Believe it or not, your face isn’t the place where signs of aging show up the most prominently. Perhaps, that’s because we take great care in our skin care regimens, from exfoliating to moisturizing to proper sun protection. If you’re wondering which part of your body gives away signs of aging more than anywhere else, you won’t have to look far—it’s your hands! It’s time to give them some love. We’re discussing the top four ways your hands show their age and the best hand creams for aging hands, including:

• The best anti-aging hand cream for dark spots

• The best hand creams for dry skin

• The best anti-aging hand cream for crepey skin

• The best products for brittle nails

Dark spots

Dark spots on the hands have many names, including age spots, liver spots or the more formal name solar lentigines. Whatever you call them, they are usually caused by the sun. Other reasons why dark spots tend to pop up on your hands as you age include increased exposure to pollution, as well as scars from skin conditions like acne, chicken pox and burns. The simplest way to avoid these spots is to protect your hands from the sun with a broad-spectrum sunscreen. It’s as easy as smoothing your sunscreen over the tops of your hands when applying sun protection to your face or body, and reapplying during the day as needed.

If you’ve already sustained sun damage on your hands and are looking to improve or remove age spots on your hands, choose products that contain the same lightening ingredients that you would use for dark spots or hyperpigmentation on your face. Look for ingredients like licorice extract, arbutin, kojic acid and mulberry, as well as vitamins C, A and B3, also known as niacinamide.

The best anti-aging hand creams for dark spots

When it comes to reducing the appearance of dark spots on your hands, Jan Marini Skin Research ReNu Corrective Hand Complex is at the top of the list. Board-certified dermatologist and LovelySkin founder and CEO Dr. Joel Schlessinger performed the clinical trials on this treatment hand cream and the full results can be seen in the [Journal of Drugs in Dermatology](http://jddonline.com/articles/dermatology/S1545961616P0496X /_blank). Overall, Dr. Schlessinger found that 100% of subjects experienced improved skin texture, fine lines and wrinkles and 96% of subjects had improvement in discoloration. This ultra-reparative hand cream is Dr. Schlessinger’s preferred anti-aging hand treatment cream because it lightens dark spots and improves hyperpigmentation on the hands with ingredients like alpha-arbutin, kojic acid and azelaic acid. Retinol encourages cell turnover for more youthful looking skin and moisturizing ingredients like sunflower seed oil and vitamin E keep skin soft and smooth.

Another contender when it comes to the best anti-aging hand cream is Revision Skincare Lumiquin, which targets dark spots with licorice extract and helps give hands a more youthful look thanks to peptides that help boost your body’s natural production of collagen and hyaluronic acid.

Pro tip: Unsure if you’ll remember to apply sunscreen to your hands as much as you need to? Supplement your sun protection with Heliocare Antioxidant Supplements. It supports your sunscreen regimen with special antioxidants that strengthen your body’s immune response to the sun, helping to protect your skin from damage.

Dry skin

Hands are more susceptible to dry skin and rough patches than any other part of your skin. Why? It’s because we use them so much. The amount of hand washing we do each day and exposure to harsh weather conditions in the fall and winter can really do a number on the moisture levels in our hands. As with the skin on your face, properly hydrated hands are less likely to show fine lines and wrinkles, so a moisturizing hand cream is a must for everyday use.

If you suffer from cracked, dry skin on your hands, avoid dipping your hands in water as much as possible and consult with a board-certified dermatologist if you think you’re suffering from conditions like eczema or dermatitis.

The best hand creams for dry skin

EltaMD So Silky Hand Creme is a fragrance-free hand cream that contains powerful ceramides, emollients and nourishing vitamin E to help skin maintain optimum moisture levels, even after hand washing. It’s also formulated with sclareolide to help improve discoloration.

Another dry skin remedy to keep close at hand is FixMySkin 1% Hydrocortisone Healing Body Balm. This convenient, balm stick is formulated with 1% hydrocortisone, shea butter and cocoa butter to moisturize dry skin and help heal chapped skin, eczema, rashes from minor allergic reactions and even bug bites.

Crepey skin and bulging veins

If you religiously apply sunscreen on your hands and have avoided dark spots, you can pat yourself on the back. Unfortunately, there are other signs of aging that have nothing to do with sun exposure. Skin seems to thin more quickly on the hands than other parts of the body, creating a sagging, crepey appearance and making veins much more prominent. “There is such little fat cushion on our hands that even the slightest loss in skin volume can make a difference,” Dr. Schlessinger says. “As collagen and elastin break down, the skin begins to thin and sag, and on our hands, that typically means bulging veins.”

To help improve the appearance of lost volume in the face, injectable fillers are a go-to treatment to help temporarily plump up skin, making it appear more youthful. “While it’s possible to use injectable fillers on your hands, skin care products can provide a less expensive alternative that can enhance injectables once they are performed,” he says. “If you want to address sagging skin on the hands, look for creams that contain ingredients like hyaluronic acid and peptides to temporarily hydrate and plump the surface of the skin.”’

The best anti-aging hand creams for wrinkled, crepey skin

StriVectin Crepe Control Brightening and Firming Hand Cream is one of the best anti-aging hand creams out there because it plumps skin and lessens the appearance of wrinkles and crepiness with hyaluronic acid, hydrating glycerin and peptides. It also softens skin with shea butter and repairs damaged cells with a proprietary complex called NIA-114, which contains arbutin to help fade dark spots.

Another effective option is Revive Skincare Fermitif Hand Renewal Cream, which helps firm and smooth aging skin with peptides while moisturizing skin with nourishing jojoba oil, shea butter and mango seed butter.

Dr. Barbara Sturm Super Anti-Aging Hand Cream is another contender when it comes to the top hand cream for wrinkles and lost volume. This powerful formula helps improve skin texture and brighten skin tone with daisy flower extract, ceramides and purslane while boosting hydration levels with aloe.

Brittle nails

While brittle nails can happen at any age, they certainly don’t improve the look of aging hands. Brittle nails can happen for many reasons, such as frequent hand washing and exposing your hands to harsh chemicals in household cleaners or polish removers. Wearing gloves on your hands when doing work that requires water or harsh chemicals can go a long way, but nourishing nail treatments can also help to fix brittle nails.

The best products for brittle nails

Dr. Hauschka Neem Nail & Cuticle Oil is an all-natural remedy formulated to nourish weak, brittle nails with strengthening neem tree oil. It also helps soothe and soften cuticles with chamomile. It’s available in a dropper bottle or a pen applicator, so you can choose which you prefer for daily use.

ISDIN Si-Nails Fast Absorbing & Hydrating Nail Serum Strengthener helps improve the appearance of nails and cuticles with hyaluronic acid and active ingredients that promote the production of silicon and keratin, two components of strong, healthy nails. After four weeks of use, 97% of participants in a user trial said their nails were harder and more hydrated, and 87% said their cuticles looked better.

Have you heard of vitamin K? You can learn more about the benefits of vitamin K for your skin and hair on the LovelySkin Blog.