How to Avoid Aging at Your Office Job

Did you know a recent study discovered that women who sit 10 hours or more per day have cells that are biologically eight years older compared to those who are more active? We all know the advice like wear sunscreen while sunbathing at the beach, apply chapstick to help keep your lips hydrated, and of course, use your eb5 Intense Moisture Anti-Aging Skin Cream twice a day. 

One area of our lives that we may not think about as much when it comes to skincare is our work environment. While we're at work, our skin is also working overtime fighting off germs, dry air, stuffy rooms, harsh lighting, and more. All of which can negatively impact our skin, leaving it looking dull and tired. 

We've gathered five ways your work environment could be aging you prematurely and some easy switches you can do to stay active even from behind a desk!

1. Sitting down or staying still for an elongated period of time.

Physical activity is key to living a happier, healthier life. For those who work in front of a computer, all day may find it challenging to make time for exercise or moments of active moving, but it's simpler than it sounds. Opting for a walk around the block at lunchtime or stopping work for a gentle 10-minute stretch every hour or so is a seamless way to work some movement into your everyday schedule. 

Do you find yourself stuck in a chair for hours on end? Try setting a timer on your phone or a calendar note to remind yourself to stand up and shake out your limbs every 90 minutes. With a little motivation and active movement, you will find yourself with more energy and not as achy or sore by the end of the workday, which helps keep our body's feeling young and healthy.

2. Squinting or straining your eyes, looking at a computer for hours.

In today's world of technology, almost every task we do at work involves looking at a screen of some sorts, whether that's your computer, phone, or tablet, the light emitted from these devices can speed up signs of aging. Working in spreadsheets can exhaust our brains and our eyes. Even if you aren't formulating numbers, chances are you still come across smaller text on a bright screen at some point in your day. This leads to dry-eyes, which can trigger headaches and fatigue. 

Squinting at a computer or straining to read the words can heighten the presence of crows feet, wrinkles, fine lines, and dark undereye circles. There are a couple of tricks to help protect your eyes, including turning the brightness on your screen down, investing in a pair of Blue Light-blocking glasses, and even making the text bigger can help alleviate these office-related concerns. 

How to zoom for larger text: 
In Windows: click on "Ctrl" and "+". If you are a Mac user, you'll want to click "Command" and "+". 

Anti-aging skincare tip: 
Eye cream is a great product to add to your daily skincare routine to help combat fine lines and wrinkles. Using a vitamin-rich eye cream twice a day can help keep your skin pliable, smooth, and bright. You could even keep an extra jar on your desk for those, especially squinty days.

Grab a jar of our favorite eye cream here!

3. Snacking for convenience or out of boredom.

We don't all have the luxury of an hour-long lunch break. For a lot of individuals, working through the lunch hour or opting to eat while they work is the norm. Our workdays are typically packed with meetings, mile-long to-do lists, and plenty of random, unplanned tasks. When eating on-the-go, we can lean towards easy, quick, and generally not the healthiest food choices. 

A bag of chips or take out may be the quicker, easier option, but your skin and energy levels will pay for it later. A well-balanced diet is crucial for our overall well being and can help ease signs of aging, as well as alleviate physical ailments like achy joints and inflammation. 

Try to find a little time to prep your meals for the week on Sunday evening, including lunches. This will help to avoid any office snacks or greasy fast food. You'll save money, feel better physically, and of course, your skin will be glowing thanks to all of the nourishing foods. 

Meal Prep Tip:
Bored of eating the same thing day in and day out? Find some friends in the office who want to get on the meal prep train and do a swap on Monday mornings. This way, you'll have different healthy meals throughout the week, and you'll get to try everyone else's cooking, in addition to sharing your delicious recipes.

4. Poor posture, such as slouching at your desk.

It may be hard to maintain proper posture while sitting at a desk all day, but when ignored, poor posture can lead to a variety of consequential frustrations. Slouching affects our bodies beyond aesthetic appearances. A hunched over position can weaken your upper body strength. It changes your breathing pattern, and can even lead to severe headaches, migraines, and overall body aches. 

Although you may know the negative toll poor posture can take, do you still find yourself hunched over the majority of the day? A great trick to combat hunching and slouching is by conditioning yourself to check your position when you perform a repetitive action during the workday like: 

• Checking email or messaging app
• Changing tabs on your browser or opening a new webpage
• Transferring a phone call
• Chatting with a coworker
• And more!

Reminding yourself dozens of times per day will help you reinforce your body's natural tendencies. You will find yourself sitting up straighter and breathing more comfortably in no time, leading to graceful aging and a healthier body.

5. Working under fluorescent lights all day.

Even though you may be inside during peak sun-damage time, there is still a risk of harmful UV ray exposure when working under fluorescent lights. Research has shown a direct negative effect on our skin, eyes, and general well-being connected to elongated exposure to fluorescent lights. Seeing how we spend up to 40 hours a week under this type of lighting, you must protect your skin even though you're not sunbathing during your 9-5. 

This exposure can lead to premature aging inducing deep wrinkles, crows feet, and dry, dull skin. By using a daily moisturizer with at least a 15 SPF broad-spectrum protection, you can defend against those sneaky UV rays. 

We love using our light, daily SPF moisturizing boasting with UVA/UVB protection to keep your skin happy and healthy even under those harsh office lights.

Keep your skin healthy and glowing all day long with eb5!

Between these work-place tips and a daily skincare routine with our anti-aging products, you can rest assured your skin is protected from that first sip of coffee and well past 5 P.M.