BEAUTY: boost your skin with star ingredients
Brooke Le Poer Trench discovers the all-stars in skincare as well as how to balance them so they work for you.
It’s a rare day when I don’t have at least one conversation about skin with a friend, colleague or family member. More specifically, about the cream or serum that will transform their complexion. Inevitably, I always answer a question with a question: What ingredients do you already have in your regimen?
The transaction we enter into with the pots lining our bathroom cabinet is anything but simple. At a basic level, we know the time we invest in our beauty regimes (a process that used to be called moisturising, but is now self-care) pays dividends in terms of how we feel about ourselves. But at the end of the day, we also want returns – and that’s where actives come into play.
“One of the things we learned from our genomic research,” says David Khoo, the skin principal scientist at Olay, “is that skin goes through major changes at the cellular level that lead to visible changes in our skin. But if this sounds a bit gloomy, take heart because understanding is half the battle. We have such intimate knowledge of these changes, we can address them in a more targeted way with the right ingredients.”
This is where things get a little complicated. The active ingredients that can slough away dead cells are essential if you want to look radiant, but they can easily start sensitising skin if you go too far. Likewise, the one anti-ageing ingredient with the most science behind it can actually cause redness and light peeling, which is a red flag for any other ingredient, but simply a sign this one is working. And while one might ordinarily panic when a serum stings, that’s exactly what certain acids do when they work their magic. Like I said, it’s complicated.
Part of the challenge is that over the past few years, multi-step skincare has reached fever pitch. When a hot new ingredient comes along (squalane!) or a new product category crops up (essences!), we’ve been encouraged to simply layer up. All of which is perfectly fine, so long as you’re keeping track of the ingredients that are already in your regimen.
“Every time we add a formula to our daily routine, there is a risk of doubling up on active ingredients that could overwhelm your skin,” warns dermal clinician Jodie King.
“The challenge is that it doesn’t happen straight away. You might be using a product for three weeks before your skin looks inflamed, at which point you don’t know which product to blame.”
Keep calm and carry on
Of everything I’ve learned interviewing dermatologists and scientists about keeping our skin looking its best, the overwhelming sentiment (aside from “wear sunscreen!”) is that nothing works if your skin is not calm and protected.
“The outer layer of skin needs specific ingredients to keep the barrier strong, and provide both physical and environmental protection to remain healthy,” says Elizabeth Fardon, the global education director at Ultraceuticals. To that end, the two ingredients you need in your daily regimen (not to labour the point: aside from sunscreen) are vitamin C and vitamin B3.
“Humans are one of the few animals that do not make our own vitamin C, which is a potent antioxidant that saves skin from environmental damage and significantly reduces UV-induced DNA damage,” says dermatologist Dr Shyamalar Gunatheesan, noting that the best way to get it is topically.
The benefits don’t stop there – vitamin C also plays a role in the production of ceramides in the skin, which keep it feeling smooth, boost collagen production and fade blotches too. The only issue is that it’s notoriously hard to stabilise. “A stable form, called ascorbyl glucoside, is extremely effective as a daytime antioxidant,” says Janis McNicholas, head of training for Avène, noting that it suits even the most sensitive skin.
In the same way that we can all benefit from a few therapeutic deep breaths, even calm complexions can do with a daily dose of vitamin B3 to tackle underlying inflammation.
“It’s often overlooked, but the gains for your complexion are considerable, given that many antiageing ingredients work by creating underlying inflammation that in turn triggers healing,” says Jodie. “Aside from being an antioxidant, which means it protects cells from damage, it also strengthens the barrier and improves skin hydration by reducing trans-epidermal water loss.”
You’d line your swimming pool before filling it up, right? In the same
“We produce less hyaluronic acid after the age of 40.”
way, there’s no point slathering on expensive creams if your skin can’t actually retain moisture efficiently.
In the water
Most of the skin fatigue we see in the mirror is actually dehydration, which is why slathering on moisturiser should be one of the most instantly gratifying steps in your regimen.
The biggest name in hydration (and hardest to pronounce) is hyaluronic acid. “A sugar molecule found naturally in the skin and body, we produce less hyaluronic acid after the age of 40,” says Elizabeth Fardon.
And that’s a problem because it helps our skin maintain a youthful plumpness and feel comfortable, which is why so many doctors put this ingredient at the top of the list. As an added bonus, the fine-line smoothing is pretty instant. And despite having acid in its name, this hydrator suits even the most sensitive skin types.
The relatively new kid on the block in hydration is squalane, a sustainable ingredient harnessed from plants that mimics the actions of an ultrahydrating molecule called squalene, which we have loads of when we’re in nappies. By the time we reach 40, it basically dries up. Skincare companies do add it to their formulas because our skin recognises it, so it absorbs incredibly quickly. The only problem is that it’s generally sourced from deep-sea shark liver. As a sustainable alternative, Californian skincare brand Biossance formulated squalane from fermented sugarcane and in addition to putting it in every single one of its formulas, they now sell squalane to many other beauty brands (good news for the sharks and our skin). Happily, you don’t need to play favourites – hyaluronic acid helps your skin retain moisture, while squalane provides the moisture, so they make happy bedfellows.
What lies beneath
Radiance is a word that gets thrown around so often in beauty, it has almost lost its meaning. But dullness is real – and so is the desire to get back your glow. It’s really a numbers game: when we’re under 20, our skin cells turn over every 28 days. By the time we’re approaching 40, it’s more like every 40 days. “And this buildup on the skin surface diffuses light and makes skin appear dull as well as preventing ingredients from properly absorbing,” says Alpha-H training and education manager LeeAnne Leslie. That’s why acids
“We need skin to behave as it would when we were younger.”
are such an important part of your skincare regimen. “For optimal skin health, we need to encourage skin to behave as it would naturally when we were younger.”
The type of acids required for radiance are alpha hydroxy acids (or AHAs), which treat fine lines, bumpy texture and dullness. Of these acids, glycolic is king as it penetrates the deepest, making it one of the most effective. “It has the smallest molecular structure of the acids, meaning it works quickly to dissolve the bonds that hold dead skin to the surface and encourage turnover, which then begins a cascade of positive change in the skin such as stimulating the production of collagen and elastin,” explains LeeAnne.
It also has a characteristic tingling – even stinging – for the first 10 to 20 seconds after application, which is a sensation that advocates (including this beauty editor) have come to like. It’s sometimes too strong for more sensitive complexions, which may suit slower-penetrating, gentler AHAs such as lactic or fruit acids.
The night shift
Quite simply, there are many, many different ingredients that promise to smooth and repair skin while you sleep, but the gold standard is retinol. Now for a quick chemistry lesson: Retinol is a type of retinoid, which are vitamin A compounds. And the benefits have been quantified in large studies many times over. Retinol
(the variation in over-the-counter skincare) is able to improve skin texture, tone and pigmentation… if you’re patient. According to most experts, you won’t start seeing improvements for about four months.
Whether you get your dose in a serum or moisturiser, even the most sensitive skin should be able to handle this ingredient. The real trick is introducing it slowly, which means applying it every second or third night and increasing frequency only if your skin isn’t getting too uncomfortable. The latest formulas combine retinol with other ingredients in addition to offering concentrations that suit various skin types.
Perhaps the most important factor, however, is how it feels to you. “We all want to love our skin and get the best results possible, but there is a sensorial element to skincare,” says Elizabeth. “So invest in something that feels good – statistics show that’s the only way you’ll stick with it long enough to get what you want.”