It’s no secret that looking older than your chronological age is less than desirable; however, it seems that for Australian women this is becoming an all-too-common reality.
In a new study published in The Australasian Journal of Dermatology helmed at Monash University, findings have shown that Australian women are ageing up to 20 years faster than women in Canada, the UK or the US.
To draw this conclusion, researchers focused on photoageing (the damage done to our skin by exposure to high UV levels) of 1472 women aged between 18 and 75 (averaging late 40s) from Australia, the UK, Canada, and the US.
"(Our) high UV levels put Australians at particular risk of photoageing, especially when combined with Australians' traditionally outdoor, sun-seeking lifestyle and a predominantly fair-skinned population," researchers told smh.com.au.
Unfortunately, the crux of the paper was that we Aussie women are ageing up to two decades faster than we should be, and the take home message appears to be that we should be limiting our sun exposure – especially if you’re under the age of 25 when most long-term detrimental sun exposure occurs.
