There are a lot of buzzwords in the beauty industry. Antioxidants, free radicals, skin barriers, and ceramides are all high on the list of words you keep hearing about - but what are ceramides, and what benefits do they have for your skin?
Today, we’ll talk about ceramides, what they are, and how they work. We’ll discuss why you want them in your skincare products and how to use them in your daily skincare routine.
What Are Ceramides?
Ceramides are lipids (fats) that play a role in supporting skin cells, giving the skin structure, and helping maintain the skin barrier (or the outermost layer of your skin).
In our bloodstream, high ceramide levels are usually associated with unhealthy cholesterol levels — but in our skin, ceramides are absolutely essential. Ceramides help balance your skin’s moisture levels, keeping hydration locked in by creating a barrier against the outside world.
They also help support skin barrier function by keeping the skin barrier strong, which helps prevent external stressors from penetrating your skin and causing damage.
Ceramides are a key ingredient in Supercharged IonPlex® Facial Mist. They nourish and support the body in maintaining the skin’s barrier to help retain moisture and protect the skin from external aggressors.
Why Do You Need Ceramides for Your Skin?
Your skin’s natural ceramides decrease with age. That means as you age, your skin is more vulnerable to damage and less hydrated than it once was. Combine a loss of ceramides with your natural loss of collagen and elastin, and you’ve got the perfect recipe for the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, and dry skin.
Thankfully, we can harness the power of topical ceramides to maintain skin health and help support its natural moisture levels. That leads us to the natural next question: Which ceramides should you use?
There are nine different types of ceramides:
Ceramide AP
Ceramide EOP
Ceramide NP
Ceramides 1
Ceramides 3
Ceramide NG
Ceramide NS
Phytosphingosine
Sphingosine
These are all produced by the skin, but they can also be found in animals and plants.
What Are the Main Benefits of Ceramides for Skin?
So now you know the basics: ceramides are already in our skin, and we need them to support skin health and wellness. As we age, our ceramide levels drop, and we can use products that contain ceramides to help support a strong, healthy skin barrier function.
That’s not where it stops in terms of benefits. Using ceramides in your skincare can change your skin for the better and support your overall skin health.
Here are five benefits when you add ceramide-infused skincare to your lineup.
1. They Support Skin Barrier Function
Your skin is your first layer of defense against external aggressors like the sun, pollution, blue light, and even cigarette smoke, which can all cause oxidative stress.
Oxidative stress can contribute to fine lines, wrinkles, sagging skin, and dark spots. Your skin needs antioxidants to maintain cell health during exposure to free radicals and oxidative stress, and ceramides can provide powerful antioxidants and skin-loving fatty acids that offer a layer of protection against the outside world.
2. They Provide Hydration
Dryness is a common skin issue, especially in the winter months and as we age. Our skin naturally becomes thinner and drier, which may feel like a relief if you’ve struggled with oily skin your whole life. However, dry skin can lead to unhealthy skin conditions.
Hydration-supporting skincare ingredients are essential, but making sure those same ingredients don’t get sapped out of your skin is also essential. Ceramides support a barrier on your epidermis that works like an occlusive lotion — it helps keep your skincare ingredients inside and works to naturally combat moisture loss, even in extreme conditions.
3. They Offer Nourishment for Aging Skin
Your anti-aging serums may contain all the best ingredients in the books, but if they don’t contain ceramides, you’re missing out on one of the beauty industry’s best-kept secrets. All skin types and ages can benefit from including ceramides in products.
Ceramides help support healthy skin hydration, which can significantly minimize the look of fine lines and wrinkles and keep skin looking plump and radiant. They’re also ultra-gentle, so they’re perfect for even the most sensitive skin types.
4. They Support Your Sunscreen’s Protective Powers
The sun damages your skin and can even lead to signs of premature aging. Combining a ceramide cream with regular SPF sunscreen may support the body against sun damage.
5. They’re Skin-Soothing
Some skin types feel constantly irritated. They may look red, rashy, feel itchy, or even burn. Irritated skin needs relief fast, and regular lotions and moisturizing creams may contain ingredients that worsen your sensitive skin.
Ceramides soothe irritated skin, protect against environmental damage that can cause sensitivity, and help calm redness and rough patches of skin for a more even-looking skin texture and tone.
How Do I Use Ceramide Skincare?
You’ve got lots of options in terms of ceramides in your skincare, but at NuFACE®, we added ceramides to our ultra-hydrating Supercharged IonPlex® Facial Mist.
This multi-tasking mist helps to:
- Support skin hydration
- Refresh the skin
- Maintain skin barrier protection
- Optimize microcurrent treatment results
Supercharged IonPlex Mist is also packed with hyaluronic acid, a molecule that is capable of holding 1,000 times its weight in water, helping keep your skin ultra-hydrated.
We also formulated our Facial Mist with IonPlex®, our proprietary blend of glacial water and ions, to optimize your treatments with your NuFACE microcurrent device.
How To Use NuFACE Supercharged IonPlex® Facial Mist
You can use your facial mist in three ways:
- Before a microcurrent treatment: Before your treatment, you can prep your skin with your facial mist before applying your favorite microcurrent activator. This helps supercharge hydration to prep for optimal treatment results.
- During a microcurrent treatment: Mist on during your treatment to supercharge hydration and rehydrate your microcurrent activator.
- Throughout the day: Using your IonPlex® Facial Mist throughout the day is a great way to support all-day hydration and keep your skin feeling fresh and comfortable. Keep it tucked in your bag or desk to get the benefits on the go and maintain your skin’s moisture barrier with every spritz.
The best part about our Facial Mist is that every time you use it, you’re dosing your skin with ceramides, hyaluronic acid, and powerful ions to keep skin healthy, balanced, and radiant.
Spray Your Way
Ceramides are naturally found in your skin, but as you age, you make less of them. They’re essential for supporting the skin and keeping it healthy, so using skincare that contains ceramides is important for keeping the outermost layer of your skin strong and healthy.
One way to add ceramides to your everyday skincare lineup is by grabbing NuFACE Supercharged IonPlex® Facial Mist. It’s a convenient way to hydrate, refresh, and revive no matter where you are.
Sources:
The role of epidermal sphingolipids in dermatologic diseases | Lipidworld.Biomedcentral.com
Stratum corneum lipids: the effect of ageing and the seasons | PubMed
Dry skin: Who gets and causes | AAD.org
ARTICLE: Efficacy of Ceramide-Containing Formulations on UV-Induced Skin Surface Barrier Alterations - JDDonline | Journal of Drugs in Dermatology
