From boosting ‘skinmunity’ to cosying up to vitamin C, learn how to make this your best complexion year yet
Let us take a moment to appreciate the strain our poor skin has been under these past few years. Not only has it had to contend with being cooped up in front of a screen, it’s been subject to being slathered with online impulse buys during lockdown and that’s when it wasn’t being smothered by masks.
No wonder so many of us are suffering from what Dr Uliana Gout, President of the British College of Aesthetic Medicine, terms ‘skinxiety’, namely anxiety about our appearance caused by pandemic-related issues such as ‘maskne’ and ‘zoom face’. The good news is there’s plenty we can do to help our epidermis live its best life in order to elicit the glowy, healthy complexions we so covet.
By honing your beauty regime and adding in just a few (manageable) lifestyle tweaks you can help your skin stay calm and content despite what the year throws at it. We caught up with Sarah Chapman, top facialist and purveyor of good skin for all, to hear her top New Year skin commandments.
Add in in A-star Active
Moisturiser can only go so far when it comes to a healthy complexion. If you want to take your skin to the next level you’ll need some targeted collagen-boosting, dead skin cell-sloughing ingredients aka ‘actives’. ‘Vitamin A is one of my top ingredients for keeping skin healthy, radiant and youthful,’ says Sarah. ‘It stimulates cell renewal to push fresh, younger-looking cells to the surface faster.’ The gold star anti-ager is found under many guises – ‘retinoids’ is the family name for the chemicals derived from vitamin A and includes retinol, retinal and retinoic acid, the strongest, prescription-only iteration.
‘If you’re new to vitamin A, you could start with a more gentle form like retinyl palmitate or for dramatic results, try retinaldehyde – the most potent cosmetic-grade form of vitamin A that you can buy,’ says Sarah. ‘You can find this in my Icon Day and Icon Night moisturisers, alongside skin-strengtheners and drone-delivered peptides.’ And speaking of peptides…
‘Peptides are also excellent for treating and preventing signs of ageing,’ says Sarah. ‘These amino acids act like messengers, triggering cells to produce more collagen and elastin, which are responsible for keeping skin plump, supple and smooth.’
As well as moisture magnet hyaluronic acid (great for hydrating oily skin), the final ingredients on your good skin tick list have to be antioxidants, in particular Vitamin C – the free radical-fighting ninja of the beauty world also known for its collagen-stimulating, brightening properties. ‘Antioxidants are excellent for protecting against environmental damage such as pollution,’ confirms Sarah. ‘It’s why I purposefully added a raft of powerful antioxidants like carnosine, alpha lipoic acid, coenzyme Q10 and vitamins A, C and E throughout my Skinesis range.’
“Vitamin A is one of my top ingredients for keeping skin healthy, radiant and youthful”
Boost your skinmunity
Coined by Dr Gout of the British College of Aesthetic Medicine, improving ‘skinmunity’ refers to bolstering the skin’s natural immunity after a turbulent couple of years and numerous lockdowns. The first port of call? Strengthening the precious barrier (or stratum corneum). Essentially constructed like a brick wall composed of tough skin cells cemented together with lipids such as ceramides, this acts like a protective shield keeping nasties such as bacteria and pollution out while holding on to the good stuff (namely water). Problems occur when this barrier becomes damaged or weakened by environmental aggressors such as UV rays or physical irritants such as overuse of harsh or irritating skincare products.
According to Sarah, the key to giving your barrier some TLC starts with treating it to nourishing ceramides and oils and maintaining hydration levels. ‘Omega oils are my favourite ingredient for glowing, supple skin,’ she says. ‘These fatty acids protect cell membranes and enable healthy cell functioning. You can find them in skincare, food such as oily fish, or omega supplements to support the skin from within.’
And let’s not forget skincare rule number one. ‘Wear SPF every single day – even in winter!’ says Sarah. ‘As well as wreaking havoc with your skin’s barrier function, UV rays cause more than 90% of all skin ageing. Even if you’re using excellent skincare and going for regular facials, if you’re not wearing a good SPF, your skin will be accumulating damage.’
“Omega oils are my favourite ingredient for glowing, supple skin”
Keep calm and carry on
Calm is a superpower, especially in this ‘new normal’ age. Not only can taking time to relax your mind help you to feel better, it can have a positive effect on your skin too as anyone who has ever been confronted with an inopportune blemish (usually right before a big event) will attest. The reason? Cortisol, aka the stress hormone, which prompts the skin’s sebaceous glands to produce more oil.
‘If you’re working from home, make sure to get up and walk around as often as you can and in the fresh air if possible,’ says Sarah. ‘Just getting the blood flowing will help to deliver a natural glow. As our stress levels can also affect the skin’s condition make sure you take time to wind down at the end of the day. My first step is always to put away my digital devices, especially before bed, as blue light from screens can prevent the production of melatonin, the sleep hormone. You could also take a long bath or try some breathing exercises or meditation.’
Feed your face
Put down the triple choc biscuits. ‘Your diet will be reflected in your skin,’ says Sarah. ‘While it can be tempting to indulge in more sugary and salty snacks during the colder months, these can cause puffiness and an increase in oil production, so try to incorporate some leafy greens and vegetables.’
According to Sarah, supplements can be helpful if you’re rushing around and aren’t sure your diet is sufficiently balanced. Nothing beats a rainbow of fruit or vegetables on your plate, though. And maybe just the one triple chocolate biscuit every once in a while – it’s all about balance after all.
“Your diet will be reflected in your skin”
Knead to know
Some days it can be hard enough to find the time to pull a comb through your hair let alone investing in anything beyond the merest rub of moisturiser. But according to Sarah you may be missing a trick in terms of ensuring your skin looks the best that it can.
‘Massage is the cornerstone of my clinical facials, and is my secret to glowing skin,’ she says. ‘After applying your daily serum, massage the formula into your skin with my “gymnastics” technique – using your knuckles (held in loose fists) and fingertips, roll, knead and drum life back into your skin. These movements will push the actives deeper into the skin, delivering more oxygen and nutrients to the cells while encouraging fluid drainage for a sculpted effect.’
And if all else fails let a tool do the work for you. ‘If you can’t get your fingers around the technique, try my Facialift device, which recreates the movements of a therapist’s hands with 48 individual massaging nodules,’ says Sarah.
“Massage is the cornerstone of my clinical facials, and is my secret to glowing skin”
Learn to be more skintuitive
Just as our moods and needs change on a daily basis so too does our skin’s – it pays to really tune in to what it’s trying to tell us in order to get the best out of our skincare. Learn to recognise when your skin is unhappy (dryness or redness are immediate red flags) and switch up your products accordingly.
Other things that can affect how our skin reacts are the changes in season and our hormonal fluctuations so it’s worth trying to pre-empt both with soothing ingredients such as Cica. ‘As a facialist, I see first hand that the skin’s condition is constantly changing due to diet, lifestyle choices and other biological and environmental factors, so it’s important to assess your skin’s condition frequently and select formulas that meet its current needs,’ says Sarah. ‘Skin condition, not type is my mantra, so always assess and change your routine or products based on your primary concerns. Sudden changes in our hormone levels can lead to visible skin issues, particularly around the menopause. I would always recommend speaking to a dermatologist who specialises in treating hormonal skin issues alongside soothing and reparative skincare to ease symptoms of inflammation’
