Summer and The Wrinkle
Now the summer is coming to a close, most of us are a little bit fed up with hearing advice about sunscreens and making sure we cover up, wear a hat etc. We know why we have to do it! However, I think it is nice to really understand what actually happens to our skin in the sun that make the experts go on and on and on about SPF’S !!! So, here it is….
One of the primary reasons people invest in skincare or facials is to help deal with the ageing process. It worries a great many of us when we start to see those first few little lines around the eyes!
However, dealing with aging skin is not just about a miracle product or an amazing Facialist. There are many, many ways we can help slow down the ageing process. It always amazes me that I see so many people invest so much time and money into products and treatments but still neglect to do anything about the very worst aging offender there is! Yes still!
UV Radiation….Not just sunbathing….
What happens when the sun hits your skin is enough to make you shudder!
As you sit on the beach or in the garden, the molecules in your skin absorb the sunlight. Hey presto…..free radicals are activated! A free radical is a very busy, very nasty little molecule that has lost an electron (a negative or positive charge). In a quest to heal itself, they bounce around trying to steal electrons from other molecules, damaging the healthy cells in the process.
Ridding yourself of them is impossible, as they are also a natural by-product of daily living. However, free radicals are unleashed by external factors such as smoking, sunlight and air pollution and it is these we need to address.
Meanwhile, inside your skin cells, free radicals stimulate a molecule called transcription factors, to become activated. These usually lie inactive until the sunlight stimulates the free radicals to give them a little nudge.
The transcription factors then migrate to the nucleus and turn on the DNA to produce various chemicals, which then begins digesting collagen and elastin, leaving tiny defects in the skin termed micro-scarring. Here, lies the birth of the wrinkle!!!
All this happens during DAYLIGHT not just sunbathing. It is well known that just daily living in Ultra Violet Light, 365 days a year causes us to age.
So, I personally always advise clients to use a separate SPF on top of their moisturiser of around SPF 20. It is not enough to be able to rely on foundations with SPF’s alone and these should be seen as a useful addition.
Using SPF everyday is by far, the best anti-aging thing you could do for your skin, over and above anything any product or treatment can do.
So, now you know…one way a wrinkle is formed.
