Hydration is key for creating a radiant complexion. Hydrating helps skin elasticity improve, keeping the appearance from becoming leathery or dull.
To hydrate like an expert, select products containing ingredients with humectants like glycerin (which holds 1,000 times its weight in water) or hyaluronic acid as well as occlusives like shea butter or coconut oil.
1. Hyaluronic Acid
Hyaluronic acid is an extremely beneficial moisturizer that can help your skin appear younger over time. Naturally found in our connective tissues, its stores often diminish with age and lead to dryness, fine lines and wrinkles, dullness or other issues in our complexions.
Hyaluronan can be found in numerous products, from cleansers and face creams to eye drops and injections. Finding one with the appropriate molecular size is key: larger molecules bind water more readily at the surface level while smaller ones penetrate deeper into skin layers for maximum hydration benefits.
Benjamin suggests choosing a serum with multiple sizes to provide both surface and deep hydration, pairing this product with AHAs/BHAs exfoliators to increase skin hydration post-exfoliation while priming it for absorption of other products.
2. Ceramides
Ceramides are lipids that work to form your skin’s natural barrier against environmental pollution and infections, while also helping retain moisture loss, protecting its outer layers from damage and keeping cells intact.
These ingredients can often be found in products like moisturizers and serums, and can help improve dryness by strengthening the skin barrier and helping it repair itself while simultaneously providing essential hydration to maintain healthier-looking skin. Incorporating anti-ageing benefits, hydrating skin repair programs into daily skin care regimens has proven very successful for rejuvenation of older and damaged tissues, giving younger and healthier-looking skin an added edge over time.
Look for plant- or synthetic-based ceramides when searching for skincare ceramides. Plant-based options have the benefit of being vegan while synthetic products provide more advantages when it comes to education your skin. When selecting the ideal product, use it after hydrating your toner and prior to sunscreen use for best results.
3. Squalane
Squalane (also referred to as phytosqualene or olive squalane) has become one of the hottest skincare ingredients available due to its powerful moisturizing abilities, helping reduce fine lines, wrinkles and rough textures in skin.
Honey is an anti-irritant oil that acts as an emollient to retain moisture in your skin’s layers and can act as an effective barrier against moisture loss, while providing powerful antioxidant protection from free radical damage.
Squalane used to come solely from animal sources like shark liver oil; now however, plant sources like olives, rice bran and amaranth seeds have become a more likely source. At Paula’s Choice we use COSMOS-approved plant-derived squalane that is both 100% pure and unrefined.
Utilize our Squalane Booster Stick to provide your skin with an essential boost of moisture and an even skin tone. When combined with other powerful ingredients like Caffeine to reduce puffiness and Niacinamide for enhanced texture, the results will reveal brighter and healthier-looking skin!
4. Glycerin
Glycerin (also referred to as glycerol) is a safe and natural skincare ingredient that can help improve skin’s moisture content. Like hyaluronic acid, glycerin acts as an absorbent that draws water into the skin so as to prevent dehydration, as well as acting as an occlusive agent – keeping your complexion soft and supple.
Glycerin is a clear liquid made of vegetable, animal or petroleum sources. Common forms of vegetable glycerin include coconut, palm or soybean oils and fats while synthetic versions are often produced using propylene glycol.
Look for this powerhouse ingredient in cleansers, serums and moisturizers to hydrate your skin throughout the day. Additionally, this powerful substance is an ideal way to boost the performance of serums by penetrating deeper layers of your skin and increasing their absorption rates.
5. Water
People often believe that water consumption alone is enough to maintain healthy skin, though while drinking some amount may help soften and plump up your complexion, applying hydrating products may have more of an impactful result.
Hyaluronic acid can bind with moisture molecules in the air to pull moisture deeper into your skin, while at the same time creating a protective barrier against trans-epidermal water loss (TEWL). When applied topically, moisturizers provide another layer of defense to keep skin oils intact and can help you retain natural hydration levels for longer.
