Time to learn French, as I would love to only read their magazines since they implemented fines for using retouched photos. Now any altered image must show a “warning retouched photograph,” label on it.

France is taking action to reduce the number of young women with eating disorders in their country. They hope that by no longer glorifying unreal, unobtainable, and unbelievable depictions of women, the younger generation will stop seeing themselves as distorted, and instead see that it is the models and celebrities that were being manipulated misrepresented.

As much as I love what France is doing for the younger set, and I sure hope the United States does the same, let’s not forget that women over 40 deserve ‘real’ and not doctored up, women as well.

Imagine how much better we would feel about ourselves if women our age, were not altered to look younger and free of flaws, aka their true selves. I mean how can we look like the women being shown for us to admire, if even they are not really what we are seeing?

Lines, shadows, spots, and uneven skin texture are all NORMAL. We may not like it, but all are a predictable and typical part of aging.

Oh, and let’s not ignore how women’s bodies are also thinned by photo shopping as well. Doesn’t it make you slightly suspicious that celebrities and models over 40, have incredibly thin thighs and not a single wiggle in their middle?

So, what can we do? Well for starters, there are a heck of a lot of women over 40 these days, and I believe more than ever before, so therefore our voices and spending dollars really count. We hold an immense amount of power, and shouldn’t be afraid to use it.

Write to magazine editors, advertisers and clothing manufacturers, when they are show manipulated images of women. If offended by false advertising, don’t buy the product being featured. You can be an important part of a movement towards no longer making women feel inferior and insecure when exposed to unachievable measures of beauty and aging.

Even Getty Images, the world’s largest stock photo provider, is now banning tampered with images of model’s bodies. USA Today reported that Getty Images emailed its contributors requesting “that you do not submit to us any creative content depicting models whose body shapes have been retouched to make them look thinner or larger.”

Instead of mourning the way you used to look or making yourself nuts about not looking like the women on TV or in magazines, you should spend your time finding the most flattering clothes, makeup and hairstyles that are perfect for you, and just you.

A woman in her 20’s who still has not experienced gravity’s havoc on the face and body, doesn’t automatically look great. She still has to be wearing clothes and makeup that enhance her features and send the appropriate message for her lifestyle and career.

Here are three ways to look vibrant and younger naturally, while being a role model to the women in your life.

1. Wearing the right colors, fabrics, and style details for you, will take years off your look in a realistic way. Do some investigating on your own or get professional help. You’ll save a ton of money and stress when you stop buying clothes you never wear.

2. Wake up your makeup, by going to a cosmetic counter or makeup artist, and ask for a fresh new look. Be sure to ask to hold a mirror, so you can see how she, or he, is applying the makeup. Keep in mind that less is more when it comes to how heavy of an application is best.

3. The next time you go to get your hair styled, ask for suggestions for a new look. Very often, wearing our hair the same way and color for many years, can make us look older versus younger.

Remember hair grows back and color fades.

Try a little bit of a change just to get you started towards seeing the unlimited potential you have towards looking and feeling vibrant, current and stylish. The only alteration you truly need, is on your clothes.

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