Category: Lifestyle | 3-Minute Read
Sleep Better, For a More Beautiful Skin
Hi all,
I hope you are all well!
How often do you all feel that “there just aren’t enough hours in the day”?
We all lead extremely stressful lives; whether it involves a highly demanding career, family responsibilities or simply having too much on your plate! Usually, in order to make time for everything, the first thing that is compromised is our beauty sleep.
In this blog, I would like to discuss how your body, particularly your skin, is affected by doing this.
While your body is awake and active, your skin focuses on protection from environmental insults such as UV radiation, pollution etc. At night, the skin can relax as it is not contending with the daily ravages of life so it can concentrate on repairing itself.
There are different stages of sleep and the skin carries out different functions at each stage. One of these is the ‘deep sleep stage’, where the human growth hormone which contributes to the tone, luminescence and elasticity of the skin, is released. Later, during the ‘dream sleep stage’, voluntary muscles relax easing the appearance of wrinkles.
Without sufficient sleep your skin is deprived of the valuable opportunity to renew and repair itself, as a result it can cause skin to look dull and sluggish due to the build up of dead skin cells and toxins. Lines and wrinkles deepen giving the appearance of accelerated ageing, and stress hormones in your body increase, slowing collagen production which results in dark circles or bags under the eyes and puffy skin.
Click to view treatment for eye bags / dark circle treatment.
A study of 60 women, found that those who slept less than 5 hours per night exhibited more intrinsic signs of ageing.
To put it simply, a shortage of sleep can age you overnight!
So what can you do ensure you are sleeping your way to radiant skin?
Sleep for at least 7 hours per night!
- It is possible! You just need to be reminded when to start your night regime! I use the sleep feature on my Iphone which informs me 45 mins my “bedtime”. It also shows me what time I need set my alarm for to have my 7 hours sleep! Make technology work for you!
Skincare products
- The obvious point to make here is that you carry out an effective, regular skin regime every night. However, paying attention to the type of products you use is also important.
- Using heavy night creams can be counter-productive as they may prevent the skin from breathing, therefore use of light serums and creams at night is advised while the muscles are relaxed as this will allow ingredients to be absorbed more easily.
Your sleeping environment
Obviously, a good bed and mattress will never go amiss and I’m certain that your back will be grateful too! Some hypoallergenic mattresses feature an airflow system that regulates body temperature thus preventing dehydration of your skin through the night.
Microbiologists advise that your bed sheets and pillow cases should be washed weekly to reduce skin concerns especially those with oily skin and acne concerns.
Silk pillowcases also do this and also do not absorb your skincare products however a cotton pillowcase does. A silk pillowcase also does not absorb as much of your natural skin oils and as a result, you have less oil and bacteria transferred to your skin resulting in fewer breakouts! I LOVE my Blissy pillowcase and sleep mask and would highly recommend them!
An unwinding night-time regime
Taking a bath before bed, a night spritz or pillow sprays are ways to help you relax and improve the quality of your sleep. Lavender has been found to be particularly useful to relax the mind and as a result, the body.
Applying lavender body lotion, such that the aroma is present all night long, works for me! I do recommending minimising screen-time before going to bed as this will definitely help you unwind.
Position during sleeping
- Many individuals, myself included, like to sleep on their stomachs or on one side rather than sleep on their backs.
- It has been found that if your face is squashed throughout the night, whether its in the pillow or on one side, the skin’s regenerative qualities are compromised and can cause fine lines and wrinkles within the skin. If you take anything away from this blog, it should be to sleep on your back!
So that’s all from me folks!
I’d love to hear about your relaxation techniques so please leave your recommendations in the comments!
Get some sleep! For your skin’s sake!
If you found this blog interesting or helpful, please like, share and comment below!
As always,
Prioritise yourselves!
References:
1. The Journal of dermatological sciences. The Skin ageing exposome. Jean Krutmann, Anne Bouloc, Gabrielle Sore, Bruno A. Bernard, Thierry Passeron, September 26, 2016
2. https://www.express.co.uk/expressyourself/129456/Why-your-skin-needs-a-rest/amp
3. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-51130/A-good-sleep-make-look-younger.html
Images from unsplash.com
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