosmetic surgery. Sleep isn't very popular these days, and yet cosmetic surgery increasingly is. Nearly 12 million cosmetic procedures were performed in 2007 - a 7 percent increase from 2006 and a 59 percent increase from 2000. These procedures are like Band-Aids on our sleep deprivation.
From the looks of it, at least some Hollywood starlets seem to be getting their Zs. Which ones? Well, I'll leave that up to you. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I invite you to write back and cast your vote for the "best ager", and maybe we can ask how many hours of sleep they get each night. I bet they rank sleep high on their priorities.
Related Topics:
This post is cross-posted at Dr. Breus's blog, The Insomnia Blog.
These days, it doesn't take much to get a brow lift or a Botox injection. Does your forehead have tracks running across it? Do your cheeks sink in a little? Are your lips on the thin side? Well, there's a fix for all that... but you won't necessarily look twenty-something again. I guarantee it. You may fall prey to the "trout pout"; the frozen forehead; the surprised- or sinister-looking brow line; and plastic portrait worthy of a wax museum. Several sites have emerged to poke fun at celebrities' plastic surgeries gone wrong - or at least they appear to have gone overboard.
Sometimes it's not even surgery that does it, but just too many trips to the happy dermatologist with a needle in hand. Maybe these people actually like the way they look. Who knows? The point is, modern technology can only do so much. And old technology still works: eat well, exercise, take good care of your skin without resorting to weird products and procedures, and get a good night's sleep.
Ah, but not many people mention this last secret.
What if You Got Enough Sleep?
Here's something to think about: if you slept like a baby every single night since birth, and got every hour you needed, how would you look at age 70? I know, that's not going to happen. But it's a thought. Imagine what you'd look like if your skin were never damaged by the sun. Or you never smiled. Or you never ate doughnuts and fast food. Or you never...lived a real life.
I'm going to take a guess that if truly slept well for the majority of your life, you'd age beautifully and could even take about 5 years off your face by the time you're 70. We know that sleep is our zone of rejuvenation. It allows us to replenish our cells, spur new cellular growth (like collagen!), and feel refreshed and energetic enough the next day to make healthy choices, such as working out and eating well. All of which bodes well for keeping up appearances.
Besides, those who look like they are "aging gracefully" win my vote. (As an aside, I write this post on the same day that the "exhaustion" factor in the Clinton vs. Obama war is making headlines. The candidates are getting sloppy with speeches, forgetful of past events - Clinton in Bosnia - and noticeably haggard. Obama's hair is grayer now than it was just a year ago. All this before even potentially getting into the White House!)
Unfortunately, there seems to be an inverse relationship happening between sleep and cosmetic surgery. Sleep isn't very popular these days, and yet cosmetic surgery increasingly is. Nearly 12 million cosmetic procedures were performed in 2007 - a 7 percent increase from 2006 and a 59 percent increase from 2000. These procedures are like Band-Aids on our sleep deprivation.
From the looks of it, at least some Hollywood starlets seem to be getting their Zs. Which ones? Well, I'll leave that up to you. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I invite you to write back and cast your vote for the "best ager", and maybe we can ask how many hours of sleep they get each night. I bet they rank sleep high on their priorities.
Related Topics:
- Why Do Some Celebrities Look So Bad After Cosmetic Surgery?
- Is There an Anti-Aging Doctor in the House?
This post is cross-posted at Dr. Breus's blog, The Insomnia Blog.
