Melissa Gilbert Shares the Trick to Staying ‘Youthful’ at 59

"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links."

• Melissa Gilbert shared how she plans to preserve her “youthful wonder” with age.

• Gilbert, 59, stopped using anti-aging products a while ago, but maintains skin health with a few powerhouse products.

• “Curiosity is the most important,” she said.

Don’t let the headline fool you—Melissa Gilbert loves aging, and she intentionally avoids erasing signs of it with anti-aging products like Botox and filler (though she did have her rounds with them). But that doesn’t mean she can’t preserve some “youthful wonder,” as she calls it, as she heads into her 60s. In a new interview, she shared exactly how she plans to stay young.

After all, youthfulness isn’t 100% about looks. It’s also about remaining curious, Gilbert recently said on USA Today’s The Excerpt podcast. “I think of all the qualities that we can have to maintain that youthful wonder, curiosity is the most important,” she said. “Curiosity is what keeps us open and vibrant and learning and trying.”

In that way, Gilbert still feels connected to her beloved nine-year-old Little House on the Prairie character, Laura “Half-Pint” Ingalls Wilder. Gilbert and the cast recently celebrated the show’s 50th anniversary in the company of over 20,000 fans at a reunion festival in Simi Valley, California, she recalled.

“If there’s one word to associate with an inner half-pint, it’s curiosity,” Gilbert continued. “Laura was curious about the world, about everything, about people and what made them tick, and animals and nature, and was in a state of wonder about all of it all the time, and that’s what keeps us younger.”

That inquisitiveness is what keeps Gilbert young—and it works more effectively than any cream or injection ever could. “I always say I never want to be the smartest person in any room. I want to learn from everyone that I meet in some way, shape, or form,” she said. “It’s the people who get stuck thinking they know everything, who seem old and stodgy to me, and I don’t ever want to be stodgy. I’ll get older, it’s inevitable. Stodgy is not something I’m ever going to. No one will ever describe me as stodgy.”

Instead of focusing on anti-aging skincare, she opts to maintain skin health. In the past she told Prevention that she and her husband are “obsessed with La Roche Posay Lipikar Triple Repair Moisturizing Body Cream...this stuff is the bomb.” To cleanse skin, she said she uses Vanicream, and Garnier Micellar Cleansing Toner for “cleaning” and “toning.” As for beauty products, she’s said that she is “in love” with Jones Road’s Miracle Balm for glowing skin.

SkinActive Micellar Cleansing Water

Lipikar Triple Repair Moisturizing Body Cream

Gentle Facial Cleanser

It’s clear that Gilbert has taken the time to think about what her priorities are for her second act of life. And we have to say, they’re pretty impressive.

You Might Also Like

• Can Apple Cider Vinegar Lead to Weight Loss?

• Bobbi Brown Shares Her Top Face-Transforming Makeup Tips for Women Over 50