From ‘Zoom face’ to the dreaded condition we have come to know as ‘maskne’, it’s no secret that lockdown has left many of us feeling subpar, with a healthy dose of ‘skinxiety’ to boot.
2020 heralded the rising trend of ‘wellness’ in various industries, one of which was the skincare sector. This is one of the reasons why we started our new ‘Anti-aging Wellness’ section – to help you not only improve your general wellbeing, but that of your skin as well. Although we’ll take more of a deep-dive into multiple topics in this section, it is worth taking note of a few general tips before we go any further.
The main thing to consider when looking to improve our skin and, by extension, our overall anti-aging ‘wellness’, the first step is often quite literally staring us in the face. This is because the skin is capable of telling us many things which, depending on how subtle the signs are, often go overlooked. These can be anything from small, dry and/or red patches to noticeable, full-blown acne. Of course, although there can be genetics at play here, not every skin condition is hereditary and can often be alleviated by even making a series of simple adjustments in your everyday life.
Wellness starts from within.
When looking to improve your skin’s wellness, the first big changes happen from the inside out. Fact: you can’t have healthy, youthful skin if you don’t give it what it needs to function, even at a basic level. This is why your first step should always be to look at the fundamentals: what you eat, what you drink, and even some of your lifestyle choices (i.e. how much UV or pollution you’re being exposed to if you work in a city, etc). Acknowledging potential triggers of any skin issues you may be experiencing can be key to helping to treat them.
Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.
We’ve all heard people, from health experts to family members, reminding us to drink our eight glasses per day. However boring it may sound, though, water actually plays a big role in our skin’s aging process. This is because water contributes towards the maintenance of dermal elasticity, with many findings showing that people who ensure that they’re staying properly hydrated tend to not fall victim to fine lines, wrinkles and lingering discoloration as quickly as those who are not. While water alone cannot indefinitely delay the onset of age-related dermal signs, it has been proven time and time again to help the skin maintain its health and, by extension, a youthful appearance for longer.
Eat your protein.
If you really want to give an extra boost to your anti-aging wellness regime, don’t forget the protein! Good quality protein helps to fuel the production of collagen’s essential building blocks which, in turn, aids in not only strengthening our skin but visibly improving it from the inside out. You can read about this subject in greater detail here.
Steer clear of junk.
A big misconception about eating well is that, the healthier the food, the longer it takes to prepare, which leads to many of us reaching for pre-prepared meals that contain too many unhealthy fats, refined sugar and carbs.
Although there’s a growing number of plant-based options available on the market today, there are still many that are highly processed, so it’s still important to eat fresh when you can. Advance meal preparation, swapping out junk foods for healthier options (i.e. choosing a handful of strawberries or cherries over a packet of crisps) is not only easy, but will ensure that your skin is getting the nutrients it needs. There are so many fruits and vegetables that contain anti-aging properties, such as carotenoids and flavonoids, and you can read all about them in our Skincare Simplified section. To discover all the best anti-aging foods, visit our Diet page.
Be aware of external stressors.
As we stated on our blog post about What Is Dermal Aging?, UV is the culprit for around 90% of the visible age-related imperfections we see on our skin, which means that one of the most crucial steps towards anti-aging wellness is to safeguard against it. This means using SPF to your advantage, whether in the form of actual sunscreen, or integrated in a skincare product.
Pollution, as well, can have many detrimental influences on the way your skin looks and behaves. Negative effects can include anything from a decrease in dermal elasticity, accelerated dermal aging, rashes, et al.
Try a humectant.
If you haven’t thought about introducing a humectant into your skincare regime, now could be the perfect time to do it. For humectant newbies, the aforementioned is a moisturizing substance that’s incredibly useful in helping your skin lock in moisture. Humectants traditionally do this by drawing in moisture from the air around you, thus aiding your skin in its quest to look and be more hydrated, refreshed and youthful. Do be aware, however, that if you are in a dry environment, humectants will struggle to absorb moisture from your external surroundings and may resort to drawing moisture up from the deepest layers of your skin to hydrate the top ones, leaving your bottom layers ironically dry.
A helpful way to counteract this is to use skincare products like serums, which will help to nourish your skin from its foremost layers to its deepest ones, and lock in that hydration.
Some great humectant options to look out for are: aloe vera, glycerin, hyaluronic acid, seaweed, honey and even tremella mushroom. Quick tip: the latter is dubbed ‘the snow mushroom’ and behaves like hyaluronic acid in the fact that it not only hydrates your skin but also helps to plump it.
Although we’ll be talking about more topics throughout this category, we hope we’ve helped you get started on your anti-aging skincare wellness journey. Until our next post, we hope you stay healthy, hydrated and happy.
— The RL Team