How does environmental pollution affect your skin? What can you do about it?

What is pollution and how does it affect your skin? 

What is pollution?

Increasing environmental pollution is causing more and more concerns for public health. It is well known that air pollution reduces quality of health and lowers life expectancy.

The term "pollution" refers to environmental small poison particles that you are exposed to through the air, water, food, and even through your skin. 

It is almost impossible to calculate the amount of pollution you are exposed to on a daily basis, because the air changes constantly. What we do know is that as long as people consume, the toxins increase globally, and we are being exposed to an increasing amount of pollution every day.

The impact that these pollutants may have on your skin depends on how frequently you are exposed to the environment. This exposure, according to LILIXIR, will differ from person to person, from geographical location, the urban on rural area, to the type of job they do on a daily basis. Especially, if you live in big polluted cities, it is extremely possible that your skin is exposed to severe pollution every day.

There are many different types of pollutants, from some atmosphere brought substances like ozone or nitrogen dioxide, to industrial waste products like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon and nanoparticles.

 What does pollution do to your skin?

LILIXIR believes there is no doubt that your skin is exposed to significant pollution every single day, especially if you reside in big cities.

 According to research, pollution has the following negative effects on your skin:

1. Increases the rate of sebum secretion and decreases the level of your skin pH, which is one of the main causes of acne and other skin issue.

2. Lowers the Squalene and Vitamin E level in your skin. These are two main antioxidants at the surface of the skin that are responsible for the wound-healing processes, and the cause of oxidative stress. Dry skin, which may be a side effect of pollution, is typically associated with low levels of these two antioxidants.

3. Increases the level of Lactic Acid of your skin, that can lead to problematic skin.

What can you do to protect your skin against pollution? 

Since you do not only ingest environmental pollutants through your food and air, but also absorb them through your skin, LILIXIR, a Canadian natural beauty company, claims that the skin is a crucial barrier in the fight with the impacts of pollution on our bodies.

Anti-pollution cosmetics are a popular new trend, says LILIXIR, and they are in high demand in countries where environmental pollution is a serious issue in many major cities. Numerous research that looked at how pollution affects skin ageing came up with some well defined conclusions.

According to LILIXIR, the ideal way to care of your skin is to maintain a good skin-barrier function, which aims to prevent as many contaminants as possible from penetrating your skin. It is important to pay attention to your skin microbiome health.

Pollution inhibits the effectiveness of the skin's barrier by oxidizing the lipid layer and breaking down the collagen.

The majority of the time, smog's particles are too large to penetrate the skin, so they stay at the surface of your skin, but they can still disrupt your skin's protective layer. Consequently, this can lead to dehydration, irritation, uneven skin tone, dullness, acne, and premature ageing.

LILIXIR believes that managing the possible negative effects of pollution on your skin requires consistency and good quality topical skincare products, which in turn do not further pollute the environment through plastic packaging.

Help your skin eliminate pollution through these 5 steps

According to research, the world's most polluted regions tend to have higher rates of skin issues. The effects of pollution on the deep layers of the skin are currently still being studied.

1. Cleansing with gentile natural beauty products (hydrating foam cleanser, oil-based cleansers, oleo-gels, etc.).

2. Deep and surface hydration (serums, moisturizers)

3. Topical and ingestible antioxidants (Vitamin E, Squalene)

4. Detoxifying elements (charcoal, clay mask, gel-to-milk masque, etc.).

5. A correct and consistent skincare routine - download "A step-by-step guide to naturally glowing skin by LILIXIR". It contains everything you need to know about how to properly take care of your skin.

What can new beauty brands do to help your skin fight pollution?

There is no skincare product that "fights pollution" per say. Skincare products can help you clean your skin, hydrate, moisturize and improve your skin barrier. All skincare products and a consistent skincare routine will protect your skin against pollution.

LILIXIR has spent the last few years developing and testing a Premium line of organic and natural skincare products - LILIXIR Ageless Rejuvenating Serums Collection to help you increase your skin barrier which plays a big role against environmental pollution.

Comment below and share this article on your social media if this was helpful! Sign up to LILIXIR Newsletter for more educational content like this and don't miss any future blog posts.