Every face is unique, and every face ages differently.  Many factors affect the way that your face ages.  These factors include exposure to sunlight or tanning lamps, gravity, facial muscle movement, and the inherent nature of an individual's skin.  Besides the exposure to UV light from the sun and tanning lamps, most of these factors are beyond our control.
         
          On the external surface, the face has tell-tale signs of aging.  The forehead and frown lines are the lines which run horizontally across the forehead. and obliquely across the inner portion of the eyebrow.  They are usually caused by the repeated motion of the forehead and eyebrow muscles.  The crow's feet are lines which travel radially from the outer portion of the eye.  They are usually the result of repeated motion of the muscles around the eye.  The deepening of the cheek  folds is another sign of aging.  They are usually caused by the gravitational pull on the cheek fat over a stationary cheek crease.  In the outer jaw region, jowling is a sign of aging.  A process similar to the deepening of the cheek fold occurs.  The outer portion of the cheek is pulled down by gravity whereas a point on the outer portion of the chin remains stationary.  This leads to drooping of the tissue around the chin (Jowling).  Finally, neck bands are also a sign of aging.  The neck bands are the result of gravity on the neck along with attenuation of the neck muscles.

Disclaimer:  This informational facelift web site is intended solely to provide a basic understanding of facelift surgery.  The views on facelift surgery shared by the author may differ from the views on facelift surgery of your plastic surgeon.  Results from facelift surgery can vary from one person to another.  This facelift web site is in no way a guarantee or warranty of the results you may obtain with facelift surgery.  For additional information on facelift surgery contact your Plastic Surgeon or the American Society of Plastic Surgery.  Thank you for your interest in facelift surgery.