Addressing Skin and Stress, and Choosing the Top Five Ingredients for Cure.
And identifying products to cope with skin stressors.
Stress is inevitable. Despite meditation, yoga, no-screen time, enough sleep, and more in your wellness routine, stressors find their way through tiny alleyways left open in your life and leave an impact.
Managing stress effectively is crucial for not just our physical and mental well-being, but also for the skin. And you already know that it plays a significant role in skin health. It can trigger skin issues like acne, eczema, and premature aging.
Incorporating certain stress management techniques such as regular exercises can help release endorphins and improve mood. Incorporating some mindfulness practices like meditation or yoga can do wonders for your skin too. These practices help reduce inflammation and promote a clearer, more radiant complexion.
Apart from this, maintaining a healthy diet, ensuring adequate sleep, and engaging in regular skincare routines build your skin’s resilience against the negative impacts of stress.
Skin, the largest organ of your body, acts as a barrier against stressors that impact the skin. It also plays an active role in regulating immune function that affects your immune system. Your skin maintains homeostasis between the external environment and internal skin tissues. Hence, stress and skin go a long way.
The formula is simple - No Stress equals no skin problems, whereas, high stress will immediately reflect on your skin.
Everyday stress can take a major toll on your skin, and these are separate from the stressors we identified earlier. While we may relate stress majorly with everyday work or life problems, the mind and the body also process unknown stressors that do not impact our lives directly.
For instance, climate change, pandemics, unrest in the world, politics, etc. leave an impact, leading to skin conditions caused by stress and anxiety.
The results? Acne, early signs of aging like fine lines and wrinkles, dullness, skin rashes, itchy skin, an allergic reaction reduced skin hydration, et cetera.
Stress enables the release of cortisol catecholamines, and neuropeptides that affect you and your skin. Any psychological state like stress, anxiety, depression, or lack of sleep is an accessible pathway for your skin to react. Consistent stress and zero stress management can have severe consequences on the skin as well as the body over time and even become chronic.
Navigating through stress can be tough, we get it. But with education as a key pillar and love for sharing it with our community, we’re here to help. Apart from managing your stress levels holistically, here are five ingredients you can add to your skincare routine with proven efficiency that help to calm stressed skin. The effects of stress on the skin can be nasty and these five skin-soothing ingredients can help the skin breathe, and restore its natural glow.
Niacinamide: We see one question floating around very often: What does niacinamide do? And we're here to answer it for you. It is a vitamin B3 derivative known for its ability to strengthen the skin's barrier, reduce redness, and improve the overall texture of the skin. An ideal ingredient for stressed skin, Niacinamide is packed with a bunch of benefits that don’t go unnoticed on the skin after consistent use. From acne to hyperpigmentation, rosacea to fine lines and wrinkles, Niacinamide is the perfect pick-me-up for stressed skin relief. Look for products containing niacinamide, such as serums or creams.
Our always-in-demand product - The Phyto-Positive Peppermint Potion is the perfect Niacinamide serum that helps fight signs of aging, skin rashes, and other skin reactions to stress such as redness, dullness, and dehydration. It is the best niacinamide serum you will ever try, we promise!
Jojoba Oil: Anti-inflammatory and anti-aging in nature, turn to Jojoba Oil when your skin is irritated, lacks moisture, and flares up with acne. The natural ingredient is packed with essential vitamins and minerals namely - Vitamin E, Vitamin B complex, copper, and zinc, all highly effective for the skin. Next, they soothe the skin and enhance the skin’s protective barrier. Result: An enhanced barrier protects the skin from environmental stressors, pollutants, and harsh weather conditions, making it a total win for stressed skin.
The Creamy Clay Concentrate mask by Founders Beauty gently exfoliates, controls oil production on the skin, and reduces acne, is packed with Jojoba Oil. It is one of the prime ingredients in the clay mask after the potent clay extracted from the glaciers of New Zealand.
Argan Oil: Looking for a natural moisturizing ingredient to treat the skin? Look no further than a product with Argan Oil in it. A natural oil derived from the kernels of the argan tree, argan oil is a lightweight ingredient that is highly effective in combating skin dryness and dehydration. It boosts skin elasticity and hydrates the layers of the skin, thus avoiding acne, and relieving the skin of stress, gradually.
Chamomile extract: Sensitive skin or acne-prone skin is often attacked by stress easily, so we’ve got the right fix. A lot of times, skin is affected by free radicals that speed up the ageing process, or irritate the skin, thus causing rashes and redness. Products with chamomile extract, an effective herbal ingredient suitable for all skin types, help regenerate skin cells, tighten pores, and slow down the skin ageing process.
Founders Beauty's skin care products, like Moisturizing Milk and Phyto-Positive Peppermint Potion, contain chamomile extract that treats the skin from within and gives you glowing skin. The presence of Niacinamide and hyaluronic acid in each bottle promises tremendous benefits for the skin.
Aloe Vera: Tried, tested, and proven, one of the best moisturizing ingredients aloe vera gel, extract, or simply in its natural form, has been a trusted ingredient for decades. Passed on from one generation to another, aloe is one of the best natural home remedies for radiant skin. If you're not sure how to use aloe naturally, look for skincare products that contain this miracle ingredient. From aloe vera ice cubes to mixing it in a desired proportion for a DIY treatment, or simply applying it on the skin as is, its cooling effects help calm acne, heal redness, and reduce the appearance of fine lines. Additionally, Aloe Vera helps cure skin burns caused by excessive sun exposure.
Of course, you’re not limited to just these ingredients as we know there's no one size fits all when it comes to a skincare routine. The idea is to add ingredients to your routine that are hydrating and moisturizing before anything else. Other ingredients to consider? Some great ones to think about using are hyaluronic acid, shea butter, green tea extracts, and more. You can always introduce new skincare products in your routine gradually after monitoring results.
What are some things that cause the skin to be stressed?
An Unhealthy diet: Food and nutrition is closely linked to overall skin health. The food that enters our body directly makes or breaks the skin.
Healthy greens, proteins, balanced fats, fruits and more enhance the skin barrier, whereas lack of it also appears on the skin first. Acne, dull skin, pigmentation, or more, everything you consume first shows on the skin. Along with food, having enough water to flush out toxins plays a key role too.
Excessive sun exposure: Photoaging, photodamage, and sunburns, are some words we hear very often. The constant exposure to UV lights paves the way for your skin's cellular levels to get hampered. More so, these rays go deep within the layers of the skin and damage the skin tissues. This disables the regeneration of skin cells and results in uneven skin texture, spots, pigmentation, and dullness.
Hormonal changes: Fluctuations in your hormone levels are the number one reason for your skin to get affected. Starting from puberty, menstruation, pregnancy, and menopause, your skin is subjected to massive changes. We encourage you to seek guidance from a certified dermatologist who can help identify the right ingredients.
In our earlier blog, we spoke about hormones and the skin, all stemming from stress. Read here to learn more.
Pollution: Your skin works twice as hard when exposed to pollution. Toxins, chemicals within pollutants, impure air, and either factors impact the skin to a large extent. Skin woes like acne, hyperpigmentation, atopic dermatitis, and psoriasis are influenced by air pollution. As per research, pollution is one of the most concerning causes of skin infections and diseases.
Other medical conditions:
Skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, rosacea, or chronic acne can stress the skin, and additionally when dealing with these conditions. Following a regular skincare routine, balancing other aspects of your life, and seeking professional help are some simple ways to manage skin stress.