Indeed what is normality

November 19, 2012 1:16 PM

Face-elasticity-filter: Should my skin be this stretchy? (also file under weird-things-you-talk-about-when-married filter)

Please can you help settle a long running dispute!

If you pinch the skin pretty much anywhere on my face apart from my forehead you can pull it a good inch or more away from where it usually lies. Rather like this. This does not seem to be the case on other people, in particular around the cheek and jaw lines where most people's skin is quite taut.

But it is fair to say that my sample size has not been very large so far. My wife maintains this is an oddity unique to me and that I really should worry about looking like a loose skinned turkey when I am older, I normally counter by questioning the basis of what normality in this experiential world we live in.

This hasn't got us anywhere conclusive yet but it would be great to know what the mefite consensus on this is! As the link above shows I am not fully alone but it would be nice to have some more data points on my side....

Thanks in advance!

posted by Albondiga to health & fitness (11 answers total)

Yeah, I can do that too. According to YouTube, so can a lot of seemingly healthy people. Time alone will tell if this means you're gonna get bulldog jowls, as my girlfriend contends I will.
posted by griphus at 1:24 PM on November 19, 2012

Well, you COULD have this I suppose.
posted by showbiz_liz at 1:25 PM on November 19, 2012

i'm with your wife. I don't think this bodes well for how you'll age.
posted by sarahnicolesays at 1:25 PM on November 19, 2012

Also, as far as worrying about it goes, there's really nothing you can about your skin's elasticity. Just be glad you're a dude and don't have to face the immense social pressure to buy all sorts of miracle creams or botox injections or plastic surgery because your face is god forbid showing its age.

But do moisturize.
posted by griphus at 1:32 PM on November 19, 2012 [4 favorites]

Time to do Jack LaLanne's face workouts.

No, really. Youtube 'em.
posted by unixrat at 1:33 PM on November 19, 2012

Elastin is a protein in connective tissue that is elastic and allows many tissues in the body to resume their shape after stretching or contracting. Elastin helps skin to return to its original position when it is poked or pinched.

Strawberries contain vitamin C and a polyphenol antioxidant called ellagic acid, which helps rebuild elastin molecules. Grapes also naturally produce both elastin and collagen. So if you're concerned about this, perhaps you should eat more fruit, particularly strawberries and grapes.
posted by wolfdreams01 at 1:36 PM on November 19, 2012

I can do that with my face. Probably because I gained and lost a lot of weight over the span of about five years, and I have some jowly older relatives. This bodes very well for my goal of looking like a British Shorthair by age 40.
posted by Metroid Baby at 1:46 PM on November 19, 2012 [1 favorite]

Wellll do you have hypermobile joints as measured on the Beighton scale? If you do, then you might have a good old genetic disorder (like me!) called Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (as noted by showbiz_liz). If you think you might, you should see a geneticist, because there's a small risk that your organs could explode or your heart could give out. But honestly, probably not. It's rare, and you'd have chronic pain and other fun symptoms by now.
posted by femmegrrr at 1:50 PM on November 19, 2012 [3 favorites]

I can do that with my face, neck, ears, whatever. Chalk it up to extra elastin. Neither my mom nor my dad have problems with droopy skin, so there you go. I'm turning 31 in a couple weeks and so far, no droopage.
posted by squorch at 2:36 PM on November 19, 2012

Cool. Rare but not unique. I know of one artist who may want to photograph you. (nsfw)
posted by Sophont at 4:37 PM on November 19, 2012

Thank you all for the responses!

I am extremely inflexible (hypomobile?) so fortunately likely don't have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome.

I did however spend most of my childhood not really eating fruit so wolfdreams01 has got me a little worried...

Thanks again all
posted by Albondiga at 6:15 AM on November 21, 2012