Many of my clients that visit me for the first time and some of the people I speak to at press and industry events tell me that they do drink the required 1 – 2 litres of water per day, but their skin still feels dry, tight and sometimes flaky, which many find frustrating. As a skincare expert I consistently reinforce the importance of drinking water to promote beautiful skin outside and also ensure that the internal organs can function properly and with ease. Generally..and here comes my mantra yet again, “beautiful inside usually means beautiful outside too”. So, what are some of the common reasons that dehydrated skin manifests itself and what you can do to combat and correct it.
Firstly, I must makle it clear that dehydrated skin is a skin condition, meaning that it is temporary.
Hydrated skin is healthy skin! Deeply hydrated skin is not only healthy skin, but younger and fresher looking, plump, luminous and happy skin. It has a smooth texture and appears soft and supple and is less likely to age prematurely. How can you ensure your skin is adequately hydrated and how can you maintain it at the correct hydration levels?
The sebaceous glands in your skin produce sebum; a wonderfully complex oily, acidic mixture of fatty acids, waxes, and other natural chemicals that form a natural barrier and one of its functions is to ensure that the outer layer of the skin is protected from losing water. If your skin doesn’t have enough sebum, it wont have enough water, it just evaporates and may leave your skin feeling dry and tight, which can result in flaky skin, sensitised skin, that can be itchy and cracked, shrivelled or wrinkled in appearance.
As you age (gracefully of course), the number of sebaceous glands in your skin reduce and the amount of oil secreted onto your skins surface by these glands decreases and as a result, your skin loses its ability to hold moisture naturally. The water content of your skin needs to be substantial enough to result in what I call elastic, dewy looking skin which is soft to the touch. Where the top layer contains a minimum of 10% water, but ideally the level should be between 20% and 35%.
