Many women will be all too familiar with tackling the traditional signs of ageing, whether it’s crow’s feet, forehead wrinkles or greying hair.
But according to one leading surgeon there is a whole range of lesser-known signs to look out for – and they could be adding years to your appearance.
Aesthetic practitioner Dr Nestor Demosthenous has pinpointed the tell-tale signs that most people have never heard of – plus how to look out for and how to deal with them.
Nasolabial folds, bunny lines, drooping eyebrows and hollows under the eyes are all dead giveaways according to Dr Nestor – who shares his tips with FEMAIL on what to do if they suddenly appear.
Hidden problem areas: Nasolabial folds, bunny lines, drooping eyebrows and hollows under the eyes are all dead giveaways according to aesthetic practitioner Dr Nestor Demosthenous
Bunny Lines
Bunny lines might sound cute, but these pesky wrinkles aren’t necessarily something you’ll be wanting to stick around. ‘Bunny lines are small, sometimes diagonal, wrinkles on both sides of the nose, right below the bridge,’ explains Dr Nestor.
‘They are typically caused by repeated facial movements in that same area – so if you wrinkle your nose a lot, or your nasal muscles are particularly strong when you laugh, you may be more prone to developing bunny lines.’
So how can you get rid of these anything-but-cute crinkles? Dr Nestor says that aesthetic procedures can help, and there are options depending on how problematic your bunny lines are.
‘If your bunny lines are caused by repetitive muscle activity, a practitioner can relax or weaken those muscles, so that they can’t continue to function in the same way and therefore lessen the movement that creates the wrinkles.’
Tear Trough Deformities
You may think that you suffer from permanent eye bags, but have you considered that those dark patches or deep lines under your eyes are actually caused by something else?
‘Many patients believe that they have deep eye bags when they come in to see me, and are shocked to be told they actually have what’s known as a ‘tear trough deformity’, Dr Nestor tells us.
‘This is actually a fold that extends from the inner eye corner, running down and outwards and creating a hollow, often accentuated by dark shadow. The darkness is often a result of the thinning skin of the lower eyelid, allowing blood vessels and muscle colour to shine through.
Despite being aged just 27, Twilight actress and Chanel model Kristen Stewart suffers from tear trough deformities according to Dr Nestor – which can’t be fixed by a good night’s sleep
Tear trough deformities are almost guaranteed to make you look older and more tired than you really are, as they cause the eye to look sunken and the area around it to look shadowy and dark.’
Celebrities including Chanel muse Kristen Stewart and actress Jennifer Aniston are among those who suffer with tear trough deformities, resulting in a hollowed effect to the eye area which leaves the eyes looking tired and dark.
‘Unfortunately, getting your eight hours’ sleep isn’t going to help banish these lines,’ Dr Nestor says. ‘Tear trough deformities are caused by issues with the ligament structures under the lower eyelid, meaning that they can occur even in very young people. In patients of Scandinavian descent, we find a very tight retaining ligament which can amplify a tear trough deformity at a young age.
‘However, age exacerbates the appearance of the troughs, as progressive soft tissue and bone loss in the area can cause the tear trough to appear even deeper.’
So how do we remove these dark circles and get back to looking light and bright, even on our sleepiest days? ‘Tear troughs can be corrected surgically, but non-invasive treatments are really surging in popularity, as they are far quicker and less invasive than surgery,’ explains Dr Nestor.
‘Hyaluronic acid fillers can be injected into the area to restore loss volume, and create a smooth contour, as well as diminishing those dark eye circles to create a brighter, more youthful effect.’
Drooping Eyebrows
Dr Nestor gives his top tips for getting rid of a range of ageing giveaways, from marionette lines to bunny lines
As we progress through the years, we lose fatty tissue in key areas. A key area that not many have appreciated is in the forehead and under the eyebrows – hardly the first areas that spring to mind when you think about losing skin’s plumpness.
But as we all know, the eyebrows are the frames of the face, and set the tone for your facial structure. So, if your forehead and eyebrows begin to droop, it’s your whole face that bears the brunt. As we age, we begin to lose the sheet of fat that sits behind the skin in these areas, which is when the ageing process becomes more obvious.
‘As we lose this sheet of fat, there is little structural support to hold the skin and eyebrows up. Therefore, everything begins to descend, and as a result we find that the tails of our eyebrows fall and begin to lose their height, giving the appearance of pulling the face down,’ Dr Nestor explains.
‘Using fillers, we can restore this lost sheet-like tissue, and help to raise the eyebrows to their former position, which opens the eyes and gives us back a more awake, refined and youthful appearance.’
Dr Nestor explains that you can even opt for procedures to stop bunny lines in their tracks; ‘If you think you might be prone to creating these lines in the future, you could speak to your practitioner about relaxing the muscles that bunch up and create the wrinkles, preventing you from being able to crinkle up your nose – thus the wrinkles can’t be created in the first place!’
Nasolabial and Marionette Lines
Everyone’s heard of laughter lines, but have you heard of their irritating older sister, marionette lines? These lines are the next level on from common laughter lines; deeper-set and usually longer in length, they can give the face a serious and sad look.
‘Nasolabial lines are deep lines down either side of the mouth, running from the cheeks downwards. If they begin to extend from the corner of the mouth to the chin, then they become what we call marionette lines,’ explains Dr Nestor. ‘They can dramatically age a face and contribute to a person looking sadder, or older than their years.’
These lines are a common aspect of facial ageing, but bad news if you’re a particularly happy or smiley person – those who smile or laugh a lot are far more likely to develop deeper nasolabial creases.
Nasolabial lines are also among the first wrinkles to develop, and you might even develop these lines as early as your twenties. This is not to say they require treatment at this point, but it is an indication of how you will age.
‘These kinds of lines are very much a result of facial folding, and volume loss higher up the face should be treated with volumisation in key areas of loss with fillers,’ advises Dr Nestor.
He added: ‘I’d recommending choosing a hyaluronic acid filler. My filler range of choice is Juvederm. The results should be noticeable immediately, and then continue to improve for a couple of days following the procedure, lasting 12-18 months before a second treatment is required.’