What beauty routine can erase smile lines?

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lastresort

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I'm a guy whose face still looks quite youthful, but over the past few years my nasolabial fold has become really noticeable. It's not like I'm grinning all the time either.

So, folks, what's your approach to making this disappear? Sure, I'm male, but I'll cling to my East Asian youthful looks until I take my final breath!
 
When surgery isn't on the table, the approaches for this line overlap with those for any other wrinkle: keep skin hydrated, get enough rest, maintain a solid diet, apply moisturizer, use retinol/adapalene/tretoin/or similar, and protect with sunscreen. Expecting to "remove" it may be an unrealistic goal and isn't really required; it's a typical trait on a face past its twentysomething years, though consistent self-care will likely make it less pronounced.
 
For topical options: peptides, growth factors, and 35 years of prescription tretinoin.

On top of that: Botox.
 
retinoids are the way to go! But make sure you look into it properly, since the purging stage can be brutal and plenty of people simply cannot handle stronger options such as Tretinoin.

My suggestion would be to begin with an over the counter retinol for several months so your skin builds tolerance, and only then move cautiously to Tretinoin or tazarotene. Look up instructions for using them online, because if you don't ease into it gradually and carefully it WILL wreck your skin barrier. For me it took 3 months before my skin could handle daily use. Unlike peptides, you may need years of steady daily application before seeing results.
 
Should you decide to use tretinoin, begin at a low strength and introduce it gradually. Start with 0.025%. Choose the gel if your skin is more oily; if it tends drier, go with the cream version.

Apply it using the sandwich method: begin with a clean, dry face, then a thin moisturizer layer, then only a pea sized amount of tretinoin, wait a few minutes, and finish with another thin moisturizer layer. Use it every other night or every third night. If your skin tolerates it, build up to nightly use.

Under my dermatologist's guidance, I used 0.025% for 1 month. I continued at that strength for 3 months, then switched to 0.05% for 6 more months. Currently I'm on 0.1%.
 
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