Skin Protection from Pollution: Anti-Pollution Cosmetics
In the time we live in, air pollution is, unfortunately, our everyday life, and it leaves visible traces on the skin, and so anti-pollution cosmetics are a good option as skin protection. The causes of polluted air in the cities are numerous, from domestic and industrial furnaces to road traffic and weather conditions. And because of poor air quality, not only health suffers – our skin is also affected. Anti-pollution cosmetics are a good option as skin protection.
How pollution affects the skin
Various studies show that environmental pollutants lead to premature skin aging and may be responsible for allergic reactions, atopic dermatitis, eczema and acne. Allegedly, polluted air – along with smoking and unprotected and excessive sun exposure – is one of the main causes of pigmentation spots. And the premature appearance of gray complexion, wrinkles, dryness and sagging skin is also associated with life in urban areas.
During an afternoon walk, say from the office to the house, especially during traffic jams, the skin can absorb a large portion of free radicals and toxins. Namely, some invisible particles of pollution are even 20 times smaller than the pores, so they can easily enter the deeper layers of the skin. Just to illustrate, the average pore size is about 50 micrometers. And the size of individual harmful molecules is only 2.5 micrometers. By infiltrating the epidermis, pollutants create free radicals that not only cause dehydration and other inflammatory processes, but cause a chain reaction at the cellular level and in the subcutaneous connective tissue. And this ultimately leads to loss of collagen and skin firmness.
Cosmetics with a mission
As for many, moving from the city to the countryside is not possible due to the preservation of beauty, the cosmetics industry responded to consumer demands. New products for protection against polluted air, according to the creators, reduce, neutralize and prevent negative environmental impacts. Thanks to formulas based on vitamins and powerful antioxidant compounds, they neutralize free radicals and create an invisible layer of protection, the so-called buffer zone that prevents direct skin contact with toxic particles.
To alleviate the effects of polluted air, the first and most important step is a deep cleansing of the face to remove as much of the toxin that has “stuck” to the skin. Oil cleansers help us with this because they penetrate deeper into the skin, as well as those that are called pre-cleansers. It is a type of gentle peeling for everyday use, which can be used with existing cleaning products.Great job is also done by the so-called sonic cleaning devices that, according to the manufacturer, remove 30 times more soot and smog particles that are almost impossible to completely remove from the pores “manually”.
After deep cleansing, it is necessary to restore the damaged epidermis, because only a healthy skin barrier can successfully resist further damage. For this task, it is best to choose specialized moisturizing products, those intended for the so-called urban protection. They should be “equipped” with high UV protection, moisturizing ingredients to strengthen and protect the skin barrier, and an abundance of antioxidants that will neutralize free radicals and fight inflammation.
