The public perception in the UK that skin ageing is driven mainly by lifestyle choices is being challenged by a London-based medical aesthetic practitioner, who says it is far less straightforward than commonly believed.
A recent YouGov survey of more than 2,000 adults in Great Britain suggests most people believe factors such as diet, sleep and exercise play the biggest role in how the skin ages. Yet Dr Gizem Seymenoglu, a medical aesthetic practitioner whose appointments are arranged through Longevita, says this “lifestyle-first” view only tells part of the story.
What people believe about ageing
The research highlights a strong emphasis on personal responsibility when it comes to ageing:
said they want to “age gracefully but maintain appearance”
prefer to “age naturally”
say they do not think about ageing
actively try to slow or reverse visible ageing
Across all groups, lifestyle choices were widely seen as the dominant influence, more so than treatments or cosmetic products. But this is where a clear gap between public perception and clinical reality begins to emerge.
“A simplified view of a biological process”
Dr Gizem says the report suggests people tend to focus on a few controllable habits, within a much more complex ageing process.
“I disagree with the idea that what we eat and drink is more important in skin ageing, while treatments or products are less important,” she explains. “The idea that ageing is mainly lifestyle driven rather than biologically driven is not accurate.”
She points to structural changes in the skin that begin gradually but become more pronounced over time, including the natural decline in collagen production from the mid-twenties onwards.
At this stage, the skin’s ability to repair and regenerate begins to slow, regardless of external care routines.
Can lifestyle control skin ageing?
There is no dispute among clinicians that lifestyle factors play a role. UV exposure, smoking, alcohol consumption, chronic stress, poor sleep and diet all influence how quickly visible ageing develops.
But Dr Gizem says these are accelerators rather than root causes.
“After a certain point, lifestyle alone cannot compensate for biological change,” Dr Gizem notes. “You cannot rely on sleep and diet to replace lost collagen.”
She adds that external damage such as UV exposure and pollution interacts with internal processes like hormonal shifts and inflammation, creating cumulative effects over time.
Where aesthetic treatments fit in
According to YouGov findings, aesthetic procedures and non-surgical therapies are still less widely recognised overall among British consumers, although they are more commonly incorporated into routines by those with a preventative approach.
Reflecting this, Dr Gizem says non-surgical aesthetic treatments are increasingly being viewed through a preventative rather than purely cosmetic lens. She explains that many modern treatments focus on stimulating the skin’s own repair mechanisms rather than replacing them.
“We are encouraging the body to produce collagen and support new cell activity,” she says, adding that bio-stimulatory and regenerative treatments are now playing a growing role in this space.
“We are seeing increased use of treatments such as PRP, microneedling, polynucleotides and exosomes, which work by supporting the skin’s natural processes. These can be introduced earlier as part of a preventative skincare approach focused on maintaining long-term skin quality,” she notes.
Through Longevita, these treatments are arranged with experienced independent clinicians, reflecting a growing trend towards combined care pathways rather than single-solution approaches.
Not a “lifestyle versus treatment” debate
Rather than framing ageing as a choice between habits or procedures, Dr Gizem describes it as a layered process shaped by multiple internal and external factors.
Daily habits such as sunscreen use, consistent skincare and avoiding smoking remain important, but they sit alongside biological processes that cannot be fully controlled.
Building on this, what remains clear, according to Dr Gizem, is that the science around skin ageing is more nuanced than it is often perceived, with multiple biological factors interacting over time rather than a single cause.