Wu-ing Your Youth Back

Taiwanese celeb dermatologist DR WU drops some ha rd truths about beauty and ways to maintain your youthful glow.

- Yip Jieying

Ask my wife how old she is,” whispers Dr Wu conspiratorially. “She is 66! Can you tell?” Meanwhile the fabulous Mrs Wu beams at us, looking at least a good decade younger than her real age. It helps that her husband, Taiwanese celeb dermatologist Wu Ying-Chin, founded the popular Dr Wu Clinical Skincare line that has celeb fans like Barbie Hsu and Hannah Quinlivan (aka Mrs Jay Chou). Their son Eric, 41, a former Wall Street venture capitalist, helps his dad run the business. The Wu family are in town for a launch event to introduce their revamped Mandelik skincare range, which uses mandelic acid (a type of skin do-gooder derived from bitter almonds) to perk up tired skin. “Mandelic acid is used in chemical peels done in clinics too,” says Dr Wu. “Our Intensive Renewal Serum contains up to 18 per cent mandelic acid to rejuvenate skin.” For the record, the good doctor is 71-years young and has barely any wrinkles on his smooth, supple mien, thank you very much. So we got him to spill insider knowledge about eight common beauty conundrums.

1 How often should we switch up our skincare products?

DR WU: It’s good to refresh your skincare every two or three years. Your skin develops a tolerance for products after some time. Or maybe your skin condition changes over time, so you can’t rely on the same products when your skin has different needs. But the formulas for skincare products are always improving, so even if you don’t switch your skincare brand or routine, you’d still get an ‘upgrade’ once in a while.

2 What’s the difference between cream and lotion? Which one should we use?