The key to healthy glowing skin: The Skin Barrier
The key to healthy glowing skin
Like nature, human beings need hydration in the form of water so that each cell maintains its physical function. If your skin is not getting the right level of water, it will turn your skin dry, tight and flaky. As a result, dry skin has less resilience and is more prone to wrinkling. This directly impacts our skin barrier which is our protective layer between environmental stressors and ourselves. As water is lost in large quantities every day, we need to be conscious to replace it as our body largely consists of water. The unfortunate truth about drinking water is that water will reach all other organs before it reaches the skin. Thus, you need to provide it with a helping hand in the form of a hydrating skincare routine.
Hyaluronic acid structure
Hyaluronic acid has an important biological function in human skin as it is a major component of the extracellular matrix and is formed in cell membranes. In addition, the cells produce about 5 grams of hyaluronic acid per day as our body needs this new cell to form. (Eleni Papakonstantinou et al 2012). It is a natural component of the skin, but the percentage decreases with age.
Why does it decrease by age?
Due to the increasing activity of the hyaluronidase enzyme, hyaluronic acid is increasingly degraded and the moisture binding capacity of the skin decreases (Tsepilov RN et al, 2015). As a result, we get dry, flaky and itchy skin. Thus, adding botanical hyaluronic acid to your skin care regimen counteracts that fate. In conclusion, the most important properties this molecule has are the following:
- The extremely high moisture binding capability (hyaluronic acid can bind up to 20 times its own weight in water),
- its viscoelastic behaviour, and
- very good lubrication.
(Tsepilov RN et al, 2015)
Summary
Ultimately, hyaluronic acid is key to a healthy skin barrier function and we recommend that you make it a regular part of your skincare routine. And we have found the most stunning botanical answer to hyaluronic acid Mother Nature has to give. After all, she is our BFF and sends her love to keep our skin glowing and hydrated.
Get the #nayaglow by signing up to our newsletter. Get a sneak peak of our products in the pipeline. There is certainly a gem or two when it comes to keeping your skin beautifully hydrated! And come see us at the Indie Beauty Exhibition in October on 24th – 25th to experience our new products. We look forward to seeing you there!
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Reference
Eleni Papakonstantinou, 1 Michael Roth, 2 and George Karakiulakis 1 ,*(2012) ,”Hyaluronic acid: A key molecule in skin aging”. Dermatoendocrinol. 2012 Jul 1; 4(3): 253–258. doi: 10.4161/derm.21923. Available online: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3583886/.
Tsepilov RN1, Beloded AV. (2015), “Hyaluronic Acid–an “Old” Molecule with “New” Functions: Biosynthesis and Depolymerization of Hyaluronic Acid in Bacteria and Vertebrate Tissues Including during Carcinogenesis”. Biochemistry (Mosc). 2015 Sep;80(9):1093-108. doi: 10.1134/S0006297915090011. Available online: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26555463.
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