Medically reviewed by Minimalist Health Specialist - Written by Aheli Sen (Fashion and Beauty Expert) on 18th Nov 2020
Hyaluronic acid: Can it be used in the winters?
What is Hyaluronic Acid?
Hyaluronic acid sounds way scarier than it is. Most of us would not even dream of putting any form of acid on our faces, but hyaluronic acid is a gel-like material with the uniqueness to retain hydration.
Our skin produces it naturally to help maintain hydration. It is also found in our joints, eyes, and connective tissues. The older we grow, our bodies produce lesser levels of hyaluronic acid. That is why our skin gets drier and loses elasticity, making us develop fine lines and wrinkles.
This is why it works as an excellent anti-aging ingredient in serums and face creams, as it can hold over 1,000 times its weight of water.
Skin Benefits of using Hyaluronic Acid:
- Skin hydration - keeps your skin hydrated and feeling moisturized and glowing.
- Anti-wrinkle agency – the capacity that hyaluronic acid has to retain large quantities of water, helps the skin stay moisturized and prevents further development of wrinkles. It also fills out wrinkles that are already present, thereby reducing the same.
- Healing agent - applying Hyaluronic Acid to wounds has shown to help reduce the size of wounds on the skin's surface and help provide relief to the pain in the wounded regions.
- Antioxidant – helps keep the skin looking healthy.
Hyaluronic acid and skincare routine:
Even the best hyaluronic acid serum isn't going to keep your skin looking healthy, sans wrinkles, and radiant if you do not use it in a routine with other equally good daily skincare products formulated for your age and your skin type.
For morning skincare:
- Wake up & give your face a wash to remove all the dirt gathered overnight and start the day.
- Apply a toner to remove all final traces of dirt left behind after washing.
- Apply a moisturizer containing hyaluronic acid to help lock in hydration for the day and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles or you can apply a hyaluronic serum and then follow it up with a moisturizer to lock in the hydration.
- Apply SPF 30 or more to combat the signs of aging caused by the sun.
For night skincare:
- Remove your makeup with any makeup remover of your choice that suits your skin type.
- Use a cleanser to remove dirt that has accumulated throughout the day.
- Use a toner again to clean out your pores.
- Apply an under eye cream to help reduce wrinkles around the eyes.
- Apply a hyaluronic acid serum.
- Apply a night cream to help lock in moisture overnight.
What are the other uses of hyaluronic acid?
- Eases joint disorders.
- As lip filler.
- For those with dry eyes, hyaluronic acid can be found in some eye drops.
As the temperature drops, hyaluronic acid is the best way to achieve plump skin and hydration, which means no more chapped lips and rough cheeks. Dry air can also mean chapped lips and rosy cheeks.
Hydrating ingredients can be classified into two categories: occlusives and humectants. As hyaluronic acid is a humectant, it pulls moisture to the skin's top layer for instant hydration.
Hyaluronic acid does attract moisture, but it does not always need to be from the surrounding air. So if the air around you is dry, do not worry, as hyaluronic acid is more likely to attract water from the skin's deeper layers to hydrate the top layer or you can also use a humidifier.
What is important is that once the skin is quenched, it must be ensured that the same is locked into the skin, and the skin doesn't lose moisture again. This is what is called trans-epidermal water loss. After using a humectant, the usage of an occlusive is imperative.
A few common occlusives are petrolatum, cocoa butter, or some waxes and some oils. These components are hydrophobic, which means that they repel water. For this reason, they create a barrier on the skin, thereby preventing water from passing and evaporating into the air.
All that is to say, you can use your hyaluronic acid serum in the winter. Make sure to put on a moisturizer on top for the skin to stay hydrated.
Reasons why using hyaluronic acid serums becomes important in winters:
- Excellent moisturizing properties
- Provides anti-aging benefits
- Boosts overall skin health
Excellent Moisturizing Properties:
Hyaluronic acid is present between skin cells and is a natural ingredient. It has moisture attraction properties, which means that it can keep up the moisture levels by attracting water to the skin.
The natural levels of hyaluronic acid keep decreasing as we age, which is why the skin appears dry and wrinkled with age. Thus, it is essential to replenish it by adding the component in the winter skincare regime topically.
Provides Anti-Aging Benefits:
As we age, our collagen levels in the skin decrease, making the skin less young-looking. Hyaluronic acid has a reputation for enhancing collagen production in our skin. It means that when one uses products made with hyaluronic acid, the skin will feel more moisturized with high collagen levels, thus reducing fine lines and wrinkles.
Boosts Overall Skin Health:
Dry skin is more prone to damage & even infections. Hyaluronic acid strengthens the protective skin barrier to give you stronger and healthier skin. It also exhibits anti-inflammatory & skin-soothing properties that might aid in skin healing and repair. It also provides antioxidant protection against free radicals that break down elastin & collagen to weaken your skin and make wrinkles more apparent.
How to use hyaluronic acid serum in the winter
Hyaluronic acid is an amazing skincare ingredient to use all year as it helps keep the skin moisturized and increases collagen production levels, which in turn slows down the effects of aging.
It is extremely useful during the colder months because the harsh weather dries out the skin, taking away both hydration and oil. The good news is that hyaluronic acid serum helps you achieve the smooth skin you have always wanted by providing hydration that your skin lacks.
Choosing the right serum
First things first are choosing the right hyaluronic acid serum. A quick search later, anyone can find that there are loads of them available from all different brands with slight ingredient changes here and there.
The key is to buy one with the main ingredient, hyaluronic acid listed at the top of the product (it might be listed as sodium hyaluronate, the salt form of the acid).
Keep in mind that the product you choose has hyaluronic acid as its top ingredient and other ingredients too that soothe the skin. An extra soothing ingredient to look for include aloe vera.
Applying the serum
While using hyaluronic acid serum through the winter, your main goal is to hydrate the skin (the anti-aging effects being a bonus). As the acid bonds immediately with water, you should always apply it with the same. For this, you have two options; to wet your face and then apply the hyaluronic serum.
The second is to wet your face, put a small amount of the serum in your hand, and add water. This will help with hydration, by diluting it, it will penetrate the skin better.
