We've all come across those people who seem to have discovered the secret to defying aging, well into their 50s, 60s, 70s, and beyond. They effortlessly maintain youthful, radiant skin while others battle sagging and wrinkles. Sure, factors like diet, exercise, and sleep play a role, but there's something more fascinating behind the scenes: telomeres.
Telomeres are like little caps on the ends of our DNA strands, working hard to protect our cells from aging too quickly. It turns out that understanding telomeres is key to unraveling the aging puzzle. And get this - researchers have found that 95% of facial skin with longer telomeres appeared younger compared to skin with shorter telomeres!
Now, it's essential to remember that our telomere health is influenced by a multitude of factors. But let's take a closer look at how these remarkable telomeres actually function.
WHAT ARE TELOMERES?
Each person is wonderfully unique, shaped by a special genetic makeup. At the end of our chromosomes, we find these amazing protectors called telomeres. Just like the plastic or metal tips on the ends of your shoelaces. They prevent our chromosomes from deteriorating.
Telomeres play a vital role in keeping our cells in check as we age. To help keep these protected, we have an enzyme called telomerase that comes to the rescue. Not only does it defend telomeres, it also has the power to rebuild and lengthen them so they can keep replenishing and staying healthy even as time goes by.
Telomeres are essential as our cells divide to create new skin, blood, and bone tissue. They safeguard our precious DNA, making sure we don't lose any important genetic information.
However, as our cells divide, telomeres naturally become shorter. When they become too short, cells can become dormant, die, or even experience genetic damage that may lead to health issues like cancer. On the other hand, longer telomeres have been associated with overall well-being and longevity.
Over time, the gradual loss of telomeres in our chromosomes affects the aging of our skin. Factors such as a weakened immune system, decreased cell division, and certain triggers known as "telomere triggers" can contribute to telomere erosion. They can also be affected by oxidative stress, glycation, and UV exposure, which limit telomere repair and lead to shortening.
Inflammation plays a crucial role among these triggers. When our skin becomes irritated or traumatized, it becomes inflamed, and excessive inflammation can accelerate the aging process, resulting in premature pigmentation, loss of firmness and elasticity, and the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. To address these skin conditions, gentle exfoliation is definitely an effective treatment.
WAYS TO PROTECT TELOMERES
Renewing your telomeres is all about making positive lifestyle changes while shifting your biology towards slower cell aging.
When you wake up in the morning, do you immediately jump into your hectic day? Well, what if you just take a moment to appreciate something around you? It could be your pet, a beautiful piece of jewelry, or even just a framed picture that brings back happy memories. Oh, and don’t forget to stay hydrated with a glass of water (yes, even before coffee or tea).
Starting your day with a calm, joyful routine can make a real difference. It helps reduce the stress hormone cortisol, which can interfere with the body’s anti-aging functions.
Developing healthy habits to manage stress is a great way to boost telomerase or telomere production. You don’t need to dedicate hours to it - just a few minutes of relaxed self-care can work wonders. Embrace things that bring you joy and put you in a happy mood. These small, simple moments may seem insignificant, but they will accumulate over time, protecting your nervous system and slowing down cell aging.
GENTLY EXFOLIATE
When it comes to prolonging telomere health, it’s important to remember to exfoliate.
Besides removing dead skin cells, exfoliation can stimulate skin cells to divide, offering some pretty great anti-aging benefits. Over thousands of years, exfoliation techniques have been applauded for their ability to bring a youthful appearance to the skin. In the last 50 years, these techniques have become very advanced, and skincare has reflected this.
Ingredients like glycolic acid, found in our DEEP ENZYME CLEANSE, salicylic acid, found in our CLARIFYING SERUM, and bakuchiol (a gentle, plant-based retinol alternative), found in our BAKUCHIOL WONDER SERUM, are great for encouraging cellular turnover, with each playing a vital role in the exfoliation process.
After all, skin cells can only divide a certain amount of times before the telomere becomes too short. Exfoliation is a great way to kick off cellular turnover, but only if done in moderation. Overusing exfoliators can cause a cell to divide too much too quickly, shortening the life of its telomeres.
It’s very important for skin’s health to provide it with anti-inflammatory and healing ingredients after exfoliating (like our antioxidant-rich CREAM) to reduce inflammation and irritation, since these speed up cell division more than is needed and shorten telomeres quickly.
By combining ingredients that aid in the repair process of damaged skin with ingredients that encourage the lengthening of telomeres, your skin is in luck! Here are some ingredient categories to work into your routine to lengthen your telomeres:
ANTIOXIDANTS
The key to encouraging healthy telomeres is to prevent oxidation, the damage to cells that comes from free radicals. Antioxidants are our main defense against oxidation, and thankfully, many popular (and natural) skincare ingredients are absolutely full of them. Topical products like serums, cleansers, and moisturizers that contain antioxidants are a must for fighting off those dangerous free radicals before they can damage skin cells and accelerate signs of aging!
Antioxidant-rich ingredients include Vitamin C (found in our PLUMPING SERUM), Vitamin E (found in our MANDARIN MELT CLEANSING BALM), niacinamide (found in our BOTANICAL LIFT EYE GEL), and resveratrol (found in our MARINE PEARL CREAM).
BOTANICALS
Keeping your skin’s defensive moisture barrier healthy will also go a long way in maintaining telomere strength. Your skin needs moisture to heal correctly and without it, skin can stay dry, irritated, and inflamed, allowing telomeres to erode. Replenishing your skin’s hydration with healing plant extracts after exfoliation will encourage it to start healing immediately. This allows the barrier to function properly and give your skin the defense it needs to protect your telomeres.
Many botanical ingredients are potent hydrators that strengthen skin barrier function, like shea butter (found in our HYDRATING CREAMY BODY OIL), oat bran (found in our BLUE TANSY HYDRATING FACE MIST), and jojoba oil (found in our CREAM).
CERAMIDES
Ceramides are crucial lipids that play a vital role in nourishing and safeguarding our skin. These are instrumental in maintaining a healthy skin barrier, preventing loss of moisture, and protecting the skin from external toxins and irritants. And just as with botanicals, this allows the skin barrier to function properly and protect your telomeres from erosion.
You can find an abundance of ceramides in our retinol-alternative BAKUCHIOL WONDER SERUM.
SUN PROTECTION
When it comes to protecting against telomere erosion, UV protection is not just important, it’s essential. UVA and UVB rays wreak havoc on your skin surface and skin cells, accelerating aging, promoting free radical damage, causing sunburn, and even potentially causing melanoma (skin cancer). All of this plays a role in eroding telomeres.
Use a broad spectrum SPF of at least 30 on your body with a tinted SPF like our MINERAL TINT SPF 31 to have a simple everyday step you can take to keep your face protected.
THE RESEARCH GOES ON
Every day, researchers around the world are exploring telomeres and their impact on our lives. They’re diving into how telomere longevity affects lifespan, developing cancer, and wound-healing.
The skincare world is taking this knowledge to heart, utilizing it to create remarkable anti-aging skincare and promote overall well-being. With the latest telomere research and technology, along with potent, natural ingredients, products can deliver outstanding results.
Thank you for reading this article and if you want to learn more about the best products for your skin type, take our SKIN QUIZ here. You can also CONTACT US here or call us at (727) 286-7684 with any questions, we’d love to hear from you!
XOXO,
Denice
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