Aging and the Indian Face: An Analytical Study of Aging in the Asian Indian Face

Asian Indians make up almost one-sixth of the world's population. Although some aspects of facial beauty are universal, anthropometric morphology and age-related changes differ in all ethnic groups. Currently, there are hardly any published studies highlighting the process of aging in Asian Indians. We wanted to understand the aging patterns in different ethnic subgroups within Asian Indians and also compare the aging patterns with Caucasians.

300 participants, above 30 years of age, were selected from different Indian ethnic groups (North, South, East, West). Recent good-quality photographs as well as those from the preceding decades (20 years and beyond) were studied. A validated grading score of 1-5 was used for assessing various aging parameters.

Significant differences exist in the process of aging between Asian Indians and Caucasians. Maximum signs of aging were reported in the age group of >70 years. Earlier signs of aging (in 30-40 years) were more visible in North and East Indian ethnic groups followed by West and South Indians in decreasing order. Also, South Indians showed the least signs of aging (early as well as overall) compared to the other 3 ethnic groups in any given age range.

This study attempts to understand in greater detail the aging process of the Asian Indian population. This study could open up specific treatment protocols to treat this population in the fields of facial esthetics and facial cosmetic surgery.