Here are some skin care trends, buzzwords, and innovations to have on your radar. It is likely you have tripped over these in the news, in magazines, and on product shelves. Below we offer Winter trends de-coded to help keep your skin in top shape.
- Superfoods: Not just in edibles, but also in skin care. These A-list superfoods include avocado, rose-hips, coconut, acai, quinoa, turmeric, goji, cacoa, chia, flax, red algae, and green tea. Why are these items moving from the list of ingredients in your smoothie and sneaking into skin care? These nutrient-packed foods can help heal and repair your body. Not only do you ingest nutrition from your gut but also through your largest organ, the skin. Superfoodsare nutrient dense powerhouses with large doses of antioxidants, polyphenols, vitamins, and minerals. Also, rich in omega-3 fatty acids, they help take down inflammation and repair damaged skin for a healthy glow. Don’t just eat them, but also slather them on.
- Activated Charcoal: The go-to for hospitals around the world for a safe and effective treatment for poisonings and drug overdoses. Why do you find it in skin care? Activated charcoal draws bacteria, poisons, chemicals, dirt and other micro-particles to the surface of skin, helping to achieve a flawless complexion and fight acne. Charcoal is not metabolized or absorbed by the body, yet it is proven to adsorb thousands of times its own mass in harmful substances, which makes it a popular ingredient in facial masks, soaps and treatments, trapping dirt, oil, bacteria and chemicals.
- Oil-Based Skin Care Products: Choose products that protect skin from hydration loss. Most moisturizers contain up to 80% water. Initially, rubbing a body or hand lotion onto skin can feel great. But it isn’t a long-term solution, because the water doesn’t penetrate but evaporates from the skin. Invest in oil-based skin care, especially for the winter. The oil creates a protective layer on the skin that retains more moisture than a cream or lotion. Choose products with rich, essential fatty acids, that provide skin-care benefits such as hydrating, healing, as well as anti-aging properties.
- Zinc: It’s not just vitamins that are essential to our bodies’ overall health and development, minerals are also essential to help your body take care of itself. Zinc is shown to be effective in treating topical irritations and injuries, including acne, skin sores and minor wounds. How? By helping cells to regenerate. Zinc is found in sunflower seeds, red meat, eggs, oysters and beans. This trace mineral is essential for maintaining the immune system. If you are deficient in zinc you might be more susceptible to a variety of infections such as the common cold. Research has suggested that zinc taken within 24-hours of a scratchy throat may reduce the duration of the common cold by days. And your skin could benefit at the same time. Zinc is a key part of your skin’s defense system, helping to heal and rejuvenate.
- Drinking Bone Broth: Easy to make and relatively inexpensive, bone broth is the new elixir of wellness bloggers, celebrity chefs, and its popularity just continues to grow. Why? Because it is reported to promote strong bones, reduce join pain and inflammation, and to increase collagen in skin. Yes, you heard that right! Bone broth increases collagen, reducing the appearance of wrinkles, or so the experts say. It’s not exactly a new food. Grandmothers have been making it for ages, basically cooking bones in water to create a broth to add noodles, veggies, etc. So, if you’re someone who likes hot soup in the Winter, this is a trend you will definitely want to embrace! Especially if you desire shiny hair and luminous skin.
Written by Rebekah Kelley – creator and founder of VIRTUE SKINFOOD
