Jamie Schneider is the former Senior Beauty Editor at mindbodygreen. She has a B.A. in Organizational Studies and English from the University of Michigan, and her work has appeared in Coveteur, The Chill Times, and Wyld Skincare.
Image by Beauty Agent Studio / iStock
August 14, 2024
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Your skin sags with age. It’s a natural fact of life, and it happens to everyone at some point. That being said, you can delay the process for as long as possible and keep it from happening sooner than you’d like.
That, my friends, is where collagen-supporting routines come into play: Your collagen production naturally declines by an average of 1% each year1, starting in your mid-20s, but by supporting the “cushion” underneath your complexion, you can maintain your skin’s bounce—and sometimes, you can even restore a more youthful appearance.
How do you care for skin so bouncy it resembles a bowl of soft, glistening Jello? So glad you asked: Here, find our top expert-backed tips.
First and foremost: Jello skin refers to skin so chock-full of collagen that it immediately bounces back into shape (you know, just like a cube of Jello). And to achieve that Jello-like consistency, you’ll want to work on restoring your natural collagen levels.
Collagen powders (specifically hydrolyzed collagen peptides) have been clinically shown to support skin elasticity and dermal density2 and even promote the skin’s hydration levels. Meaning, they can improve the thickness and texture of your skin—think less sagging, more supple.
If you’d like to purchase a new powder, check out our list of the nine best collagen supplements on the market right now, all backed by a nutrition Ph.D. You can rest assured that each one is of the highest quality and will give you the juiciest results.
To temporarily give your skin a plumper appearance, consider humectants your BFFs. “Humectants are basically ‘water magnets,'” board-certified dermatologist Ava Shamban, M.D., founder of SKINFIVE, tells mbg about the ingredient category. “They work to help pull moisture from the air into the upper layer of your skin to keep the skin cells hydrated, plump with a firmness and bounce.” All good things for Jello skin, no?
If you haven’t yet incorporated a hyaluronic acid serum into your routine, you’ll want to snag one, stat. Check out our all-time favorites here, and make sure to follow up with an emollient-rich face cream. (Humectants can easily evaporate off the skin, so if you don’t seal in that precious hydration, it will leave your skin even drier than before.)
Jello skin is all about promoting collagen production and plumping the skin with hydration—but if you don’t protect your skin from UV damage, that hard work is all for naught. Up to 80% of the signs of skin aging3 are due to UV damage, including loss of elasticity (or the skin’s ability to “bounce back”).
So if you want to secure a Jello-like complexion for as long as possible, practice smart sun care. Invest in a good sunscreen and be smart about your time under those rays—especially as the weather thaws this spring.
The takeaway
I’ve asked my fair share of experts about how to maintain youthful, plump, Jello skin, and these three tips above almost always make their way into the conversation. They may be simple habits, but they can have profound effects on your collagen levels—and, in turn, your firm and youthful appearance.
