It’s generally accepted that with each decade of our lives comes a new visible marker of age.

To combat these tell-tale signs, dozens of “anti-aging” products and routines are marketed at people (mostly women) in their 20s, 30s, 40s, and 50s.

Use anti-wrinkle cream! Sleep with tea bags under your eyes! Avoid stress!, they command.

As it turns out, most of these strategies don’t actually do anything to keep your skin or hair healthy, according to experts. More importantly, while most of us assume there’s an intrinsic link between the visible signs of aging (like wrinkles and grey hair), this idea is generally misguided.

Here’s what you should know about your health and the external markers of the passage of time.