Is modern living ruining our skin?

by Priscila Fadul

LENDAVA INVESTIGATES:

Our modern lifestyle is convenient and indulgent, but is it negatively affecting our skin?

The contemporary life we have created is remarkable. We have meals delivered to our door, apps for nearly everything, and more consumer goods than ever before. However, our bodies can’t keep up.

This lifestyle is unknowingly disrupting our skin’s barrier. We’re causing the very aging effects that we’re trying to prevent! Let me explain.

Our lifestyle has evolved, our skin hasn’t

Humans have been evolving for over 6 million years, but many of the environmental stressors we face on a daily basis are new. The skin barrier we’re armed with simply isn’t ready for things like:

  • Pollution
  • Light and UV exposure
  • Poor diets
  • Increased stress
  • Antibiotics

All of these factors “age” our skin. They cause fine lines, wrinkles, sagging, dullness and hyperpigmentation. They even accelerate the loss of collagen. How? These things affect our skin barrier.

Popular ingredients that hurt our skin’s barrier

Our skin’s barrier is sensitive and it’s irritated by many things out of our control, like pollution. However, the skin barrier is also being damaged by common beauty products. That’s right. All those products are making your skin worse.

Some ingredients meant to improve skin’s condition can actually lead to redness, flaking, rough texture, and sensitivity. These same ingredients can even worsen signs of aging (more on that later).

Common ingredients that can harm the skin barrier are tretinoin, SLS, SLES, fragrance, hydroquinone, kojic acid, exfoliating acids, retinol, benzoyl peroxide, propylene glycol, and many others.

As The New York Times explains, “You’ve just spent years using really badly formulated products, which is like years and years of eating junk food.”

Why do our beauty products harm our skin barrier?

The beauty industry is always evolving. False information and marketing can skew our perspective of what’s good or bad. Meanwhile, modern products are designed to make our skin dependent on them to fuel consumerism.

LENDAVA was created after a persistent search for no-nonsense products and claims, plus years of working to differentiate fact from fiction when it comes to skincare. And believe us, skincare doesn't need to be complicated. THE FORMULA IS WHAT MATTERS.

So what does that mean for you? Stop. Believing. The. Lies! You can age with beautiful skin if you prioritize healthy skin first.

The best, timeless anti-aging routine

In short, stop believing the marketing messages you’re hearing. The most beautiful skin is healthy skin. So how do you get that? With a timeless, trend-free beauty routine.

For the best anti-aging routine, you should focus on these steps.

  1. Preserve and build a healthy skin barrier.
  2. Get rid of excessive products - less really is more!
  3. Find one hero product that protects your skin’s barrier.
  4. Invest your time, money and energy into self-care rituals that improve your life overall.
  5. Try to maintain a healthy lifestyle that cares for your entire body.

So is modern living ruining our skin? Ya, a little bit.. but don’t lose hope! With a long-term strategy that focuses on your overall health, your skin is bound to flourish, glow, and age beautifully.