Sleep Lines – Why Sleeping May Cause Wrinkles ?

If you've been subscribing to the notion that a girl needs her beauty sleep, you may want to reconsider. Apparently, visits to slumberland may cause wrinkles.

A friend of mine often complained about the lines on his lower eyelids that appeared like an eye bag despite religiously getting eight hours of sleep every night. On closer examination, there are triagular shaped creases on both his lower eye lids which are not typical of a true eye bag, tear trough or eye bulge. A photo taken when he was lying on his side suggested the root cause of his “eye bag” - they are actually sleep lines.

My friend lying on his side, with his lower eyelid skin cramped by the pillow. The opposite lower eyelid showed similar permanent creases due to his face being plastered into the pillow night after night.

Sleep lines tell the story of your restful nap. However, resting your face on the pillow in the same way every night for years on end may lead to wrinkles known as “sleep lines”. Eventually, these lines no longer disappear when the head is not resting on the pillow and becomes permanently etched on the skin surface.

In 1987, Dr. Samuel J. Stegman described “Sleep Creases”. His study noted that sleep lines are accentuated by pillow contact.

Sleep lines are sometimes single but are usually characterized by 2 to 3 parallel lines in the same area of the face, such as the temples, forehead, around the eyes and mouth. Sleeping on your side can also cause the skin to wrinkle in the laugh lines and chest.

Photo source : Intima

A crinkly clevage begins to be a problem for many women as they pass 40.

How to Treat Sleep Lines ?

Unfortunately, once sleep lines become permanent, treatment options are limited. Subcision, dermal fillers and laser skin resurfacing may help but results are variable.

A wacky way to prevent decolletage wrinkles – an adhesive silicone pad purports to smooth the clevage by just applying the pad at bedtime. But does it work ?

Prevention is the Key

Try sleeping on you back. Although getting used to a new sleeping position might needed some time and discipline, it is the cheapest and most effective way to smooth out sleep lines for both face and chest. People who sleep on their backs do not develop these wrinkles since their skin does not lie crumpled against the pillow.

If you are unable to sleep on your back, use silk pillow cases. Silk is a smoother material than cotton and allows your skin to glide through the surface smoothly.