Six ways to boost skin hydration
If you’ve noticed your skin is lacking its usual youthful lustre, it could simply be telling you it’s thirsty!
As we move into a new season (winter) and start to crank the heating, most people’s skin will become a little drier and demand more moisture than usual. While wrinkles are a tell-tale sign of skin thinning and UV and environmental damage, when combined with the changes in air temperature throughout winter, those wrinkles (especially the smile lines around your eyes!) will appear deeper than ever. Older skin in particular will feel the moisture-sucking effects of seasonal changes.
The good news is, skin hydration is an easy one to improve. Hydrating your skin properly will help to increase cell turnover and boost your skin’s natural defence functions, while also making it appear much firmer, plumper and brighter.
Here are our 6 top tips for hydrating your skin from the inside out.
1. Gobble that H20
Super simple, right? It’s often easier said than done, but drinking at least eight glasses of water a day will go a long way towards helping to keep your skin nourished and in gorgeous condition. Especially during the winter months as we move between cold outside temperatures and warmer inside temperatures, adequate water intake is key to ensuring your skin (and lips) don’t get parched.
2. Look for products with hyaluronic acid
Hyaluronic acid is your skin’s hydration hero! It’s a water-attracting molecule that’s naturally present in your skin cells and helps to draw in and carry vital moisture. As we age, our stores of hyaluronic acid deplete, which is one of the reasons why our skin feels drier and loses plumpness. For an intense hyaluronic acid boost, try Atopis skin creams containing Myrecil® – our unique botanical ferment that’s patented and clinically proven to boost hyaluronic acid production at the cellular level for visibly plumper, healthier and more radiant skin.
3. Limit coffee and alcohol
Caffeine and booze might be your fastest routes to energy or relaxation, but unfortunately, they are among the worst offenders when it comes to dehydrating skin. Caffeine and booze are diuretics, which means they naturally deplete the water content in your body and skin. Alcohol is also known to interfere with the hormone vasopressin, the mechanism that helps to regulate the water stores in your body.
4. Use a gentle cleanser
Your cleanser should leave your skin feeling soft and calm – never dry or irritated. Try a hard-working but gentle cleanser like Atopis Thoroughly Gentle Cleanser twice daily, to remove impurities and makeup without stripping the skin of moisture or natural oils. And don’t forget to rinse off with lukewarm water (not hot) to ensure you’re not undoing the calming work of your cleanser.
5. Exfoliate gently & regularly
If there’s an excess of dead skin cells sitting on the top layer of your skin, it might not be soaking in your hydrating ingredients as optimally as it could be. Use a gentle exfoliator at least once a week to slough off dead skin cells and allow your moisturiser or creams to penetrate the epidermis and renew moisture in the base layers of your skin.
6. Embrace eye creams
Eye creams aren’t just for older skin! The skin around your eyes is thinner than most other parts of your complexion and therefore it becomes dehydrated much quicker. Smile lines and crows feet are more noticeable when you’re skin’s not adequately hydrated and that can age your face tremendously. Try a high-quality, concentrated eye cream like Atopis Intensive Renewal Eye Cream daily to help nourish, plump and brighten the delicate skin around your eyes.