For many of us, the area around our eyes is the first place we start to notice signs of aging. As early as our 20s, this skin starts to change before our eyes–developing wrinkles, crepiness, and even skin laxity while the rest of our faces remain relatively unchanged. It’s an experience that can leave many of us wondering if this skin is actually aging faster. It turns out, it is. Research has shown that the skin around our eyes shows signs of age-related damage long before the rest of the face. Let’s take a closer look at the research and what you can do to keep the skin around your eyes healthy for years to come.
Reference Lab
March 14, 2023
01 Understanding Biological Aging
If you’ve ever met someone who looks and seems much younger than they actually are, you’re already familiar with the concept of biological age. While your chronological age is simply how many years you’ve been alive, your biological age refers to how old your cells act. For example, people with excellent cardiovascular fitness and a healthy diet might have a much younger biological age than chronological age. In other words, their cells behave like the cells of a much younger person. Unlike chronological aging, biological aging is malleable and can be accelerated or decelerated by extrinsic factors like diet, exercise practices, and smoking habits.
Scientists can determine biological age through a number of scientific analyses. When it comes to determining the biological age of the skin, these analyses include looking at skin structure, a number of DNA markers, and the levels of cellular senescence within the skin. As one of the key hallmarks of aging, cellular senescence is a reliable indicator of aging. By analyzing this data, scientists can determine whether skin samples are biologically older or younger than a person’s chronological age or skin samples from other areas of the body.
02 Biological Aging in Periocular Skin
Using this kind of analysis, scientists have been able to confirm that the skin around your eyes actually does age faster than other areas of the face. In a study, researchers measured the biological age of eye skin and compared it to skin just inches away on the temple. What they found was that the skin under the eyes was biologically 22.25 years older. The difference was even more pronounced in skin from the upper eyelid, which was on average 28.75 years older than skin on the temples. This observation wasn’t limited to older people. Even people in their 20s showed an increased rate of skin aging around the eyes.¹
03OS-01 is Proven to Reverse Biological Aging
Because biological age is malleable, it is possible to reverse some of the cellular markers associated with skin aging. But how? The answer is OS-01: the first peptide proven to reverse biological aging in ex vivo human skin samples (Zonari, et al).
DNA methylation age of ex vivo human skin samples (79yr) treated with 12.5uM peptide for 5 days calculated using the Skin-Specific DNA Methylation Clock, MolClock. OS-01 peptide treatment significantly reduced the DNA methylation age (p<0.01). (Zonari, et al)
Utilizing MolClock, OneSkin’s peer-reviewed proprietary Skin-Specific DNA Methylation Clock, we measured the biological age of ex vivo skin samples before and after exposure to the OS-01 peptide. Before exposure, the biological age of the skin measured at 70.83 years old; after exposure to the OS-01 peptide for 5 days, the same skin had a biological age of 68.23 years, meaning that the OS-01 peptide reduced the biological age of skin by 2.6 years in ex vivo human skin samples (Zonari, et al).
04 Minimize Visible Aging Around the Eyes with OS-01 EYE
Formulated with the highest concentration of our OS-01 peptide, our new OS-01 EYE Topical Supplement was specifically designed to treat accelerated aging in the delicate skin around the eyes. After 2 weeks of consistent use of OS-01 EYE twice daily, 91% of users saw an improvement in crow’s feet. After just 4 weeks, a majority of users also saw an improvement in puffiness, sagging under the eyes, sagging eyelids and under eye wrinkles. (Based on a 4-week beta study with 20 randomly chosen participants.)
05Key Takeaways
- The skin around the eyes ages faster than skin on the rest of the face.
- Studies have shown that periocular skin has a biological age that is 22+ years older than skin on the temples.
- Luckily, biological age is malleable and can be reversed.
- OneSkin’s OS-01 peptide is the first peptide proven to reverse biological aging in ex vivo human skin samples (Zonari, et al).
- Formulated with the highest concentration of the OS-01 peptide, our OS-01 EYE Topical Supplement was specifically designed to treat accelerated aging around the eyes.
