The simple reason Queen Elizabeth looks far younger than her years

It's no secret that Queen Elizabeth looks great for her age — she'll be 92 next week — but just what keeps her looking that way has largely been a mystery.

Now Stuart Miles, a leading UK anti-ageing expert, has pinpointed two key factors that he believes have contributed to the royal's youthful complexion.

Miles told Hello! that clean-living has a lot to do with it. "This means she doesn’t eat, drink or live life to excess despite her surroundings and this has kept her looking and acting like someone younger than her years."

He adds that she's also been careful to minimise sun damage over the years. "When abroad on foreign trips she has always worn a hat or carried a parasol which has protected her skin from the effects of the sun," he's quoted as saying in the article. 

If you'd like to age as well as HRH, Miles offers some sun protection tips on his website, MilesYounger.com.

"Invest in a decent moisturiser with a powerful SPF," he says. "Your SPF 15 is still ok on a cloudy or rainy day but any chance of seeing the sun and you need something stronger to protect your face from damage." 

That's why he recommends you pick a product with an SPF 30 or higher. 

It's also essential to choose a broad-spectrum sunscreen, says Sunday Times beauty editor Nokubonga Thusi. This will protect your skin from infared rays, UVA rays (the ones that burn your skin) and UVA rays (the ones that cause wrinkles).

Thusi adds that it's a myth that those with darker skin tones are exempt from using sunscreen. "Excessive sun exposure not only increases the risk of skin cancers and ageing, but also increases the visibility of pigmentation that all darker skin tones are susceptible to," she explains.

HOW ABOUT ANTI-AGEING CREAMS?

There are tons of skincare products on the market that promise to help turn back the clock, some of which can be rather pricey.

If you want to your money's worth, Miles advises you pick one that contains ingredients that have been scientifically-proven to make anti-ageing products effective. On his website, he lists these as including:

• Alpha Hydroxy Acids;
• Beta Hydroxy Acids;
• Retinol;
• Hyaluronic Acid; 
• Peptides; and
• Niacinamide.