What does science say are the most efficient skin care ingredients?
Besides the all natural, over the counter skin care ingredients that we can also get by preparing our very own homemade mixtures, there are a bunch of compounds that have been proven to render really amazing effects and are being included in more and more skin care lines.
So let’s meet the power players of the skincare aisle and also see how we can make them work better for our beauty goals.
Retinol, also known as the Cure-all ingredient
This vitamin-A derivative treats fine lines, wrinkles, sun spots, dullness, crepiness, sagging skin…you name it. Forms of retinol “are among the best anti-aging ingredients we have,” says Jeffrey Dover, an associate clinical professor of dermatology at the Yale School of Medicine.
The way retinol works is by speeding up cell turnover, sweeps away the dead cells that cause dullness, and boosts collagen and elastin by stimulating cellular repair at the deepest level of the skin. It also pumps up circulation by increasing blood-vessel formation, so skin looks healthier.
In order for it to work its wonders you need to pay attention to some specific traits.
These include buying it in an opaque plastic pump bottle or an aluminum tube so that it doesn’t start degrading from the first time you start using it. If it tingles, it means it’s working.
Always use it in your evening routine, after you’ve cleansed and dried your face, as that’s when it works best. Dab around the eye area every third night. Retinol is great for undereye skin issues.
Add a moisturizer with niacinamide or ceramides to help the skin tolerate the ingredient better.
Hydroquinone, also known as the Eraser
This ingredient is used mostly to even out sun spots, blotches, and mottled skin, being considered the most effective ingredient for bleaching skin, acting by blocking the enzyme that triggers melanin production in the skin.
Dab hydroquinone right on the dark spot and become responsible with your sunscreen protection.
For best results, combine itIn the morning, with a glycolic or salicylic acid cleanser to help buff away blotches and make other ingredients penetrate better. Then, smooth on an antioxidant-laced brightening lotion to inhibit melanin while protecting skin.
Sunscreen, also known as the Preventer
Every skincare routine 101 states that slathering on sunscreen is probably the most important step.
Sunscreen helps ward off premature signs of aging with symptoms such as wrinkling, sagging, and getting blotchy by protecting it from harmful UV rays, which destroy collagen and elastin fibers and damage DNA.
When buying a sunscreen, be sure to choose a broad-spectrum (UVA and UVB) sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher, and also, in order to boost its effectiveness, look for one that has a high antioxidant content.
