Why Do Wrinkles Love Hanging Around With Age

Wrinkles form not just with age, but with how skin stretches and contracts — and now, we finally know why.

Ever wondered why our skin starts to wrinkle with age, despite all those creams and serums? Binghamton University used real human skin samples. They found out why wrinkles form. This shifts the talk from guessing to solid science. Think of it like solving a puzzle your whole life — and now, finally, the last piece clicks into place().

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Did You Know?
Older skin buckles like worn fabric — and sun damage speeds up the process. #medindia #wrinkles #skincarefacts #antiaging

It’s All About Stretch and Shrink

Just like your favorite old hoodie can get saggy, your skin can too. As we age, our skin stretches in one direction and tightens in another. This causes it to buckle, creating deeper and more noticeable wrinkles. A low-force tensometer measures how skin responds to stress. The results showed that this stretch-and-shrink behavior worsens with age.

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Collagen, Contraction & The Science of Buckling

Older skin has more transverse contractile strain. This means it shrinks more across its width when stretched lengthwise. This leads to deeper, wider, and more irregular wrinkles. Skin is not stress-free — it already holds some built-in tension. And as collagen and elastin degrade, these forces cause the surface to twist and fold, giving rise to classic age lines. It’s no longer theory — it’s a measurable, mechanical truth.

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Why UV Exposure Ages You Faster Than Time

Sunlight doesn’t just tan your skin — it ages it too. Photoaging from chronic sun exposure causes the same kind of mechanical damage as aging itself. So, if you’ve worked outdoors for years without sun protection, your skin may be biologically “older” than your actual age. “Don’t skip the sunscreen — your future skin will thank you.”

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Skin Behavior Measured Across 75 Years

This study marks the first experimental validation of how wrinkles form using real skin samples from people aged 16 to 91. With age, Poisson’s ratio (how much skin contracts when stretched) increases — sometimes even above 0.5, which suggests skin loses volume under pressure. They even verified this by measuring liquid loss from tissue, confirming a poroelastic response — meaning your skin becomes less elastic and more prone to forming folds and lines.

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