Products and Ageing, Part 2
THE SEBUM LAYER
The biggest player in premature ageing is extrinsic ageing. Extrinsic ageing is the ageing induced and/or accelerated by the environment. So how can products play their role in helping us to prevent or minimise this?
The first line of defence the skin has is it's sebum layer. Often the importance of the sebum content on the surface of our skin is over-looked, or seen in a bad light. Although it is true that the sebum layer needs to be balanced in order for us to have truly healthy skin, the irony is that so many of the products we use to try and achieve this are actually the part of the culprits that throw this balance out. However let's not focus on that, let's rather discuss the sebum layer itself.
If we take a closer look at the surface of the skin, at the Stratum Corneum in the epidermis, we'll know that this is the primary location of the sebum content in our skin. The main function of this sebum is the form a protective barrier on the surface of the skin. Other functions include playing a role in pH balance and skin immunity. If this protective barrier was insufficient, or impaired in some way, then the vital film that keeps the 'bad stuff' out and the 'good stuff' in would not be efficiently doing it's job. The damaging aspects of the environment would gain far easier access to the underlying skin layers where it could wreak havoc, and the skin's natural forms of defence would not be able to perform optimally because it's environment would've been compromised.
The truth is that many factors affect sebum production. Some may suffer from an over-duction of sebum, others from an under-production. If your skin isn't producing enough sebum then the application of a cream which serves to supplement or support the skin's sebum layer will solve your problem, and in this way add dramatically to you defence against extrinsic ageing.
If you are over-producing sebum in your skin then the first thing you need to assess is why? It could be a hormonally-induced factor, and in this case it may be necessary to consult a dermatologist. Although many factors can contribute to excessive sebum production, one factor that is often over-looked is the overall state of the skin. The state of skin could be poor and out of balance due to stress, poor diet, or even poor skincare routines. Any product that does not take into consideration the importance of building and maintaining the sebum layer creates the risk of throwing it into a state of 'panic' so-to-speak. The skin is designed to produce sebum, it is part of it's anatomy and physiology. This means that when the skin is 'stripped' of it's sebum layer, the natural reaction of a healthy skin would be to produce more sebum to replace it. The more aggressively and the more frequently this process is repeated the more aggressively and the more regularly the skin is conditioned to respond. The result could be that an otherwise perfectly normally functioning skin is thrown into a state of imbalance. Choose your skin care products carefully.
Sebum is made up of different constituents such as fatty acids, amino acids, cholesterol, ceramides and even a little water believe it or not. The purpose of any cream should be to act like a sebum layer. That means they need to be made up of sebum-identical, or at least sebum-similar ingredients. And only those ingredients otherwise the skin needs to go into repair mode to remove the foreign ingredients before it can get back to it's proper job, which is protecting the skin. Creams are not meant to absorb deeply into the skin like so many of them claim to do. Not only are they not supposed to absorb deeply into the skin, they more than likely can't anyway. It goes against the science of the skin's anatomy and physiology! Liposomes however, can. I will explain this in the near future.
So the first step to a happy, healthy, balanced skin is looking after the sebum layer. Supporting it so that it can support you.
Have a stunning day!
Bionome Greetings
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