23 Things That Are Scientifically Proven To Keep You Feeling And Looking Young
We tried just 3 this week. And we must say, we felt pretty good.
by The Candidly Team
We’d feel like jerks not to acknowledge that the number 23 sounds insane. We promise our goal here is not to overwhelm you. Or make you feel even guiltier for not getting to yet another thing having to do with your health.
BUT…
we also like options. And we firmly believe it’s great to have easy access to digestable, well-researched information where our health is concerned. So, whether you’re striving for a clean sweep of all 23 or picking 3 (just 3) new things to try this week, we applaud you.
We’re all on this weird 35+ “health journey” together after all. So here are 21 things that might make us look and feel a little more like we did when we were 23.
All set? Off we go.
The Lifestyle Stuff
1. Move, move, and move.
Guys, we know you you know. Exercise is just part of the deal. It’s oft recommended that we get at least 150 to 300 minutes of moderate exercise (or 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous) each week. If you’re a bare minimum type of person, that 150/week equates to just under 22 minutes a day.
However, a recent study found that going above and beyond this recommendation yields enormous rewards, namely lengthening your life. “Participants who performed two to four times above the recommended amount of moderate physical activity had a 26% to 31% lower all-cause mortality and a 28% to 38% lower risk of cardiovascular disease mortality,” reported the American Medical Association.
Pair this with the reality that just sitting all day does terrible things for your health, and you might want to start making brisk walks part of your routine. A massive UK study showed walking 20 minutes a day can “cut risk of death by almost a third.” Another recent study showed that taking 5-minute walks after every half hour can help counter the harmful effects of sitting.
And for one final dose of inspiration, exercise has been shown to make your skin look more supple and elastic, shrink a belly pooch, and improve your posture - also know as the holy trinity of instantly looking younger.
2. Own a pet.
You might be a hard no on this one or you might be scooting a Pomeranian off your lap as we speak. But if you’ve been on the fence about the idea of getting a pet, these facts are for you. A 2023 study showed pet owners had better maintained physical function than non-pet owners. Other research has shown that owning a pet longterm could also help keep your brain sharp, while continuously reducing stress, which is a huuuuge culprit in accelerating aging.
3. Play music and watch shows from your past.
We’ve all seen the videos of kids asking their parents how they danced to a certain hit song from the 80s, then watched that parent playfully dissolve into their teenage selves, have we not? There are real emotional benefits to the nostalgia evoked by songs from our past. There are even studies showing watching old, comforting shows can give us a hit of energy and joy.
4. Have more sex.
Sex can boost your immune system and do other unexpected things for our health. But apparently, having sex on a regular basis can also make you look around 7-12 years younger. One study suggested this was true of people who had sex 3 times a week. Similarly, a UK researcher concluded that people who reported having more sex also had a stronger tendency to look around 7 years younger than their age.
5. Think about sleep the way you do exercise.
We don’t need studies to tell us sleeping well and enough clears the fogginess from our brains, gives us heaps more energy, and makes us look and feel younger, in general. But it actually does so much more than that, because just feeling younger is correlated with being healthier and happier, so when we mess with our sleep, we mess with our own aging process.
6. Work on your posture.
It’s wild how much older we look and stiffer we feel by being hunched over. And spending huge portions of our existence at desks and on iPhones isn’t helping. According to Harvard Health, “the key to fixing poor posture is strengthening and stretching the muscles in the upper back, chest, and core.” Things like yoga and strength training are excellent. We also like these 3 moves because they feel very quick and doable on a daily basis.
7. Stay in touch with friends.
There’s plenty of research pointing to how having solid social networks can help us live longer. It gives us support and meaning and connects us to who we are, separate from all the roles and responsibilities of our practical lives. Interestingly, people in Blue Zones, pockets of the world where people most commonly live to be over 100, were found to put massive priority on spending time with loved ones.
8. Hold fast to a sense of purpose – even in small, seemingly trivial ways.
A sense of purpose has been linked to longevity. In the broader, more overarching way, holding onto an idea of what gives our life meaning brings more vitality to everything we do, but even just appreciating the tiny, little acts we complete (packing our kid’s lunch, sending off that email, walking our dog, any small sense of accomplishment) counts.
9. Avoid smoking and drinking.
Without getting into the weeds or beating around the bush, both destroy our health from the inside out. We feel older. We look older. We know this.
10. Take special care of your teeth.
A brilliant, white smile just outright rewinds time on our face, whereas any signs of poor dental hygiene fast forward it. But more importantly, there are a startling number of health issues linked to gum disease, including certain cancers and Alzheimer’s. So brush, floss, go to the dentist regularly - the whole 9 yards. You’re doing a great thing.
11. Just think of yourself as younger.
There are wild new studies pointing out how just thinking of ourselves as younger can make us live our lives … younger. With more energy, better health. There’s validity to feeling younger than we are. And we might as well enjoy it.
The Diet Stuff
12. Treat every sip of water like the fountain of youth, because it is.
On such a basic level, drinking water is part of your body’s essential filtration process and it keeps everything running so to speak. So of course, not drinking enough is gonna make us lag in ways that make us feel 107. Here’s our hack for adequately hydrating, because it’s tough. We know.
13. Eat more fiber.
There’s a famous study showing that people who ate plenty of fiber were 80% more likely to live longer and healthier lives. So that’s the main thing. But fiber also makes for a healthier gut, which directly benefits your skin health. It helps you absorb nutrients and reduces inflammation, all youth-boosting attributes on an inside and outside level. Aim for a minimum of 25 grams a day. Here’s how.
14. Eat healthy fats.
According to UCLA Health, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids “play an important role in brain function, skin and hair growth, bone health and metabolism.” Healthy fats can have some significant anti-aging effects. One study even showed that people whose diet included a good amount of extra virgin olive oil didn’t experience as much skin aging. Here are some other foods rich in omega-3s to help keep us young:
15. Get plenty of fruits and veg.
In addition to all the obvious and incredible things they do for our overall health, a diet with ample fruits and veg has been linked to skin health, hydration, elasticity, glowiness - all those grand things that make us look younger and healthier.
16. Reduce sugar.
Sugar makes us look older. Skin-wise, it leads to breakouts and can cause us to lose collagen and elasticity. So while the jury’s still out on whether taking collagen will even do anything for our skin, maybe the first step is to cut our sugar and keep our own existing collagen in tact. Also, sugar is pretty atrocious for us in general. Sorry to say, but if feeling young is what we’re after, it’s also the truth.
The Beauty Stuff
17. Be good about SPF.
Did you know there are only 3 anti-aging products proven to actually do anything? So we’ll start with those three. The first is sunscreen, and it’s obvious why. The top cause of premature aging is exposure to the sun. Protect thyself with THIS and THIS.
18. Use Vitamin C on the skin.
It fights free radicals, and studies have shown it improves the appearance of fine lines and deep wrinkles and reduces redness. This particular Vit C serum happens to be our desert-island skincare product, and you can see an example of what it did for our skin HERE.
19. Consider retinol.
Retinoids are famous for their powers in reducing fine lines and wrinkles, boosting collagen production by stimulating new blood cell production. But we have to be extra careful about the sun when we use them and slather on lots of SPF. And some of us just aren’t cut out for the punch packed by retinol. In which case, we adore and swear by THIS alternative. Not sponsored - just tested it ourselves.
20. Hydrate your hair.
Our hair needs a lot of extra love after 40, which we wrote all about HERE. But one major takeaway is that our dryer, coarser hair will likely need way more hydration. So get serious about conditioner - leave it in longer in the shower and try a mask now and again.
21. Define your eyebrows.
Asking yourself how this one got on here? Well, kind of like keeping your teeth white, keeping your brows looking full and defined makes your face look younger. It’s just the truth. Here are some of the ways we do this using THIS and THIS and even trying THIS.
22. Wash your face gently but frequently.
We all know squeaky, clean skin is the starting point for looking fresh-faced and less aged. But did you also know scrubbing too hard on our more delicate, over-40 skin can just make us look red and irritated and more dried out? The rule of thumb is wash often (morn and eve but also after sweating), just do it gently.
23. Find hardcore ways to moisturize.
Like our hair, our skin gets more stripped with age. So we might need to switch to quenchier creams (our gold standard, best-of-the-best is THIS but there’s also a much more affordable dupe we use HERE). It also might be time to up the ante and start using a face oil. THIS one is a miracle on lines and wrinkles. A miracle.
This article is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to be used in place of professional advice, medical treatment, or professional care in any way. This article is not intended to be and should not be a substitute for professional care, advice or treatment. Please consult with your physician or healthcare provider before changing any health regimen. This article is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent disease of any kind. Read our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
