Is Environmental Pollution Doing A Number On Your Skin?

Not a fan of those vertical lines that extend from your nose down to the sides of your mouth? Then read on for five ways to help minimize their appearance.

Smile lines might sound rather lovely and, in all honesty, most of us have some kind of fold – however tiny or etched in –  down the sides of our mouth. Do us a favor and dig out a picture of yourself smiling or laughing 20 or so years ago. Chances are, even then, they were apparent. But the thing is, smile lines, aka laughter lines, marionette lines or nasolabial folds come and go with your facial expression when you’re young and your skin is full of delicious collagen. Not so much as time ticks on. In fact, smile lines get progressively deeper as you age, often to the point where they’re always visible around the lips, even when you’re not smiling.

Many people can totally live with their smile lines. Some of you may even find that they’re an essential part of who you are. And we love that. However, that’s not the case for everyone. Smile lines, like crow’s feet and elevens (frown lines) can be a pesky annoyance for many of us. Sounds familiar? Then keep scrolling for some simple skincare tricks and lifestyle habits for helping to reduce the appearance of your smile lines. Just one thing, though. Don’t stop actually smiling in a bid to soften those lines. That’s just miserable.

Prioritize Regular Exfoliation

Exfoliation is one of the simplest ways to stimulate cellular turnover, remove dead skin cells and help improve the appearance of wrinkles by refining the tone and texture of your skin. Of course, in-office treatments like microdermabrasion offer the deepest type of exfoliation so they're always an option, but if you prefer to deal with your skin at home, our 6% AHA, BHA + PHA Liquid Exfoliant is a fabulous choice.

A leave-on liquid that’s best applied to freshly cleansed skin (but before serum), this lightweight treatment contains a super smart blend of exfoliating ingredients to do all the hard work without any kind of scrubbing action. The main ingredients in question are glycolic acid, salicylic acid and gluconolactone which are different types of exfoliating acids. Together, they work like clockwork to encourage collagen production, hydrate the skin and say a big, fat ‘ciao’ to dead skin cells.

It’s gentle enough to use daily but we always recommend starting slowly, then building up to frequent use as your skin acclimates.

Build Collagen With Retinol Or Bakuchiol

Collagen is extremely important for the health of your skin, giving it structure, support, strength and volume. You’re born with tons of fabulous collagen in your skin which is why baby’s skin is so soft and plump. However, as you age, your production of collagen gets slower and thus your levels get lower, making your skin become drier, thinner and less elastic. This happens from around your mid-to-late 20s onwards. Yes, that early!

Sadly, you can’t stop this inevitable natural aging process, but there are many ways to help keep your collagen from disappearing quicker than nature intended.

Two of the most important topical ingredients for collagen are retinol, or nature’s gentler alternative to retinol, bakuchiol. Both of these work at a cellular level to kickstart collagen and encourage a more efficient barrier function to help keep your skin hydrated and healthy. Our Retinol Facial Serum is an incredible nightly treatment for improving smile (and indeed all!) lines, or try our fabulous Longevity Regimen Bundle if retinol’s not your thing.

Stimulate Blood Flow With A Facial Workout

Daily massage around your mouth can be a super effective way to work out the muscles and help improve the skin’s texture in this area. Of course, it won’t miraculously make your smile lines disappear but if you practice it regularly you should see an improvement over time.

Here are three great exercises to try:

1. Create a fist with both hands and place them at the corners of your mouth. Apply gentle pressure, then smooth your fists up the cheekbones to your temples. Repeat 10 times.

2. Part your lips slightly and use the pads of your fingers to pull the corners of your mouth back towards your face while keeping your lips parallel. Hold for 10 seconds and repeat 10 times.

3. Hook the corners of your mouth with your index fingers and pull your fingers apart about a quarter of inch while tightening the corners of your mouth towards each other. Hold the resistance for 10 seconds and repeat 10 times.

Shield Your Skin From Sun Damage

If want to choose just one wrinkle-reducing trick for preserving your collagen and therefore improving wrinkles, lines, folds and creases on your skin, sun protection is unquestionably it. Granted, it won’t get rid of anything that’s already formed, but it will prevent further issues from rearing their heads and will help stop your smile lines from getting any worse.

We understand that applying sunscreen every morning can be a real pain in the butt, which is why we formulated our SPF 30 Mineral Sunscreen with Vitamin C to be a real joy to use. It’s non-sticky, totally lightweight, blends into your skin like a dream and doesn’t leave any annoying white marks. What’s more, it contains a cheeky boost of vitamin C to further protect your skin and add a little extra glow factor. Seems rude not to, right?

Practice Good Lifestyle Habits

Finally, the classic, skin-loving lifestyle habits must never be forgotten about if you want to hold on to young-looking skin for as long as possible. We’re talking, of course, about getting plenty of regular, quality sleep; staying hydrated with lots of sugar-free, caffeine-free drinks and water-rich foods (watermelon, anyone?); drinking booze in moderation; eating a fruit and veggie-forward diet; getting your fill of omega-3s and trying to keep your stress levels to a minimum.

Surely that’s not too much to ask, is it?

Did you know, some of your favorite comfort foods are doing your skin no favors? Like, no favors at all.

Let’s get one thing straight: when it comes to what you eat, a bar of chocolate here and a cheeseburger there is totally a-OK. What is it they say? Everything in moderation, right? And we agree. As long as you eat healthily for the most part and allow yourself treats when you want them you’re likely to be just fine.

However, when your meal and snack selections start to not only mess with your weight but also screw up your skin, it may be time to take a look at your diet choices. Because chocolate can’t give you acne, but it can definitely trigger your breakouts.

Whatever your comfort food weakness, read on for the biggest skin offenders that might be worth cutting back on. Of course, unless you have some kind of intolerance or a serious allergy, there’s no need to eliminate them entirely. Just know that if you want your skin to be its absolute best self, the old adage could not be more true – you are what you eat…

1. Cakes, Candy & Other Sweet Treats

OK, let’s start with arguably the biggest offender of them all: sugar. With zero nutritional value, sugar is the absolute devil when it comes to the health of your skin. How so? Well, in simple terms, sugar is an inflammatory which not only speeds up the rate at which your skin ages, but can trigger acne breakouts as well as flare-ups in existing skin conditions like rosacea, psoriasis and eczema.

Research also shows that excess sugar leads to the accumulation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs), which are harmful compounds produced by the skin through a process called glycation. AGEs are no fun at all as they not only attack your skin cells but they do a real number on important proteins such as collagen and elastin, causing them to stiffen, weaken and perform poorly. All this manifests itself at the surface of your skin in the form of fine lines, wrinkles, dryness, sagging, dullness and, well, you get the picture.

More often than not, sugar cravings are simply the result of habit because sweet ‘treats’ make you feel happy and uplifted by releasing the ‘feel good’ hormone, dopamine, into your system. Refined white sugar and corn syrup are the real bad boys in this picture so avoid these as much as possible, swapping them out for things like honey or natural sugars found in fruit to get your sweet fix.

2. White Carbs

There is little better than tucking into a chunk of warm, crusty white bread or a pile of spaghetti carbonara of a cold, wintry evening. However, these sit under the refined carbs umbrella. And, note to self, in this case ‘refined’ is most definitely not a positive.

Refined carbs like white bread, pasta and rice are basically carbohydrates that have been processed and therefore stripped of the vitamins, minerals and fiber that make complex carbs so much better for your health and skin. This manufacturing process makes refined carbs easier to digest and offers an instant source of energy. Which may sound great, but this burst of energy is very short-lived (making you want to eat more) and causes a quick rise in blood sugar.

And there we have it: that skin-ruining thing called sugar rises again, which leads to AGEs, inflammation and friends.

Complex carbs are way better than the refined stuff so try to include more oatmeal, sweet potatoes and fruit and veggies in your diet. Less of the white stuff, yes?

3. Salty Snacks

Sure, sugar is seriously bad news. But salt is just as bad where your skin is concerned. You see, salt promotes dehydration, weakening your skin’s barrier function and killing its chances of remaining soft, supple and strong. What’s more, your favorite salty chips or nuts can contain up to 170mg of salt. Eesh!

Truth is, most salt contains around 40 percent sodium. Sodium draws essential moisture from the skin’s cells into the bloodstream in a bid to balance out fluids. This is important business and helps your body to function properly. But too much sodium in your diet puts this clever balancing act out of whack, pulling excess moisture from the cells and resulting in dehydrated skin that can be itchy, puffy, irritated and flaky-looking.

There’s more. When the skin starts to become dry and dehydrated, it produces more oil to compensate for its lack of moisture. And this can be a killer on your skin if you’re prone to breakouts, blocking up your pores and triggering acne before you can say ‘pass the salt!’

It’s important to remember, however, that salt is crucial for your health so don’t avoid it completely. Just try to use less when cooking and give lower sodium savory snacks like unsalted nuts, crackers or veggie chips a go.

4. The Processed Meat Gang

Processed meats like bacon, sausages, salami and deli meats are all super-high in salt. So… see above. They also contain a ton of saturated fat and are often packed with preservatives called nitrites to preserve them and help them last longer. Fair enough. Actually, what if we told you that nitrites assist in the breakdown of collagen and elastin? Not so fair enough, after all.

Reminder: collagen and elastin are important proteins that work hard to keep your skin firm, strong and supple. As skin ages it loses vital collagen and elastin which is why it’s important to do everything you can to preserve them for as long as possible. Quality sleep, kick-ass sun protection, topical antioxidants, you know the score. But if you undo all this hard work by overloading your diet with collagen and elastin-killing preservatives like nitrites. Well, you can say goodbye to youthful-looking skin and hello there, premature aging.

5. Fried Food

It’s estimated that over a quarter of Americans consume fried food from fast food restaurants every single day. Scary right?

Fried foods like burgers, fries, hot dogs and chicken not only raise your bad cholesterol and lower your good cholesterol, but they also increase the number of AGEs in your skin. Remember AGEs ⬆️? Yes, they’re truly the bad guys in this picture. Fried foods, however, produce a whole different kind of AGE to sugar in that they’re not created inside your body, but form within the food when it's cooked at such extreme, dry temperatures.

Studies have shown that dry heat (basically any kind of heat that doesn’t include water) may increase the amount of AGEs in food by up to 100 times. Baking, broiling, roasting and barbecuing all cause AGEs to form in certain high fat/high protein foods (especially red meat), but frying is undoubtedly the worst. Get this: fried bacon contains around ten times the number of AGEs as microwaved bacon. We’re not going to get too technical on you but no, microwaving isn’t a form of dry heat cooking. It’s complicated. Just trust us on that one.

The moral of the story is if you’re worried that your diet is aging you up too fast, think about what you eat and get some balance in your life with more fresh fruit and veggies, unprocessed foods, white meat, fish and legumes.

A great skincare routine can also help to keep your collagen levels in check so why not try our awesome Longevity range which encourages healthy, rather than premature skin aging.

We like that.

No idea why you’re getting an influx of acne right now? Many lifestyle habits can trigger your breakouts ­­­­­– and sometimes they’re found in the most unsuspecting places.

As you know, acne is caused by one thing and one thing alone: an excess of sebum that causes your pores to become blocked with oil, dead skin cells, bacteria and other impurities. Eating too much chocolate doesn’t give you pimples. Neither does moisturizer. Sure, they can trigger breakouts if you’re genetically susceptible to them, but acne isn’t caused by uncleanliness, a poor diet or crummy skincare routine. It’s caused by blocked pores. End of.

OK, so this begs the question: why bother trying to cure them if your breakouts are totally out of your control? Well, here’s the thing. You can’t change your genes, that’s for certain. However, what you can do is keep acne-triggering factors under control to help lessen the blow. Sleeping well, reducing emotional stress and eating a healthy, well-balanced diet; all these things are important for maintaining balanced sebum and therefore reducing the likelihood of you breaking out week after week.

But there are also some less obvious reasons why you face might be suffering with regular breakouts. So if you’ve already dispensed with things like smoking, poor cleansing and too much exfoliation, but you’re still getting pimples on the reg, it might be time to look at some of the more unexpected areas of your life.

On that note, read on for five slightly more unusual causes for your breakouts.

1. Your Pillowcase

Getting enough beauty sleep is crucial for the health of your skin, but if you’re sleeping on a dirty pillowcase for a solid eight hours every night dirt and bacteria is inevitably going to build up and irritate your pores. This is especially true if you sleep on a synthetic pillowcase because man-made fibers don’t absorb sweat as effectively as natural fibres like cotton or linen.

The answer? Go natural all the way, for starters. Also, cleanse and moisturize your skin before bed to reduce the amount of grime getting on your pillowcase. Tea Tree Super Cleanser+ is a great acne-fighting cleanser that balances and clarifies your pores. Follow this with Retinol Moisturizer to lightly hydrate and moisturize your skin while boosting cellular turnover to keep your pores free of dead skin cells.

Finally, wash your pillowcase every three or four days. And ditto, your face towel. Old, dirty towels that are used by the whole family for drying their hands and who-knows-what-else are another breeding ground for germs and bacteria. Do you really want to be swiping this all over your freshly cleansed skin? Thought not. So, invest in a couple of cotton face towels for you and you alone and wash them every other day.

2. Your Makeup & Hair Products

Your skincare routine might be spot on, but what about your makeup and hair products? Rich hair conditioners, for example, are notorious for containing heavy ingredients like cocoa butter and coconut oil which, granted, are incredible for moisturizing your precious locks, but are not so great for acne-prone skin. Of course, we know you’re not smothering your face with conditioner but still, it can settle on your face when you rinse your hair so always cleanse your skin after, never before conditioning.

Makeup can similarly clog up your pores, especially if you use formulations that contain oil. So don’t do that. Instead, look out for noncomedogenic products (this means they’re less likely to block pores) and use powder rather than liquid formulations whenever possible.

3. Your Workout Routine

Do you love to get a good sweat on when you’re working out? High fives to you. However, allow all that sweat and grime to sit on your skin and your pores are going to clog up quicker than your instructor can say ‘hit the floor for ten push-ups.’

Cleanse your skin thoroughly and swiftly after exercising (the longer you leave your skin doused in sweat and grimy workout gear, the more bacteria is likely to breed), and always use a mild but effective cleanser that helps to detoxify your skin without drying it out. Our Charcoal Clarifying Cleanser is a goodie as it harnesses the powers of coconut-derived activated charcoal which destroys skin-smothering impurities to offer a deep, gently purifying clean every time.

4. Your Winter Cover-Ups

Any fabric that rubs against your skin can lead to unwanted issues in the long-term. Remember how face masks were causing ‘maskne’ back in the pandemic? This was all due to friction from the mask combining with the obvious culprits of sweat, dirt, oil, bacteria and humidity which caused dryness, irritation and pimples.

Thankfully, for most of us, the days of having to wear a mask 24/7 are over. However, if you spend a lot of time outdoors in the winter and like to wrap yourself up in woollen hats and thick, heavy scarves, these can cause similar problems, trapping sweat and increasing friction around your chin, jaw, neck and forehead.

To help reduce breakouts caused by beanies, scarves (and even turtleneck sweaters), avoid synthetic fabrics and launder your winter cover-ups regularly. Weekly, at least.

5. Your Laundry Detergent

Speaking of laundry, your choice of detergent is also imperative. Just like your beauty routine, certain ingredients in your laundry detergent can be super irritating – especially if you have extremely sensitive or acne-prone skin. Fragrance, for example, can be a real Debbie Downer, as can harsh dyes, essentials oils, strong surfactants and preservatives.

To reduce the likelihood of your laundry detergent triggering those pesky breakouts, first up, choose liquid over powder detergents. Why? Because these leave behind less residue on your clothes and fabrics (who knew?!). Also, never use more detergent than is recommended on the label, avoid fabric softeners and try double rinsing your laundry after washing to remove as much residue as possible.