And the secret of looking a little younger? Take care of your lips
By CLAIRE ELLICOTT
Last updated at 9:24 PM on 10th January 2010
They say a person's face never lies. But when it comes to concealing your age, your lips can be very helpful.
Women who have fuller and firmer lips are seen as younger than they really are, according to a study.
Even when women start getting wrinkles and their hair loses its lustre, a bee-stung mouth can work wonders on their appearance, the study found.
In luck: If the research holds true Scarlett Johansson will hold on to her youth
The findings suggest the look typified by pouting Hollywood stars Angelina Jolie and Scarlett Johansson could be the answer to disguising your real age.
The scientists also found that the key to wrinkly lips is genetic, rather than a result of sun damage, pollution and other external factors.
'When we identified people who looked young for their age, we were struck by the difference in their lips,' said David Gunn, a research scientist at Unilever, which funded the international study at seven universities, including St Andrews.
Focus: Angelina Jolie (left) and Sophia Loren both use their lips to full effect
'It is a feature that is strongly genetically determined and relatively easy to measure,' he added.
The scientists analysed the faces of 102 pairs of white Dutch female twins aged 59-81 and 162 individual British white women aged 45-75.
They found that wrinkles, sun damage and age spots were equally influenced by both genetic and environmental factors, but the development of a receding hairline, greying hair, and most markedly 'lip height' was determined by genes.
And although children often appear to have full lips in comparison with the size of their faces, lips in both men and women actually reach their maximum volume in young adulthood.
For many people, they begin shrinking between the ages of 30 and 40, and can artificially age a person.
Researchers found there was a large variation in lip thickness in women over 60.
The pink part of the thinnest lips measured just 3mm from the top of the upper lip to the bottom of the lower lip, while the fullest lips among the over-60s measured 22mm.
The findings could inspire many women to look for ways to enhance their pout.
Although surgery and botox can be an effective way to increase the size of your lips, experts are divided over whether it makes a convincing difference.
There can also be disadvantages to collagen or silicone implants.
Actress Leslie Ash suffered long-term damage to her lips and public humiliation for her 'trout pout' when her implant surgery went wrong.
Mr Gunn said there was little to be gained by thin-lipped middle-aged or elderly women seeking lip implants.
He said: 'It just looks odd because it doesn't counter the impact of a wrinkled face.'
Source:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/ar...care-lips.html 
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