These Strengthening Ingredients Are Everything For Sensitive Skin
Is your barrier function letting your skin down? Causing irritation, dryness, redness and itching? Then it’s time to introduce some gentle, strengthening ingredients into your daily routine.
From totally killing the look of your makeup (hello flaky foundation!) to making your face feel so itchy you could cry, sensitive skin is a real bore. It’s also a massive chore – especially when you have to deal with it on a daily basis. Are we right, or are we right????
But the thing is, while certain sensitivities are down to your genetic makeup and therefore kind of tricky to deal with off your own back, others are perfectly treatable. And it’s all about concentrating on your skin’s barrier function.
The Skin’s Barrier: A Quick Recap
Officially known as the stratum corneum, the skin’s barrier is its uppermost layer which sits right on the surface of the epidermis like a protective shield. It’s made up of vital components including ceramides, cholesterol, amino acids and fatty acids and is one of, if not the most important layers of the skin.
The job of the skin’s barrier is to keep certain things in, namely water, and other stuff like pollutants, irritants and allergens out. And when it’s strong and healthy it works like clockwork. However, if it becomes weakened thanks to chronic skin conditions like eczema, high-strength skincare formulations or extreme weather breaking down the barrier’s vital substances, it stops being able to do its job properly. This allows water to escape far too easily while simultaneously allowing the bad guys front row seats to do their worst. Cue dryness, dehydration, irritation, redness, itching, the works.
There are many ways to repair and care for a damaged skin barrier, not least of which is to focus on the ingredients in your daily routine. Be mindful to avoid using too many active ingredients for starters. And hone in on topicals that hydrate, protect and nourish the skin. Not sure what those ingredients are? Then here are a few to guide you along the way.
5 Must-Try Skincare Ingredients For Stronger, Healthier Skin
1. Ceramides
Ceramides are important lipids that make up around 50 percent of your skin’s composition. They’re a crucial component in the barrier because they work tirelessly to ‘glue’ together the cells, creating that all-important shield which holds moisture in and potentially harmful aggressors out.
Of course, with age, your skin naturally loses ceramides so this is why it’s essential to replace them with ceramide-rich skincare formulas in your daily routine. Look out for ceramides EOP (1), NP (3) and AP (6011) which are the most clinically studied and thus widely viewed as the most effective.
Try: Firming Collagen Day Lotion
2. Hyaluronic Acid
When it comes to skin hydration, hyaluronic acid (HA) is the obvious go-to. A very effective humectant, it works by drawing in water like a sponge. And that’s vital for hydrating the skin (on every level!) because as you age, its natural supplies of HA deplete at lightning speeds, causing dullness, dehydration and irritation.
Studies show that hyaluronic acid has the ability to hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water. Which is very impressive. Of course, HA is not the only humectant out there and ingredients like glycerin and aloe vera are just as effective and similarly deserve a massive shout-out for helping you to achieve the heady heights of a healthy skin barrier.
Try: Hyaluronic Acid Facial Serum
3. Niacinamide
A form of vitamin B3, niacinamide is a pretty big deal in skincare right now, rising in Google searches and flooding the beauty shelves. But frankly, we’ve always known how incredible this water-soluble skin nutrient truly is. Not to blow our own trumpets, of course.
All jokes aside, topical niacinamide has some pretty impressive talents. For starters, it has a smart way (you don't need to know the science) of being able to increase the production of ceramides in the uppermost layers of your skin. And, as mentioned, ceramides are super important for the barrier function so keeping them at an all-time high is vital for improving the resiliency of your skin.
Niacinamide also has anti-inflammatory qualities and is a powerful antioxidant. This helps to protect your skin from everyday life and specifically works hard to shield it from environmental damage caused by UV radiation and pollution. All that adds up to music to the ears of sensitive skin, don’t you agree?
Try: Niaciamide (B3) Facial Serum
4. Milk
We’re huge advocates of oat and rice milk here at TruSkin. How so? Because they’re proven to be up there as some of nature’s finest skincare ingredients for dry or sensitive skin.
Chock full of antioxidants, these non-dairy milks are a great way to provide protection from free radical damage (which can be a killer on your barrier function), plus they’re extremely moisturizing. Rice milk, for example, contains a vitamin-like component called inositol which has similar humectant qualities to big-hitters like glycerin and hyaluronic acid. Both rice and oat milk also have anti-inflammatory and skin-smoothing emollient properties to help reduce transepidermal water loss (TEWL) and keep your skin calm, soft and smooth.
5. Panthenol
Panthenol might not steal the headlines like retinol and HA, but its role in skincare is absolutely crucial. Especially when it comes to soothing and strengthening compromised skin. Similar to HA, panthenol (aka pro-vitamin B5) is a humectant and draws moisture to the top layers of the skin. But it has another string to its bow: it’s an emollient, too. This means it not only brings extra water to the table, but it also works to seal moisture in by smoothing over the top layers and filling in tiny cracks that often appear in dry or dehydrated skin.
A shoo-in for sensitive skin, panthenol is easily tolerated and ideal for calming sensitivities and visibly reducing the facial redness that’s often triggered by irritation. Do not underestimate it.
Try: Vitamin C Deep Hydration Night Cream
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![Say Hello To The Major Players In Skin Hydration]()
Hydration is something every skin type needs – whether it’s dry, oily or somewhere in between. Not sure how to up the moisture levels in your skin? Then here are the hydrating skincare heroes you need to know.
If you want healthy skin that feels good and looks even better, moisture is everything. Without it, you can simply say goodbye to an even skin tone, smooth texture and a radiant glow. Because it just ‘aint gonna happen.
You see, skin dehydration is real. And it doesn’t only hit those of you with dry skin, but can strike even the oiliest of skin types. How so? Simple: your skin type has nothing to do with the levels of water in your skin, it’s just a gauge of the amount of sebum your skin produces. If you have oily skin, for example, your sebaceous glands are super active and therefore produce a lot of sebum – sometimes a little too much if we’re being honest. If your skin is dry, however, sebum is often in serious short supply. Dehydration is a whole different kettle of fish because this means your skin is lacking in water, not oil. And yes, this also means that any skin type, however oily it is, can be dehydrated.
Once you get your head around all this, it becomes easier to understand why hydrating your skin is different to moisturizing it. Skin hydration is all about drawing moisture into the skin, while moisturization concentrates on sealing all that moisture in place to help prevent transepidermal water loss (TEWL). Dry skin needs a lot of help in the latter department because it often has a more delicate barrier function thanks to such a short supply of sebum. That’s why dry skin benefits from richer, thicker moisturizing formulas. And oily skin? Not so much. Oily skin generally has a stronger barrier function, helped along nicely by all that sebum.
Moisturizers usually contain a combination of moisturizing and hydrating ingredients to deliver a complete regimen for softer, stronger, healthier skin. But if you’re specifically looking to up your skin’s hydration levels, look out for these humectant powerhouses…
What Are Humectants?
Humectants are substances that attract and retain water from their surroundings, kind of like bath sponges. In skincare, they’re used to draw water either from the air or from deeper layers of the skin to replenish lost moisture at a surface level. This helps to keep the skin soft, firm, plump and healthy while strengthening the uppermost layers to reduce irritation and calm sensitive skin.
When it comes to hydrating the skin, humectants are the be-all and end-all. Below, feast your eyes on five of the best humectants we know…
1. Aloe Vera
A fully signed-up member of the humectant family, aloe vera is an evergreen succulent that’s been used around the world for centuries to treat everything from tooth cavities and feet ulcers to depression and IBS. Its benefits for the skin, however, are by far its biggest and most well-known superpower.
Often referred to as the ‘wonder plant,’ the leaves of the aloe vera plant are where all the action takes place. More specifically, it’s the watery, nutrient-rich medicinal gel that’s found inside these leaves that delivers so much goodness to the skin. Rich in polysaccharides which draw in water, it’s also high in antioxidant, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. This means it not only hydrates the skin like a boss, but it also aids healing, reduces free radical damage and helps to soothe facial redness. What’s not to love?
Try: Vitamin C Deep Hydration Night Cream
2. Alpha Hydroxy Acids
Alpha hydroxy acids like glycolic and lactic acid might not be the most obvious choices for hydrating your skin, but don’t count them out. Because on top of their exfoliating prowess, AHAs also have humectant qualities. This helps to keep your skin healthy and hydrated as they go about their main job, which is to stimulate cellular turnover and rid your skin of dulling dead skin cells.
Ingredients that deliver more than one benefit? Love that.
Try: 6% AHA, BHA + PHA Liquid Exfoliant
3. Glycerin
Glycerin is one of those quiet, unassuming skincare ingredients that goes about its business without needing to be in the spotlight or steal the headlines. But do not underestimate this clever ingredient because, if certain studies are to be believed, it may be one of the most effective humectants in skincare. This is because it has a very low molecular weight which allows it to penetrate deep into the skin where it hydrates, strengthens and replenishes the skin’s natural moisturizing factor.
Like most humectants, glycerin is very well tolerated by the skin and is often prescribed to help treat extreme dryness, itching and cracked, dehydrated skin. It's a win-win.
Try: Niacinamide (B3) Facial Serum
4. Hyaluronic Acid
When it comes to the spotlight, at the exact opposite end of the spectrum to glycerin comes hyaluronic acid, one of the buzziest skincare ingredients of the past decade.
Hyaluronic acid is naturally found in the skin’s structure when it lubricates and hydrates the skin 24/7. This water-loving ingredient is estimated to hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water which means just one gram is able to hold up to six liters of water. There’s your headline right there!
But this begs the question: shouldn’t that amount of water be enough for your skin on a daily basis? Well it is… until it isn’t. As skin ages its levels of hyaluronic acid significantly depletes – often by up to 50 percent once you hit age 40 and beyond. This encourages dehydration and all the signs of skin aging that come with it; aka fine lines, wrinkles and sagging skin.
The solution? Lots of fabulous hyaluronic acid in your skincare routine. Simple as that.
Try: Hyaluronic Acid Eye Cream
5. Vitamin E
Another classic skincare ingredient that has stood the test of time is vitamin E, one of the true good guys in the beauty world.
Vitamin E is a fat-soluble antioxidant that’s also found naturally in your skin’s structure where it maintains moisture, supports cell function and protects the skin from environmental stressors. Unfortunately, just like collagen, hyaluronic acid and friends, vitamin E also decreases as you age. Big surprise.
To help keep your levels high it’s smart to include vitamin E in your skincare routine. Vitamin E is generally thought of as an emollient which is a substance that helps soften, smooth and trap moisture into the skin but, little known fact, it also has awesome humectant properties. This makes it one of the best all-rounders for hydrating and moisturizing the skin.
Can’t see it on any of your skincare labels? Look out for alpha-tocopherol or tocopheryl acetate – two of vitamin E’s fancy alter egos.
Try: Renewing Longevity Moisturizing Cream
Say Hello To The Major Players In Skin Hydration
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