Radiant, youthful, and glowing skin is a desire for every woman. The soft touch of smooth and supple skin is unparalleled. But do you know what makes your skin bounce back with a single touch? It is the ceramides. These are lipids in your skin that hold the cells together and form a natural barrier. However, ceramides are often overlooked when it comes to skincare. In this blog, let us look at some of the skin-restoring ceramides benefits, and learn how to use ceramides for your skincare.
What are Ceramides?
Before we go onto ceramide skin benefits, let us understand what are ceramides. Skin cells contain lipids or fats called ceramides. They comprise between 30 to 40 percent of your epidermis or the outermost layer of the skin. Ceramides are essential for the skin’s barrier function and hydration. With depleting levels of ceramides, the skin might become dry and flaky.
Sphingosine is the component that makes up ceramides. An amino acid is joined to a chain of carbon atoms to form sphingosine. (1) Ceramides are created when this component binds to other fatty acids in various forms.
Ceramide Skin Benefits
Now that you know what ceramides are, let us understand their functions, and the various skin-restoring ceramides benefits.
#1 Aids in Moisture Retention
Ceramides help in creating a water-resistant barrier on the skin’s surface improving the moisture retention capacity. The moisture cannot escape the skin and it feels hydrated and plump.
#2 Protection From Irritants
With a stronger barrier function, ceramides help to protect the skin against environmental stressors and irritants like pollutants, chemicals, or allergens.
#3 Improves Skin Texture
Ceramide skin benefits lie in its ability to improve the texture of the skin by aiding moisture retention. Ceramides help to give you smoother and softer skin that feels bouncy.
#4 Reduces Inflammation
Another vital skin-restoring ceramide benefit is its anti-inflammatory properties. Ceramides can help to maintain healthy skin function by reducing inflammation and redness. If you are facing dry and itchy skin, hydrating ceramide moisturizers are perfect for you.
What Happens When Ceramide Levels Start Depleting?
Just like collagen, ceramide levels in the skin start depleting with age. Other factors contributing to the decline in ceramide levels are sun exposure and harsh environmental factors like pollutants and allergens.
Depletion of ceramides causes defective skin barrier function. (2)
Decreasing ceramide levels in the skin leads to irritated skin that feels dry and gives rise to constant itching. Along with making the skin sensitive, it can also lead to premature aging in the skin resulting in fine lines and wrinkles.
Did you know, the largest organ in the human body is the skin? We often focus on the face’s skin and overlook the body’s skin and its care. However, it makes up about 16% of the total body mass. (3) Taking care of the body’s skin is equally important especially when you are exposed to stressors like sun, pollution, weather conditions, and more.
Thus it is a good idea to recognize the skin-restoring ceramide benefits and add it to your skincare.
Boost the Ceramide Levels in Your Skin
Now that we know the various benefits of ceramide, the question arises of how to incorporate it in your skincare to boost ceramide levels in your skin.
Here are some ways to boost ceramides in the skin.
#1 Practice Gentle Cleansing
Use gentle facewash to cleanse your face so that you are not stripping away the lipids from your skin. Hydrating cleansers can cleanse the skin without making it dry.
#2 Ceramide-rich Skincare
Incorporate ceramide-rich skincare products into your routine. Body lotions with ceramides help you get hydrated skin with better barrier function.
#3 Control Sun Damage
The Sun’s UV rays are one of the major factors that lead to ceramide depletion. Protect the skin with broad-spectrum sunscreen.
#4 Hydrate your Body
It is essential to drink plenty of water throughout the day to maintain hydration inside out.
#5 Healthy Diet
Include foods like soybeans, eggs, sweet potatoes, wheat germ, avocado, brown rice, etc as they are sources of healthy fats and can restore lipid levels.
Pro Tip - You can consider investing in a humidifier in the dry winter months because it can add moisture to the air and prevent excessive moisture loss from the skin.
The Power of Ceramides in Earthraga Body Lotion
Now you can discover the power of ceramides in Earthraga’s Nourishing Body Lotion. This body lotion is enriched with ceramides and squalane (3% Hydagen Aquaporin) which helps you to replenish hydration and strengthen your skin’s barrier function. It deeply nourishes the skin and calms down irritated itchy skin. For 24-hour hydration try Earthraga Nourishing Body Lotion today!
In Conclusion
Ceramides are essential for skin hydration. Do not underestimate the skin-restoring ceramide benefits, especially this winter. Moisture loss in the skin is a common problem everyone faces in winter, and ceramides not only benefit the skin by locking in moisture but also make it soft and supple.
Source:
- https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-1005/branched-chain-amino-acids-bcaas
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1796950/
- https://www.healthline.com/health/largest-organs-in-the-body
