The very first thing you should learn is to be wary of what you read on the internet!! There is a marketing gimmick called affiliate marketing and many…actually the majority of articles that you read boosting the success of a product are basically the same thing as a commercial on TV. These people receive a percentage of the profits for each sell they initiate, and they do so by writing articles and false statements about the products success rate. I say this so that you will know to do your own investigating on a product, don’t believe the claims made by these articles; this includes the statements made about the ingredients.

Now, let’s get down to it; the way to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles is to correct the damage that has occurred. That is the first lesson in fighting aging that you must learn, treat your wrinkles as if they are an injury that you need to heal, because essentially they are. The ingredients in an effective wrinkle cream will perform this action nicely through the application of proteins (collagen and elastin), or by promoting the skin to make these proteins. There are all types of creams and lotions to help prevent signs of aging, natural or synthetic, the purpose of the cream is exactly the same…to prevent the formation, or reduce the appearance of wrinkles.

Now, unless you buy a completely organic product that lists the essential ingredients such as Vitamins A, C, or E you will need to investigate them and find out what they are typically called in English terms. For example Tocopheryl Acetate is a scientific term for a very strong, very effective, form of vitamin E. Another good example is retinol or more commonly known as Vitamin A; this list goes on and on.

So what exactly should you look for in a wrinkle cream?

Let me just say this is a trick question!! There are so many good wrinkle creams out there with the potential to reduce the appearance of wrinkles, but not one specific cream possesses every one of the hundreds of beneficial ingredients. So, I will give you some very good information to start with.

Peptides…any type, are beneficial to your skin as they are essential to repairing skin damage. Some commonly used peptides are: Acetyl Hexapeptide-8, Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-3, Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7. There are many more, but typically they will contain the word peptide in the title.

Collagen or Elastin: Are an absolute necessity to youthful looking skin, the loss of collagen and elastin are what allow our skin to wrinkle and sag in the first place. Some commonly used ingredients are called Atelocollagen, Hydrolyed Collagen, Hydrolyzed Elastin.

Vitamins: A good place to start is of course Vitamin A (retinol), Vitamin C because it helps promote the natural production of collagen, and of course Vitamin E because it is essential to the health of your skin.

Keep in mind that these are merely a few active ingredients; an effective wrinkle cream will have many other ingredients to soften the skin and support the actions of the other ingredients. But these are some very good, very essential, ingredients to start with.

The ideal goal of an anti aging face cream would be to totally annihilate wrinkles and prevent them from ever returning, but then again that would be the discovery of the fountain of youth. So the accepted goal of a face cream is to reduce the signs of aging by diminishing lines and wrinkles as much as possible, and helping to prevent them from returning. I would guess that 50% of wrinkle creams are very effective, but the other 50% are basically dressed up lotion in extremely over priced bottles. There is a way to tell the difference; investigate the product and the ingredients thoroughly, as long as the reviews are good and the ingredients make sense the product should work. Be sure not to make the assumption that just because it is way over priced it is effective.

You should also learn to tell the difference in a preventative cream and a corrective cream; know what you are looking for before you go shopping so that you don’t end up buying a lot of products you don’t want or need. A preventative cream, or creams, will include a moisturizer and some form of protective facial sun block, because the sun and wrinkles are like peas and carrots…they just go together. On the other hand a moisturizer, no matter how smooth it makes your skin feel, is not going to repair damage. You have to buy…invest, in a special cream for this, and by investing I mean these creams are usually very pricy, so prepare yourself before you get to the check out counter.

There is no one cream that has a monopoly on the industry, there are hundreds to choose from, and it all depends on your specific needs and preferences. If you are looking for a preventative product/ moisturizer you can find these in just about every shape or form, and in natural or chemically based formulas. It is hard to go wrong with a good moisturizer, but if it is the first time you have used it you should be sure to investigate it. Corrective products on the other hand are also a dime a dozen and like moisturizers they too come in a variety of different formulas, however, I am quick to say that many of these claims of repair or correction are marketing gimmicks to sell a product. Most definitely if they are solely based on the internet! When spending so much of your hard earned money be sure that the product works; there are so many out there that don’t. Educate yourself on the ingredients that are needed to repair damaged skin, this way no one can pull the wool over your eyes, and always, always investigate the product before buying it!!

[photo http://www.flickr.com/photos/mk1971/]