May 28, 2021
I started researching this ingredient because of my own oily skin issues…the answer will reveal itself in just a few paragraphs.
As we age our body is naturally depleting of the hyaluronic acid that is naturally already part of the composition of our skin.The skin is actually where the majority of the naturally produced Hyaluronic Acid in our body is stored.
Hyaluronic Acid has the ability to hold up to 1000 times its weight in water. It also has many functions in the body naturally like lubricating joints, nerves and of course our skin.
In relation to skin care, it acts as a humectant which means it draws water to the molecule, then stores it so that the skin can appear to be fuller because of the extra water lying beneath the skin’s surface.
So you guessed it…having Hyaluronic Acid in skin care helps to hydrate and plump the skin so that it is fuller, resulting in a more smooth texture sometimes even smoothing out our fine lines and wrinkles.
Another important note about Hyaluronic Acid is that it can come in many molecular sizes. Think of it this way, the smaller the Hyaluronic Acid molecule then the deeper it is able to penetrate into the skin, allowing even more effective and immediate results.
If the molecule is larger, because it sit’s mainly on the skin’s surface (the Epidermis, the top layer) the results are usually more temporary as they rarely penetrate the dermis (the middle layer), but can sometimes create an immediate smoothness on the skin’s surface that is favourable.
This is a very useful ingredient when used correctly and can deliver almost immediate results to any skin type.
It is best to use products with Hyaluronic Acid when the skin is freshly washed and even damp so that the moisture can help the plumping begin.
This core ingredient is definitely beneficial in dehydrated skin types but also to anyone’s skin care routine who suffer’s from oily skin. Using hyaluronic in a daily skincare routine can help to balance out sebum production as most oily skin types are also severely dehydrated.
Make sure to use your Hyaluronic Acid skin care products before any heavy moisturizers so that they can access the dermis layer(the middle layer) of the skin and maximize efficiency in your efforts to retain moisture in this skin layer.
For larger molecular weights, because they sit mainly on the skin’s surface (the Epidermis, the top layer) the results are usually more temporary but can sometimes create an immediate smoothness on the skin’s surface.
This ingredient is also quite expensive so if your skin care is very low cost, you are likely not getting a very effective Hyaluronic Acid and your results would likely speak for themselves. As the old saying goes, you get what you pay for and this ingredient is on par!
~S. Milligan