Overdone your acids? Need to soothe and smooth dryness? Barrier-restoring ceramides meet skin-structure boosting actives to protect and repair your delicate skin barrier in our latest range, launching later this month. It’s total R&R for your skin and here we give you an insight into what you can expect from Ceramide Fix.
Let’s start with the ‘what’. What are ceramides? They’re lipids (oils) found naturally in the skin and are essential in supporting its protective barrier and retaining moisture. They are the building blocks of skin, comprising over 50% of its composition and play an important role in protecting it against external aggressors like UVA rays and environmental damage, as well as keeping it youthful and supple.
When your ceramide levels are low, the skin barrier is weakened. This happens with age, but also happens if skin has been over-exfoliated or overexposed to sun, for example. Moisture starts to escape (known as transepidermal water loss, or TEWL), which leads to a damaged skin barrier, causing dry, flaky skin, redness, irritation and dehydration.
When this happens, you need to replenish your ceramide levels to help repair your skin barrier. Applying ceramides directly to skin does exactly that, and they also help to improve skin’s tolerance of active ingredients, such as glycolic and salicylic acids, by protecting the skin barrier.
We’ve developed our Ceramide Fix range to not only replenish and repair your skin barrier, but also to use alongside our other ranges and help support skin as part of a well-rounded routine. You can use the range on the evenings you’re not using acids, use it alongside acids to keep the skin barrier in check (sort of like moisture sandwiching with hyaluronic acid), or use it as an intensive treatment when skin is in serious need of repair.
So what’s in the range? You can expect three products – a cleansing balm, serum and overnight cream – with each product containing a unique formula powered by three main active ingredients.
-
SK-Influx® V MB ceramide blend with AP, NP and EOP to restore the protective barrier function of the skin and that has been shown to significantly decrease TEWL, improving the stratum corneum (top layer of skin) barrier repair. These are synthetic ceramides, known as pseudoceramides, which are more stable, planet-friendly and able to hydrate skin as well as able to better mimic the composition of natural lipids and the skin’s natural structure compared to plant-derived ceramides.
-
Azelaic acid, a naturally occurring acid that can be obtained from grains such as barley, wheat and rye. It has similar effect to a mild, leave-on exfoliant and helps to unclog pores and refine the skin's surface. It is also a potent antioxidant and helps to diminish the appearance of blemishes and discolouration. It also has cell-communicating properties, “telling” cells at the skin’s surface how to behave and encouraging them to produce more collagen and elastin.
-
Biolin, which is a cosmetic prebiotic sugar that works at the skin’s surface and supports the microbial protective flora of the skin. Daily aggressors like UV rays, pollution and free radicals disturb the natural harmony of the skin microbiota. Biolin helps skin microbiota recover faster, reducing symptoms like redness and itchiness, while also reducing harmful organisms that damage the skin.
- Peptides, which are the building blocks of proteins such as collagen, elastin, and keratin. These substances are responsible for the texture, strength, and elasticity of your skin, and without them, the skin can become damaged, resulting in the appearance of wrinkles, a change in texture, and reduced function. When applied topically, peptides function as cellular messengers, activating skin cells to perform specific functions like synthesising collagen and elastin, which gives skin a healthy, youthful appearance by boosting elasticity and firmness.
Whether you’re a skincare addict who’s perhaps been a bit overzealous with your products, have mature skin that’s feeling the effects of diminished ceramide production or just want to bolster an acid-based routine, there’s something for everyone with Ceramide Fix. Be the first to know when the range launches by heading to our waitlist page here and entering your email – we’ll let you know as soon as it lands on site.