Forehead and frown lines that keep staying — why?

Forehead and frown lines start staying at rest because the same spot folds with every expression, while age and UV reduce collagen so the crease no longer springs back. While the lines are still shallow, apply sunscreen over the forehead and glabella every day. Wrinkles form where skin folds again and again with expression (Anson et al., 2016), and when UV breaks down collagen they become lines that stay after you relax (Fisher et al., 2002).

When a frown line shows even in a photo of your resting face, you start to feel self-conscious every time you make an expression.

How do expression lines become fixed?

The forehead and glabella move often when you make expressions. Raising the brows draws horizontal lines on the forehead; frowning or concentrating draws vertical lines between the brows. Expression lines vanish when you relax at first, but once collagen falls they stay even at rest. As age and UV reduce collagen, the skin's power to spring the crease back weakens, so it lingers briefly even after you relax (Fisher et al., 2002). Later it becomes a fixed line that stays at rest. So start caring for expression lines while they're shallow.

How do you manage expression lines?

If you tend to tense the glabella or squint, notice the moment and let it go. Whether easing the habit means fewer lines hasn't been tested in a trial. Next, block UV every day to slow collagen breakdown. Moisturizing can make dryness lines less visible. If you want, add retinol: on the inner upper arms of people in their 80s, retinol reduced fine wrinkling and raised markers of new collagen (Kafi et al., 2007). That wasn't tested on the forehead, and the forehead and glabella can react too, so go low and slow. How to sequence retinol is in vitamin C and retinol together; if skin stays tight however much you apply, see why your skin stays dry.

In short: protect expression lines while they're shallow

Rather than rushing to erase a line, keep watching your expression habits and keep up sun protection and moisture every day. Expression lines aren't from making too many expressions; they come from repeated folding plus collagen loss and UV (Fisher et al., 2002). Retinol reduced fine wrinkling on older people's inner arms, but it doesn't change the folding the muscles make. A line that stays deep at rest is dermatologist-procedure territory. When the redness settles after a laser or a procedure is covered in redness after a laser.

One step today

• Notice when you tense the glabella or squint at a screen, and let it go. Wrinkles form where skin folds again and again with expression (Anson et al., 2016). Whether easing the habit means fewer lines hasn't been tested in a trial. If you squint at screens, change the brightness or text size right away. If you can't see the screen without squinting, see an eye doctor.
• In the daytime, apply sunscreen carefully over the forehead and glabella. UV breaks down collagen and helps lines set (Fisher et al., 2002). Check in the mirror that the hairline edge and the space between the brows aren't missed. If a spot on the forehead is new or keeps changing shape, see a dermatologist.
• If you use retinol, start at a low strength and watch for irritation. The trial where retinol reduced fine wrinkling was done on older people's inner arms (Kafi et al., 2007). Check for redness and flaking the next day. If stinging or redness lasts several days, stop and see a dermatologist.