Whitening Face Wash
We customize our skincare regimens to target our obvious skin issues, but we often fail to address the underlying cause of the issue: a compromised skin barrier. The skin barrier serves as your body's first line of defense against pollutants, bacteria, and harsh chemicals. It preserves the health of your skin and keeps it fresh. Therefore, maintaining a strong and healthy barrier is important.
If you’re unsure how to maintain a healthy skin barrier, continue reading.
What is Skin Barrier?
The epidermis refers to the portion of the skin that you can touch and sense. As the outermost layer, it is home to many cell types that produce keratin and melanin and initiate an immune response against pathogens, viruses, and irritants that cause infections and illnesses. The outermost layer of the stratum corneum or epidermis is referred to as the skin barrier, sometimes called the lipid barrier, moisture barrier, or acid mantle. Your skin barrier is our skin's interface with the external world, and it works hard to maintain your healthy glow.
Is Your Skin Barrier Damaged?
Here are some signs of a damaged skin barrier.
Dehydration and Dullness: When the skin barrier is compromised, the skin's ability to retain moisture is compromised, which can result in a tight, dry, and lifeless appearance.
Redness and Inflammation: A compromised skin barrier can cause inflammatory diseases such as rosacea, eczema, and contact dermatitis.
Oiliness or Dryness: Excessive dryness results from your skin's inability to retain adequate hydration, which compels it to produce more oil in order to make up for it.
Increased Sensitivity: Your skin barrier may be compromised if your skin begins to respond aggressively to skincare products that it used to tolerate previously, such as burning, itching, or stinging.
Breakouts and Clogged Pores: Dirt, bacteria, and pollutants can accumulate on your face and within your pores as a result of a damaged barrier. When too much oil is added, your skin may become a breeding ground for breakouts.
Causes of Damaged Skin Barrier
Anyone can have a damaged skin barrier, regardless of their skin type. Some common causes of damaged skin barrier include:
Over-cleansing: Using strong whitening face washes to clean your face too frequently causes it to lose its natural oils, making your skin barrier vulnerable to damage.
Excessive exfoliation: Excessive exfoliation is never beneficial. Using physical and chemical exfoliants more often than necessary will strip your skin and weaken the barrier.
An excessive number of active ingredients: If your skincare routine contains a lot of active chemicals, you may be at a higher risk of damaging your skin barrier.
Importance of a Healthy Skin Barrier
Defense: The barrier of your skin serves as a physical barrier to keep dangerous substances like infections and pollution from entering your body. This lessens the possibility of irritations and infections.
Preserves Moisture: The barrier aids in retaining moisture and halting its loss. Preventing trans-epidermal water loss and preserving skin moisture depend on this.
Integrity of Structure: The structural integrity of the skin is preserved by a good skin barrier, which is essential for the general health and attractiveness of the skin.
How to Repair a Damaged Skin Barrier?
Follow these tips to repair the damaged skin barrier and maintain healthy skin.
Use a Gentle Cleanser
A damaged skin barrier requires a lot of moisture. Therefore, using harsh cleansers that deplete their natural oils is the last thing you want to use! After all, your skin should feel nourished, smooth, and hydrated after cleansing—not tight, dry, and immaculate. So, choose formulas that are mild, moisturizing, fragrance-free, and creamy, enhanced with skin-beneficial components such as ceramides, hyaluronic acid, and oats. We recommend using Skin Lab’s whitening face wash to cleanse your skin. It is formulated with safe and gentle ingredients that will assist in maintaining a healthy skin barrier.
Hydrate Your Skin
In order to repair the skin barrier, you must hydrate your skin. The lipid structure of the skin barrier may be disturbed when your skin doesn't receive adequate moisture. As a result, skin cells shrink, leaving gaps or holes between them that render them useless for keeping irritants out and moisture in. In addition to hastening the aging process, excessive dryness increases the likelihood of irritation, sensitivity, discoloration, and other issues related to tone and texture. Therefore, after cleansing with a whitening face wash, moisturize with a suitable moisturizer for your skin.
Don’t Exfoliate Too Much
Although exfoliation is a necessary component of an effective skincare regimen, overdoing it will result in wear and tear on your skin and its moisture barrier. Thus, we recommend limiting your exfoliation to once or twice a week, depending on your tolerance, to prevent stripping and over-exfoliating your skin and causing harm to the skin barrier.
Protect Your Skin
Even if your skincare regimen includes the most advanced products and formulas, it is all for nothing if you forget to wear sunscreen! Since sun damage is the leading cause of photoaging and skin damage, sun protection must be your priority. However, since not all sunscreens are made equal, make sure you choose a sunscreen that has broad spectrum, SPF 30 or greater, water and perspiration resistance, and no harsh ingredients.
So, follow the above-mentioned tips to repair your skin barrier effectively and efficiently. By using a gentle whitening face wash, moisturizing, and wearing sunscreen, you can preserve a healthy and strong skin barrier, making your skin look fresh, hydrated, and younger.