Brands have poured millions of dollars into research and development, employing highly skilled biochemists to create new products delivered in formulations designed to enhance both the function and appearance of the skin at the same time.
The result is that today’s skincare lines contain a whole heap of goodies that can actually affect a real positive change in your skin, improving skin tone and texture and helping to plump out fine lines and wrinkles from within.
Elite skincare formulations contain active ingredients which enable them to act on the skin’s cellular structure. In some cases, such as exfoliants, this action is limited to the surface of the skin, while other formulations can penetrate to deeper levels and either enhance or help to inhibit natural activities.
Here are just some of the ingredients proven to improve the function and appearance of the skin.
ALPHA HYDROXY ACIDS
Also known as AHAs, or glycolic or lactic acid, these are derived from plant sources and milk. Glycolic comes from sugar cane, and lactic from milk. They work to exfoliate the skin and give a fresher appearance, reducing fine lines.
Alpha hydroxy acids, at high enough concentrations, result in moisturisation and stimulation of water-holding gels in the skin which cause plumpness, firmness and wrinkle reduction.
Nothing does it like AHAs when it comes to exfoliating and increasing moisture content in the skin. But start out slow and apply AHA skin products every other day before building up to daily, to avoid irritation. Look for products touting AHAs, glycolic or lactic acids.
ANTIOXIDANTS
Antioxidants are the skin’s bodyguards, combating free radicals which attack healthy skin cells and collagen. This attack of the skin’s vital structures can cause damage, mutations, cell death and inflammation. As a result we see lines, wrinkles, uneven skin tone, sensitivity and even cancers.
Antioxidants are substances that the body uses to protect itself from free radical damage, which is caused by scavenger molecules that attack healthy skin cells, usually from smoking, sun damage, pollution and alcohol consumption. Antioxidants help mop up this damage.
Antioxidants in combination, studies suggest, can exert a cumulative synergistic action on the skin that is more effective than single ingredient formulations.
Look for products containing Vitamins A, B3, C and E, co-enzyme Q10, idebenone, lycopene, grapeseed extract, papaya, green tea, rosehip and resveratrol.
HYALURONIC ACID
Hyaluronic acid is what gives skin its volume and fullness. One of its many claims to fame is that it can hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water (which equates to being a super skin hydrator!).
Also known as hyaluronan or sodium hyaluronate, hyaluronic acid occurs naturally in the human body and is central to regulating cell growth and renewal. It is found extensively in connective, epithelial, and neural cells. As such, hyaluronic acid has found its way into many skincare products, particularly anti-wrinkle formulations.
Hyaluronic acid is primarily used as a moisturising agent. Because of its ability to “latch” onto huge numbers of water molecules and bring them into the cells of the skin, it is an extremely effective moisturiser.
The fact that this acid binds with water accounts for the special interest in hyaluronic acid in cosmetic enhancement. When injected under the skin in the form of dermal fillers, it provides fullness and plumpness at the site, replacing lost volume on the face, filling in lines and wrinkles and, depending where applied, creating the illusion of more prominent cheekbones and fuller lips.
This darling of the anti-ageing world has also been credited with extending life in those who consume copious amounts in their diet. For good reason, hyaluronic acid is often dubbed as the key to the fountain
of youth.
Look for products containing hyaluronic acid, hyaluronan and sodium hyaluronate.
LIPIDS
Lipids are a large and diverse group of biologically important molecules that are essential to life. Fatty acids, fats, oils, waxes, steroids and phospholipids are types of lipids. Major roles include cell membrane structure, energy storage and cell communication.
They are used in skincare products as an emollient and, because of their rich, luxurious feel, many are used on dry, chafed and inflamed or delicate skin.
Lipids are naturally produced by the skin and serve to maintain the skin’s natural barrier function and prevent moisture loss. Ceramides (a naturally occurring skin lipid found within the cell membrane) and evening primrose oil (abundant in omega 6 fatty acids) are good examples of these nourishing lipids.
Also look out for products containing jojoba, coconut, macadamia, olive, shea butter and wheatgerm.
PEPTIDES
Peptides are one of the newer ingredient groups to hit the anti-ageing skincare scene and many studies have shown significant results. Acting as chemical messengers, peptides communicate with cells to perform a specific function. They are highly respected for their ability to penetrate the skin and activate their target.
Peptides “turn on” the fibroblasts, which are essential for building and repairing the skin and a basic requirement for anti-ageing success.
Peptides are small molecules of at least two or more amino acids chemically linked together. When certain amino acids are combined, they create specific peptides (the different combinations are virtually limitless and many experts believe we haven’t even touched the surface).
Peptides have a variety of functions, primarily they help to stimulate collagen, combat what is known as Advanced Glycation End (AGE) product formation, which is a metabolic process that damages collagen in the body, and reduce pigmentation.
The science came from the discovery that when collagen is damaged by sunlight, it is broken up into peptides. Certain peptides formed were able to act as a signal to skin cells to make new collagen, meaning we could improve wrinkled skin by fooling the skin into thinking it had been damaged by applying this peptide. Peptides are cell-communicating and can potentially trigger specific things in the skin, so that they might improve wrinkles, or firmness, or age spots, for example.
Juvefoxo is a relatively recent breakthrough in peptides, as well as several neuropeptides, which are said to act as a wrinkle relaxer.
VITAMIN A
Vitamin A is often touted as the most effective important topical ingredient to prevent, restore, normalise and help repair damaged skin. Since our body does not make Vitamin A, our skin becomes deficient over time.
For that reason, Vitamin A is a very important and necessary ingredient in all quality anti-ageing product lines.
Arguably the most potent topical derivative of Vitamin A is retinol (retinoic acid), which is widely regarded as *the* anti-ageing solution. Retinol encourages better cell function and turnover to improve skin texture, increase collagen production to address fine lines, inhibit the enzyme tyrosinase to address excess and abnormal melanin production (hyperpigmentation), and regulate oil production to improve acne.
Vitamin A and additional ingredients such as lactic acid (AHA), which exfoliates the skin, and salicylic acid (BHA), which removes dead cell debris, can leave “fresh” skin exposed to UV light. It is therefore recommended to always apply adequate sun protection in the form of a zinc oxide-based sunblock as well as mineral makeup containing high levels of zinc oxide during the day to protect new and vulnerable skin.
In its acid form, Vitamin A derivatives may cause redness and irritation. There are now effective forms of Vitamin A that are less irritating. Look for products that refer to ‘retinol molecular’ which is readily absorbed, highly stable and non-irritating.
VITAMIN B3
Vitamin B3 (niacinamide) has really come to the fore in the anti-ageing war, taking its place alongside skincare veterans
Vitamins A and C
Vitamin B3 increases ceramide production to increase natural hydration levels and skin luminosity; helps prevent the transfer of melanin from melanocyte to keratinocyte and thereby reducing hyperpigmentation; increases the natural immunity of the skin to defend against environmental stress; and reduces excess oil production. (Now that’s a busy little B!)
Niacinamide, the physiologically active form of Vitamin B3, is part of the Vitamin B group and is water soluble. Used in anti-ageing products, studies have shown it stimulates collagen synthesis and fatty acid levels in skin.
Typically used in serum form, Vitamin B3 can effectively treat acne, fade hyperpigmentation and improve skin barrier function, as well as help reduce fine lines and wrinkles. It provides antioxidant properties for the skin and it has also been shown to have anti-inflammatory and healing properties, as well as help reduce skin sensitivity.
VITAMIN C
As L-ascorbic acid – the form of Vitamin C that the majority of medical papers refer to as being most active on human skin cells – Vitamin C works to increase collagen production to reduce fine lines and minimise scarring and is a potent anti-inflammatory.
Vitamin C repairs and rejuvenates the skin. It also helps inhibit tyrosinase activity to address hyperpigmentation. Vitamins A and B are thought to perform best in a slightly alkaline environment, which means it is best to use these vitamins together, while applying Vitamin C, which operates best at a lower acidic pH, separately.
Vitamin C is an antioxidant found naturally in the skin, which works with other antioxidants to prevent free radical damage. These are volatile molecules so look for a stabilised Vitamin C product to help reinforce the skin’s own defences and prevent long-term damage.
DNA REPAIR
DNA repair enzymes, stem cells and growth factors have more recently become a hot topic at cosmetic, medical and anti-ageing health conferences. A study of DNA repair was even awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2015.
The future of anti-ageing, especially in terms of skincare products, is looking towards ‘gene creams’ that address the skin’s deeper biological concerns: DNA damage and stem cell stimulation.
DNA repair enzymes are particularly exciting. They work as a seamstress, seeking out damaged DNA from UV damage, pollutants and ageing and patching the rest of the DNA back together. This leads to healthier, less damaged skin, which aesthetically means less brown spots, wrinkles and dullness since those all tend to be signs of DNA damage.
Sunscreen – the single-most important skincare product
Yes, that’s right people, sunscreen tops the list! They are, first and foremost, products to help prevent damage and extrinsic ageing of the skin. Given that UV light is the fundamental basis of environmental ageing (and hands-down the most damaging element to human skin), zinc oxide used in a broad-spectrum sunblock should be your number-one skincare ingredient, protecting you against the harmful rays of the sun. Look for sunscreens that have both physical and chemical blockers plus antioxidants.
