Each day we shed millions of dead skin cells, which can accumulate and pile up on top of each other like dust particles on a surface. This layer of dead skin can prevent skin from reflecting light, giving your face an ashen look.
Buildup of dead skin cells
Your skin naturally sheds dead cells on a regular basis to make way for new cells. But sometimes the dead cells don't shed as they should. Instead, they build up the surface of your skin. This can result in skin that's dry, dull, flakey, and patchy.
Polluted air contains a host of tiny particles, like dirt and sulfur dioxide, that create free radicals on skin. Free radicals damage collagen (hello, new wrinkles!) and stimulate pigment production over time and when your skin's tone and texture are uneven, it diffuses light and looks dull.
Loss of fat in our face
As we age, these areas of fat begin to diminish. This allows the skin to sag. The areas where fat loss is most noticed is in the temples, under the eyes, and in the cheek area. When the fat pads under our eyes diminish, it can give us a tired or hollow look.
Most people begin to notice a shift in the appearance of their face around their 40's and 50's, with some also noticing a change in their 30's. But with these physical changes brought on by aging also comes a change in the appearance of our face - Luckily, there is treatment available.
As you age, your skin starts producing less oil compared to your youth. This can cause dead skin cells to build up on your face, making it appear less radiant, dry and dull. Dry skin conditions like eczema and psoriasis also contribute to the accumulation of dead skin cells on the surface of your skin, making it dull.
What Is Skin Fatigue? According to Travis, skin fatigue is mainly caused by a combination of lifestyle- and stress-related factors—like lack of sleep and exercise, smoking and unhealthy diet, to name a few—as well as environmental aggressors like pollution and sun exposure.
Most dermatologists agree that dull skin is often caused by dryness and one of the most popular reasons for dry skin, is not exfoliating enough or not exfoliating properly. Dry skin left on your face after it breaks down, needs to be removed in order to allow new, glowing cells to come forward.
Each day we shed millions of dead skin cells, which can accumulate and pile up on top of each other like dust particles on a surface. This layer of dead skin can prevent skin from reflecting light, giving your face an ashen look.
Dryness and Dehydration
Both can cause the skin to appear lackluster, sallow, or dull. Dehydrated skin may also be more prone to sagging, wrinkling, and roughness—all of which can worsen the appearance of dullness.
It may be caused by reduced blood flow and oxygen or by a decreased number of red blood cells. It can be a manifestation of emotions such as fear (“pale as a ghost”), or it can be a symptom of serious medical conditions such as severe anemia, bloodstream infection, or frostbite.
Vitamin Deficiency
People who have deficiency of vitamin C tend to have dry, dull and sagging skin. Deficiency of vitamin B-9 (folic acid) and B-12 (cobalamin) can cause pigmentation problems leading to patchy skin.
Natural aging
As we mature, some physical skin changes occur naturally: Collagen production slows down – so skin loses its firmness. Elastin production decreases – and skin becomes less elastic. Fat cells start to disappear – and skin starts to sag.
The Cause: You're forgetting to moisturize regularly.
Dryness is the most common cause of dull face skin. It creates cracks in skin's surface and causes dead skin cells to build up, making the complexion look uneven and lackluster, says Kenneth Howe, M.D., a dermatologist at Wexler Dermatology in NYC.
Long-term depression has disastrous effects on skin, because the chemicals associated with the condition can prevent your body from repairing inflammation in cells. "These hormones affect sleep, which will show on our faces in the form of baggy, puffy eyes and a dull or lifeless complexion," says Dr.
This is called extrinsic aging. As a result, premature aging can set in long before it was expected. In other words, your biological clock is more advanced than your chronological clock. Controllable factors such as stress, smoking and sun exposure can all play a role in expediting extrinsic aging.
Injury, aging, smoking, and other factors can contribute to asymmetry. Asymmetry that's mild and has always been there is normal. However, new, noticeable asymmetry may be a sign of a serious condition like Bell's palsy or stroke.
For Caucasian women, it's typically around the late 30s. "This is when fine lines on the forehead and around the eyes, less-elastic skin, and brown spots and broken capillaries from accumulated sun damage crop up," says Yagoda. If you're a woman of color, the tipping point is more likely in your 40s.