Skin Smart Installment 1: Hyaluronic Acid
With my recent interest in skincare, I have been researching the science that goes into creating products and the benefits of specific ingredients. There aren’t a lot of posts out there that aren’t from medical type articles using medical terms that you have to google mid-article to understand, so I thought I would start a new monthly series called ‘Skin Smart’ to break down some of the more popular skincare ingredients and benefits starting with hyaluronic acid.
Hyaluronic Acid has been a super-popular ingredient in skincare for a long time. First forget about the term “acid.” Hyaluronic Acid is different from typical acids (like Glycolic which is meant to break down dead skin cells). HA is a polysaccharide (carbohydrate) that naturally occurs in your skin. While it is throughout your body, it’s found in abundance in the space between skin cells and is a cushioning agent. The greatest thing about HA is that it has an amazing ability to retain moisture. We are talking one gram can hold up to six liters of water (almost 1000 times its weight). As we age, our skin loses the ability to retain moisture (which explains why babies have such soft skin because babies have a super high concentration of HA).
This humectant superpower works to help your skin retain moisture by pulling water out of the air and into your skin. This also means you have to be careful when using it. If hyaluronic acid can’t find water in the air, it will start pulling it out of the deeper layers of your skin. So, if the air outside is dry, make sure you are properly moisturizing as well while using hyaluronic acid and recent studies also show that hyaluronic acid can help provide antioxidant defense against free radicals (which can wreak havoc on living tissue) and antioxidants help to fight free radicals.
Hyaluronic Acid is found in a lot of products these days from serums to lotions and creams, so it’s fairly easy to find. My favorite HA containing products I have been using for a few years are the CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser (also contains 3 essential ceramides), CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion (this also contains 3 essential ceramides and niacinamide) and CeraVe Moisturizing Cream (also contains 3 essential ceramides). Other popular products containing hyaluronic acid include Pixi’s Hydrating Milky skincare line and Neutrogena Hydra Boost skincare and makeup line, but there are a ton of HA containing products at both drugstores and department stores, so get reading those ingredient labels so you can find the hyaluronic acid products that are right for your skin!
I hope I was able to help you understand hyaluronic acid and its properties a little more and I hope you enjoyed my first installment of this new series. My next installment will be about the difference between salicylic acid and benzoyl peroxide so be on the lookout for that post next month and until next time, be happy, healthy and beautiful!
*This blog post is not sponsored. The links listed above are affiliate links. You are under no obligation to use the links, but if you do, thank you and I appreciate your support!