The skin is the largest organ in the body that has multiple essential functions. It acts as a protective barrier that isolates us from the environment and protects us, while acting as a system of communication with the environment. But not only that, it is also our presentation card, since it shows features related to our age and health.
That is why we must protect our skin, feed and hydrate ourselves well, and take care of it with specific products to keep it in optimal conditions.
Skin and products
There is a large number of products designed to care for the skin and keep it in optimal conditions: creams, cream lotions, talcum powder, make-up, lipsticks, suntan lotions, self-tanning products, sunscreens and sunblock
Here we will focus on defining the creams and their variants:
Creams (facial or body): an unctuous preparation for skin application, used as a vehicle for harmless substances with different actions that benefit the skin. Its main function is to moisturize the skin at various depths (epidermis, dermis, hypodermis), but these products usually have other complementary and also very important functions, such as protecting it from harmful sun rays and promoting the natural production of fibers that give it its freshness and softness (collagen and elastin), while they can include cosmetic functions, such as color shading and acting as a base.
There are different types of creams for different skins, whether facial or body, being more extensive the offer in creams for the face, for the delicacy of this skin and its great variety. We list some products that you can find in the gondola with a brief description:
Facial creams: intended for use on the face
- Anti-aging: Its function is to prevent or attenuate wrinkles, expression lines and provide hydration. You can read more about it in the following tabs.
- Make-up removers: Its objective is to remove makeup from the face.
- Moisturizers: There are also body moisturizers, and they seek
- Cleansers: creams that remove more impurities than soap, respecting the Ph of the skin.
- Exfoliants: they also provide cleaning to the skin, seeking to remove deeper impurities and removing dead skin cells, there are also body exfoliation creams.
- Anti-Redness: product designed to combat or reverse the redness process that some sensitive skins may suffer due to sudden changes in temperature or exposure to the sun, among other factors.
- Anti-acne: these creams are indicated to reverse or attenuate the signs of acne that some skins with an oily tendency may suffer.
All these products must be combined with good facial hygiene to improve results. It goes without saying that for any skin condition, particularly redness and acne, it is ideal to consult a dermatologist before applying any product on your own.
Body creams: those mainly intended to be applied on the rest of the body other than the face, and have other functions
- Special creams for neckline and neck: its formulation provides the necessary hydration for these areas to keep their freshness longer.
- Firming creams: they tone, smooth and strengthen the surface of the skin in order to prevent damage to its elastic fibres; they also help regenerate tissues that have lost their firmness.
- Anti-cellulite creams: the ingredients contained in these creams help eliminate toxins and improve the skin’s surface circulation, which reduces tissue inflammation and relieves the feeling of heaviness in the legs.
- Anti-stretch mark creams: prevent the appearance of stretch marks due to the fact that they deeply moisturize the epidermis, provide elasticity and maintain adequate humidity, which are indispensable elements to prevent the tissues from breaking; when this problem has already manifested itself, their use improves the appearance of the skin.
- Exfoliating creams: provide deep cleaning because they remove dead cells and impurities that usually accumulate in the body, leaving the skin soft and healthy.
- Depilatory creams: they contain chemical substances that destroy hair at the level of the epidermis, so depilation lasts from 4 to 6 days.
- Post-depilatory creams: they provide hydration and a calming effect; there are some that gradually lose weight and reduce hair growth.
- Stain-removal creams: their action consists of reducing the accumulation of melanin (pigment that gives color to the skin) in the areas where it has been produced in an excessive way.
Skin Types
Facial
There are many products on the market that adapt to different types of skin, so it is advisable to choose a product that suits your needs and benefit from their properties.
Normal skin
It is that skin that is in a good condition and is characterized by fine pores, good blood flow, pink and with a uniform transparency, it is also technically known as eudermic skin.
Oily skin
This type of skin is characterized by excessive accumulation of sebum giving the skin that glow associated with oily skin, enlarged pores with comedones (pimples), glow, lack of uniform transparency.
Dry skin
This type of skin is rough and blotchy, and sometimes even prematurely aged. Flaky areas on the skin can produce intense itching and a feeling of tightness.
Mixed skin
It is when our forehead, chin and nose are of an oily type, while the cheeks, on the contrary, are normal or dry.
Sensitive or reactive skin
It is considered sensitive or reactive to the skin when, for external or internal reasons, it has a lower tolerance level than normal, the protection it offers to the body is lower react in an exacerbated manner to a multitude of external agents that other skins would not be affected in the same way, in sensitive skins can generate redness, flaking, swelling, roughness, itching, tightness, burning, prickling, among other symptoms of sensitive skin.
Before these variables, thanks to the innovation of the cosmetic industry we can also benefit from products that have properties that act on aging and its characteristics such as loss of firmness, wrinkles, expression lines, lack of luminosity, appearance of small pigmentations or non-uniform tone whether due to chronological aging or photo-aging, which is the result of exposure to light sources, mainly the sun (although they can also be artificial lights, home, monitors, etc.).
Importance and functions of the skin
The skin is the largest organ of the human being. Depending on the size and weight of the body, its surface area is 1.5 to 2 square meters. The skin and subcutaneous tissue have an average weight of 3.5 kg which represents about 16% of body weight.
Together with the complementary structures called phanerae, such as hair, nails, sweat glands, olfactory glands and sebaceous glands, the skin, fulfills the following functions:
- Protection: the skin protects the interior of the body from external influences.
- Thermal regulation: the skin’s blood vessels narrow or widen to regulate the body’s temperature. Sweating is also a physiological reaction of the skin that helps control body temperature.
- Water resources: the skin protects the body from excessive fluid loss, while allowing the loss of specific fluids (with drainage of certain fluids and salts).
- Senses: the perception of heat or cold, touch and pain is made through the skin.
- Immune system: the skin contains many cells of the immune system, such as mast cells, Langerhans cells, and T cells.
- Exchange of information through body signals: the expression of an emotional reaction can be blushing or paleness. These reactions occur from the widening or narrowing of the skin’s blood vessels that occurs primarily in the area of the face, neck and décolleté.
Do you know how your diet influences the skin?
The skin is a tissue that consists of numerous layers in addition to the epidermis (the one we see), and the health of all these layers results in how the skin looks and feels in general. One of the keys to a radiant, impurity-free complexion is nutrition. Below the dermis lies the subcutaneous tissue or hypodermis, which is largely made up of fatty tissue. If your food intake is high in fat, this will be reflected first in this layer and finally in the whole skin, as an excess of lipids will prevent the correct circulation and oxygenation of the blood vessels, which among many other factors (such as hormonal changes, bacteria, menstrual cycle) can cause the appearance of the aforementioned impurities to proliferate, such as pimples, blackheads, etc.
Water and skin
Our body is made up of 80% water and is necessary for many metabolic processes in our body. For the skin it is the most important substance as it helps to maintain its vitality and softness. The horny layer, which is the most superficial layer of the skin, contains between 10 and 20% of the total water in our body.
There are several factors that increase the loss of water through the skin, such as climate, sun, intense physical activity and inadequate water intake, among others. Keeping ourselves hydrated, through the consumption of abundant liquid and the use of products that hydrate the skin, will avoid having dry skin with an aged appearance since we counteract the effects of water evaporation.
Collagen and elastine
The skin is formed by cells embedded in a matrix composed of gags (glycosaminoglycans), collagen and elastin fibers, proteins synthesized by the cells called fibroblasts. This matrix is responsible for the firmness, strength and elasticity of the skin: the signs of aging reflect in some way its “state”. The matrix of aging and sun-damaged skin is weakened and irregular because UV radiation (in this case UVA which manages to penetrate to the dermis) affects the degradation processes of damaged fibers and production of new proteins.
-Collagen
This structural protein makes up 80% of our skin and is one of the main reasons why it looks young, smooth and healthy.
Collagen is structured by a triple helix composed of three polypeptide chains twisted one on top of the other. Each of these chains is, in turn, formed by approximately 1000 amino acids of different types.
-Elastin
Elastin is the main component of elastic fibers. It is responsible for the skin’s elastic capacity to return to its usual shape and position after being stretched.
he elastic fibers are made up of several elastins intertwined with some microfibers, such as fibrillin. Both components are made up of amino acids such as Glycine, Valine, Alanine and Proline.
Myths and realities
ANTI-AGING PRODUCTS:
With age and environmental factors our skin shows signs of aging. Anti-aging products are cosmetic products that help our skin fight these signs and improve its appearance.
These products support in attenuating wrinkles, expression lines and provide hydration.
The anti-aging cosmetic products are aimed at people with signs of aging such as wrinkles, spots, loss of firmness, loss of luminosity, etc.
Without a doubt, the passing of time wreaks havoc on the body. From the age of 25, the skin is prone to some signs of aging caused by environmental damage. A healthy diet, enough sleep, water, exercise, help the body feel and look good.
To mention there are 2 types of aging:
Intrinsic aging (Chronological): It is of genetic origin. It consists of the physiological, clinical and histological changes that occur in the skin through time. Chronological or intrinsic aging of the skin is characterized by dry skin, loss of elasticity, wrinkles, lack of luminosity. It is certainly the inevitable over time, collagen in the skin is degraded and the elasticity of the skin is lost.
Extrinsic aging: It is given by UV radiation and causes photoaging. It is considered that photo-aging is the main responsible for most of the undesirable changes in the appearance of the skin, it is manifested in areas of the body more exposed to the sun such as face, hands, feet and neckline. The main sign of aging is dryness and the appearance of spots on the skin.
It is generally recommended for use by men and women from 20 or 25 years of age and are products for daily use. Most brands have divided the products by signs of aging and / or age we have then products for:
- First wrinkles
- Wrinkles and bags around the eyes
- Loss of firmness and elasticity
- Mature skin or skin with deep wrinkles
Innovation is very important in this market and all the time there are new molecules and formulas included in the products, it is a market that develops continuously.
There are different galenicals in the market such as creams, serums, fluids, etc; this is not only for the different tastes in textures by the consumers but each formula has different vehicles that potentiate its benefits.
It is very important to get advice to know what type of skin you have, what problem you have and what is the adequate regimen (day, night and eye contour cream) and/or treatment (depigmenting, antioxidants, filling or topical lifting effects, etc.) to have a beautiful skin with a healthy appearance.
One of the purposes of an anti-wrinkle or anti-aging product (as they are also known in the market and by users) is to help maintain the appearance of the most beautiful and healthy skin, attenuating those expression lines, wrinkles, loss of firmness, dryness and pigmentations caused by the passage of time.
Currently, men and women are concerned about delaying these signs and having a better appearance of the skin.