What is it about winter that makes dry skin dull and lifeless? According to some researchers, the cold, dry air typical of winter causes the outermost layers of cells to shrink. To make matters worse, their natural moisturizing factor is removed, the barrier that protects the deeper layers is weakened, causing moisture to evaporate and the situation to worsen.
The release of inflammatory substances to compensate for this imbalance ends up causing irregular pigmentation and itching. For this reason, it becomes more susceptible to attack from the elements, making it difficult to repair if the damage has gone too far. A combination of misfortunes that results in aged, flaky, cracked and dull skin.
Anatomy of dry skin
This type of skin usually looks dull, lifeless, and has little elasticity. Pores shrink and, on occasion, it can trigger flaking and itching. One of the reasons for this is a lack of lipids, and without them, it is difficult to maintain moisture reserves. But, beware! Let's not confuse dry skin with dehydrated skin, they are two very different epidermal phenomena. The main difference is that dry skin lacks lipids, while dehydrated skin lacks water.
Environmental factors aggravate it: in environments with low humidity or very cold temperatures, the skin is affected. Free radicals (from pollution, ultraviolet rays or tobacco smoke) attack the protective barrier and make it more difficult to maintain hydration, which accelerates aging and causes wrinkles and fine lines to appear.
Without ceramides, there is no paradise
The unavoidable solution is to provide them with what they need most: lipids! And this is where the blessed ceramides come into play, abundant in the lipid bilayer of cell membranes and those lipids present in the intercellular junction, responsible for maintaining the natural hydration of the skin. The negative fact: their production decreases over time.
To understand their importance, let's imagine that the structure of the outermost layer of the skin (the stratum corneum) is similar to a brick and cement wall, in which the bricks are the main cells, and the cement, the lipids that hold them together. Of those lipids, approximately 50% are ceramides. For this reason, cosmetic products that include them in their formula have a softening action and make the skin less vulnerable to external factors that alter it.
"Since our skin suffers a multitude of daily aggressions that can affect the functioning of its protective barrier throughout our lives, I believe that it is never too early (or too late!) to incorporate products that contain ceramides or that improve their production into our beauty routine," says Pedro Catalá, founder of Twelve Beauty.
Intelligent Frontier Facial Oil, thanks to its powerful blend of unsaponifiable vegetable oils from sunflower, wheat germ, soy and olive, has a high percentage of ceramides, providing a great dose of nutrition. In addition to high repairing and regenerating power, making the internal structure of the skin – its foundations – strong, solid and compact.
Dryness, not just for the face
Because body skin usually suffers even more. For this complex area, a top treatment is Rewarding Body Balm, a true lifeline for the driest, most damaged and dehydrated skin. Not in vain, it was the first product developed by Pedro Catalá to pamper skin undergoing oncological treatments.
Among its powerful active ingredients are jojoba oil (with 96% ceramides) and sunflower oil, very rich in nourishing substances. Vegetable squalene (derived from olive oil), a transparent fluid oily substance that has an enormous natural affinity with the skin, being one of the main components of human sebum and the skin's hydrolipidic film. Or Spent grain wax, very rich in linoleic acid, an essential fatty acid essential for the regeneration of the epidermal barrier.
"I always formulate at a pH of around 5, as at this level is when the enzymes responsible for producing ceramides are most active," Pedro reveals. This ensures that this cosmetic treasure guarantees nutrition and the supply of key substances to eradicate skin dryness.
Mix & Win, the pairs that boost results
If we want to make dry skin care routines richer and more consistent, here are some ideas that will enhance the results: combine a few drops of the miraculous Intelligent Frontier Facial Oil with Nutritive Repair Emulsion for the face. Developed to repair and restore very reactive and dry skin, thanks to its exclusive combination of ingredients rich in unsaturated fatty acids such as linoleic acid and phytosterols, essential for regenerating and strengthening the epidermal barrier.
For the body, an excellent perfect pair to combine with Rewarding Body Balm is Jojoba Quench Body Serum applied first. A true gourmet recipe to enhance the supply of jojoba, one of the oils with the highest proportion of ceramides, and thus achieve more elastic, hydrated and super nourished skin.