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Smiles and frowns, irritants, free radicals, cigarette smoking, and sun exposure are the common culprits of skin damages. The visible effects of these are that you end up having spots, pimples, dryness, redness, wrinkles, among others.
Are you already at that point where you notice redness, tightness, hyperpigmentation, and the symptoms mentioned above? Do not let more time pass. Follow these tips to restore your complexion!
Why Does Recovery From Skin Damage Takes Time?
Generally speaking, the epidermal cells of the skin are renewed in a cycle of about 28-30 days. But we still have to tell everyone who loves beauty a cruel fact; that is, what we call the theoretical 28-day metabolic cycle, not all skins can complete it.
In addition to the metabolic cycle, the skin has several layers! This is another fact that is more difficult for beauty seekers to accept. The rate of metabolism of each layer is not the same. It can be concluded that the deeper the skin, the slower the metabolism.
The epidermis is developed from the lowest basal layer cells. After dividing, it moves upwards. It takes about 14 days for the keratinization process to reach the granular layer.
It takes about 14 days for the keratinization process to pass through the outer layer of the epidermis that contains dead cells to the final withering process. This is the standard cell replacement cycle.
The dermis layer is different from the epidermis layer. Not only is the metabolism slow, but the ability to self-renew and repair is weak. So once the dermis is injured, it is difficult to recover.
The best reflection of this situation is the recovery of acne scars. Under normal circumstances, the skin’s metabolic cycle is about 1 month, which means that the upper layer of the skin is metabolized once a month.
How Can You Repair Skin Damages Faster?
Below are some tips which can help you maintain a more renewed skin and stay younger for long:
1. Exfoliation + Homemade Masks
You do not need to spend a fortune to restore your skin health. Some natural home remedies can suffice.
Each week, make a scrub with crushed oatmeal, honey, and lemon. And then apply a mask of almond oil, cornstarch, and egg white.
They will leave your face clean and even.
2. Include Probiotics in Your Routine
Probiotics are good bacteria that reinforce the skin barrier, reduce redness and soothe irritation.
To obtain its effects, you have two options. The first is to consume them in your diet, as an encapsulated food supplement, or through dairy products. And the second is topically, through cosmetic treatments that contain these particles.
They both work wonders!
3. Do Intensive Facial Treatments
The golden tip to repair the skin is to invest in cosmetic procedures that solve the problem (these may include processes involving depigmentation, dermabrasion, or laser). They are very effective due to their direct action on the layers of the skin.
Find a dermatologist that specializes in areas such as photodynamic therapy, which uses lasers to remove sun-damaged dull skin; or use microdermabrasion and other treatments to reproduce beautiful skin.
4. Use Sun Protection and Treat Sunburns
When you go out when the sun is strong (that is, between 10 am to 2 pm) you can wear sun protection clothing, sun protection cosmetics, and UV protection umbrellas. And also, put some whitening products on those sunburns.
5. Don’t Forget About Hydration
The lack of moisture in the skin may complicate diseases such as atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, or rosacea.
The best way to control this, besides taking sufficient fluids during the day, is by hydrating with beauty products. These should contain ingredients like retinol, peptides, Vitamin C, and hyaluronic acid. Look for them to be part of the formula of your serums or creams!
For dry skin, it is best to have a complete hydration routine, from mild makeup removal balms to moisturizing SPF.
You should apply some lotion on the surface of the skin to moisturize, expand skin cells and promote collagen production.
6. Keep Your Mood Positive and Be Emotionally Stable
The state of the skin is controlled by the nervous system. A good mood can inhibit the parasympathetic nerve excitement by reducing the production of pigment. It increases the blood flow of the blood vessels and the skin.
On the contrary, negative mood and emotional instability affect gastrointestinal function and inhibit the intake of nutrients, causing malnutrition and making the skin dry and haggard. Keep a good mood in daily life and you’d have a good skin look.
7. Reasonable Diet and Sleep
Sleep is an important part of maintaining and repairing the skin and bodybuilding. Sleep is a means of protecting the nervous system. When the cerebral cortex is inhibited by fatigue, energy will not be recovered and the skin can appear oily and ruddy.
Adults should have at least 6-8 hours of sleep every night. The skin of people overworking themselves and those who stay up late, having frequent insomnia can’t be repaired. Then the skin’s color will be dull.
Take foods and supplements rich in vitamins E, C, and selenium. You can also use lotions and skin creams that contain these vitamins. (You can listen to the doctor’s advice).
8. Keep Exercising
Persisting in physical work can enhance skin metabolism. This will also promote breathing, absorb more oxygen, send more carbon dioxide, and have good blood circulation, which is beneficial to your health.
9. Prevent Harmful Factors
My natural factors outside of us can cause skin aging, such as wind, sand, heat, sunlight, etc. UV radiation is an important factor in skin aging. So ensure you use umbrellas and hats when you go out.
Use sunscreen with radiation protection of at least 15+ every time you go out. Using sunscreen every day can reduce the risk of having skin problems in the long term. Using sunscreen not only prevents additional sunburn but also repairs and reverses some other skin injuries.
10. Pay Attention to Skin Cleanliness
The skin exposed to the outside world easily adheres to various microorganisms and is accompanied by a lot of sebum and sweat. If it is not cleaned in time, it will accumulate and affect the skin’s metabolism.
The water temperature should be 35-36 degrees. If the water is too hot or too cold, it will cause bad skin irritation. When choosing cleansing products, pay attention to the oily state of the skin. Choose weakly alkaline hard soaps, cleansing lotions, skin lotions, and shrinking lotions.
What Are the Factors That Delay the Healing Process?
Damage to the skin, or an “injury,” can be epidermal (affecting the uppermost layer of the skin) or dermal (affecting the deeper layer of the skin).
When the dermis is affected, all wounds, burns, surgical incisions, or infections leave some type of scar. That does not mean that all scars are the same. The goal of any treatment is to improve the healing process so that the scar that remains has the most invincible appearance. It should be flat, flexible, and of a similar tone to the tone of your skin.
Some of the factors delaying the healing process are:
- Age: The skin heals faster in young people.
- Diet: When the diet is unbalanced and lacks vitamins and trace elements, it can delay healing.
- Diabetes: Injuries can take a long time to heal in people with poorly controlled diabetes.
- Smoking: Results in less oxygenation of the wound and slower healing.
- Certain Medications: Immunosuppressive medications and corticosteroids can delay healing.
How Can You Accelerate The Healing Process?
To accelerate the healing process of skin damages, do the following:
- Eat a balanced diet rich in protein sources, fresh fruits, and vegetables.
- Make sure you get the professionally recommended hours of sleep at night (8 usually for adults).
- Keep your wounds clean.
- Apply an appropriate healing cream with specific active ingredients to speed up skin repair.
Tips
For skincare novices, there are several habits to develop:
- Don’t exfoliate excessively
- Don’t DIY by yourself, be superstitious about home remedies.
- Sun protection is the most important skincare
Note: Repairing the barrier function is a daunting task and requires patience. Destruction is easy, but repairing is a slow process. Once the skin barrier is damaged, if you want to repair it afterwards, you must be patient for a certain period of time! Remember that no treatment does all the magic. Diet is key too! You can consume avocado, olive oil, oranges, red pepper, nuts, carrots, and papaya to restore the dermis faster.
Final Thoughts
For minor skin barrier damage, the outer layer of the epidermis will take longer to repair. But the stratum corneum will effectively be repaired in about 45 days.
If the skin barrier is moderately damaged, it will take 3-6 months to repair by following the correct way of skincare.
Severe skin barrier damage or red blood streaks on the skin require product repair in addition to the self-repair of the skin. If the skin is self-healing, it depends on the degree of skin damage.