Skin Care Ingredients that Protect Skin from Pollution
Air pollutants have negative effects on the skin causing atopic dermatitis, acne, dark spots on skin, skin sensitivity, and wrinkles. Pollution and toxins from smoking, vaping, car exhaust, excess alcohol, and other toxins can age skin.
Using protective skin care ingredients can help protect skin from pollution, toxins, cigarettes, cannabis smoke, and vaping.
Over indulging in alcohol and marijuana are not the only substances that can cause skin damage to the skin. There are many sources of pollution that we need to protect our skin from.
Car pollution is very dangerous for skin because it can contain:
- Particulate matter (PM),
- Heavy metals,
- Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) containing benzopyrene (BaP)
To find the best pollution protection skin care products to protect your skin from car exhaust and other forms of pollution, look for the ingredients we discuss in this blog. Then shop for products with those ingredients by your Baumann Skin Type.
You will find dermatologist-recommended skincare routines will help you choose the best products from many brands.
Antipollution skin care may be just what you need- especially if you live in a big city.
How to protect skin from pollution?
Steps to protect skin from pollution:
- Wash face every night
- Use serums and moisturizers with protective ingredients
- At night use repair ingredients to fix any damage your skin gets in the day
Skin care ingredients to protect skin from pollution?
These ingredients help protect skin from pollution:
Crepidiastrum Denticulatum Extract-
- Protects the skin against various air-pollution stress from PM, BaP, Heavy metals, and UV rays.
- Is an antioxidant
- Has anti-inflammatory activity
- Activates autophagy
- Delays cellular senescence
- Plant extract
- also called Asian Lizard's Tail Plant or Chinese Lizard's Tail
- Has sauchinone that blocks free radicals and collagen degrading enzymes like collagenase and other matrix metalloproteinases that are increased after exposure to ultraviolet light and pollution.
- Anti-inflammatory,
- Antioxidant
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Blocks the formation of the skin pigment melanin that causes dark spots on the skin.
- Category of ingredients found in green tea and other flavinoids,
- Strong antioxidants
- Very protective for your skin
All of these ingredients can help protect skin from vaping, smoking, excess alcohol and cannabis smoke.
Best skin care product to protect skin from pollution
Our favorite pollution protection skin care product is Zerafite Wrinkle Defense Barrier Cream. It was designed to protect your skin from vaping, cannabis, excessive alcohol and pollution.
Types of Pollution We Need To Protect Our Skin From
The air we breathe has many types of pollutants:
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Common Pollutants: The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) watches over six major pollutants in our air. These are: ground-level ozone, particulate matter (tiny particles in the air), sulphur dioxide, lead, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxides.
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Gaseous Pollutants: These gases come from burning things like coal, oil, and natural gas. Carbon monoxide, for instance, is a sneaky gas; you can't smell or see it, but it comes from cars and other machines that burn fuel.
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Long-lasting Pollutants: Some pollutants, like dioxins, can last for a very long time in the environment. They can come from man-made processes or even natural events like volcanoes and forest fires. Some of these pollutants can even build up in our food and bodies over time.
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Tiny Particles: Particulate matter is a fancy name for the tiny particles in the air. These particles can come from various places, like dust or car emissions. Some are so small that they can get deep into our lungs.
Traffic Pollutants: Cars and trucks release a mix of pollutants. People who live in big cities or close to busy roads might be breathing in more of these pollutants.
Just as we put on sunscreen to protect against UV rays, it's important to think about how we can protect our skin from air pollution. Whether it's by cleansing our face at the end of the day or using protective skincare products, we need to protect our skin from pollution.
How pollution gets in our body?
Pollutants gets into the body several ways.
1. Our lungs breathe in pollution
When we breathe in pollutants, they enter our lungs and alveoli (tiny sacs in our lungs). From there, these harmful agents get into our bloodstream and dissolve in our blood.
2. Absorbing through the skin:
Unlike breathing, which relies on the concentration of the pollutant in the air and how well it dissolves in our blood, skin absorption depends on a few factors:
Where the pollutants land: For a pollutant to get inside our body through our skin, it first has to land and stay on our skin.
The nature of our skin: Our skin is a complex barrier, with different layers and components, like fats and oils. Pollutants can either move between skin cells or directly through them. Additionally, they can enter through structures like hair follicles and sweat ducts.
While taking the hair and sweat route is faster, pollutants find it challenging because they have to navigate through both oily and watery regions. Even though structures like hair follicles make up a tiny portion of our skin, they’re significant pathways for pollutants to get inside.
3. Our diet
Toxins and pollution in and on foods can get into the body.
Skin care routine to protect skin from pollution
The products to use in your skin care routine depend on your Baumann Skin Type.
All you have to do is take the skin type quiz and shop by your skin type.
Dr. Leslie Baumann MD, FAAD
References on Skin Care Ingredients and Products that Protect Skin from Pollution:
- Damevska, K., Boev, B., Mirakovski, D., Petrov, A., Darlenski, R., & Simeonovski, V. (2020). How to prevent skin damage from air pollution. Part 1: Exposure assessment. Dermatologic Therapy, 33(1), e13171.
- Damevska, K., Simeonovski, V., Darlenski, R., & Damevska, S. (2021). How to prevent skin damage from air pollution part 2: current treatment options. Dermatologic Therapy, 34(6), e15132.
- Roberts, W. (2021). Air pollution and skin disorders. International Journal of Women's Dermatology, 7(1), 91-97.
- Puri, P., Nandar, S. K., Kathuria, S., & Ramesh, V. (2017). Effects of air pollution on the skin: A review. Indian journal of dermatology, venereology and leprology, 83, 415.
- Martic, I., Jansen-Dürr, P., & Cavinato, M. (2022). Effects of air pollution on cellular senescence and skin aging. Cells, 11(14), 2220.
- Araviiskaia, E., Berardesca, E., Bieber, T., Gontijo, G., Sanchez Viera, M., Marrot, L., ... & Dreno, B. (2019). The impact of airborne pollution on skin. Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, 33(8), 1496-1505.
- Kim, S., Kim, J., Lee, Y. I., Jang, S., Song, S. Y., Lee, W. J., & Lee, J. H. (2022). Particulate matter‐induced atmospheric skin aging is aggravated by UVA and inhibited by a topical l‐ascorbic acid compound. Photodermatology, Photoimmunology & Photomedicine, 38(2), 123-131.
