After interviewing dozens of women, and a few men for good measure, it is clear that not everyone is happy with their skin care purchases.

Over and over, we at the anti-aging journal here that this or that product doesn't work. Or that it helped, but wasn't worth the price.

Sadly, we have to agree. There has been little evidence that the more expensive lines offer significantly better results. In fact, some of the gimmicks used to promote the expensive lines have no proven impact whatever on maintaining the youthful beauty of your skin.

In short, it's a crapshoot, and the odds are against you.

The Unvarnished Truth about the Anti-aging Skin Care Industry

The fact of the matter is, there's not much out there that can guarantee the sort of dramatic results you hear in the advertising. To give you an inside look at what they consider when making and promoting a product, consider the following:

The promise of youthful beauty in cosmetics advertising has been with us… since people started advertising. But this appeal became commonplace. So to continue selling their products, which most likely didn't work well, if at all, these companies resorted to adding special "mechanisms" or reasons why their new-and-improved product would really work this time.

So they glommed on to antioxidants, and you saw those touted on every label. Organic was in vogue for a time, and some companies put that on every label – never mind the lack of any standard. (There is a campaign underway to tighten controls.)

These new appeals signal progress, and offer a new reason to believe that this product will be better than the last. Studies have not born this out.

The Secret to Ageless Beauty

It is true that cosmetics, meaning make-up, change appearance. But those come with their own problems, not least of which is the questionable ingredients they can contain.

We've already discussed the anti-aging skin care regimen – though it's worth mentioning that some products do help, and progress is being made. Our argument is simply that we shouldn't fall for the hype.

But the real secret is to take care of your skin from the inside out.

This subject is described at length elsewhere on this site, but for your convenience, here are the highlights:

• Monitor your diet for allergens, which can cause breakouts and blemishes
• Use a soap that doesn't have triclosan to maintain the beneficial bacteria on your skin
• Consider using a quality probiotic supplement – gut health means skin health
• Get the right kind of exercise to increase blood flow to the skin – high intensity training may be a good choice
• Get enough sun for that radiant look – stop when your skin turns slightly pink to avoid risk of skin cancer

The Unnamed Threat to Preserving Youthful Skin