Regular exposure to phone radiation 'speeds up aging'

Taking too many selfies may cause wrinkles, experts have claimed.

Dermatologists believe that regularly exposing the face to the light and electromagnetic radiation from smartphones can damage the skin - accelerating the aging process. Some doctors even claim they can tell which hand a person holds their phone in just by looking at which side of the face is most damaged.

Speaking at the Facial Aesthetic Conference and Exhibition - or FACE - in London yesterday, experts said even the blue light emitted from smartphone screens can promote wrinkles. The problem has never been documented, but doctors insisted that the magnetic waves produced by modern gadgets damage the skin in a similar way that too much exposure to the sun causes wrinkles.

Dr Simon Zokaie, medical director of the Linia Skin Clinic in Harley Street, said: ‘Those who take a lot of selfies and bloggers should worry.

‘I think there is a gap in the market for products which protect because I know there are people who take lots of selfies, and bloggers who come to me and I have seen that there is damage there and there ageing taking place.’

He told the Daily Telegraph: ‘It’s a different wavelength of radiation so sunscreen will not block it.’

Dermatologist Dr Zein Obagi, of the Obagi Skin health Institute in Beverley Hills, added: ‘Your cell phone will damage your skin.

‘It’s not documented, but in my clinical observation, I can tell whether someone uses their right hand or left hand to hold their phone.

'You start to see dull dirty looking texture that you cannot identify on one side of the face.

‘I think we need to create a defence mechanism, light has some sort of magnetic think that is happening to the skin.

‘This magnetic field is altering the minerals in the skin. A sunscreen will not protect you. But if you saturate your skin with anti-oxidants it can help prevent DNA damage from electronic devices.’

Some think that electromagnetic radiation from mobile phones ages skin by damaging the DNA. It can cause breaks in the DNA strand which can prevent skin repairing itself and increases stress on skin cells.

The experts also argued that most over-the-counter moisturisers and oils do not work and may make skin worse, and that ‘a good scrub’ is the best way to keep skin healthy.

Dr Obagi told the Telegraph: ‘You cannot hydrate the skin from the outside. We have to stimulate the skin to bring back hydration from within.

‘When you put your hand in the water for half an hour you see it white and crinkly you don’t see any more hydration. There is a reason that women have more problems with sensitive skin than men. It’s because women use products.’