The journey of the skin cell

Most of us are familiar with the fact that our skin replaces itself every month.  Skin cells take approximately four weeks (depending on our age as this slows with time) to make the journey from the lowest layer of our epidermis to the surface of our skin where they eventually slough off.

On their travels our skin cells pass through four different stages of growth.  At each stage the cell must go through a change or maturing process.

One of the most important factors that determine whether or not you have beautiful skin is how well your cells make those changes to become fully mature by the time they reach the top of your skin.

Unfortunately the face has a much lower number of fully matured cells than skin on the rest of our bodies.  This is primarily due to the fact that it is constantly exposed to the drying effect of the environment.

There are some simple things you can do to improve the rate of mature cells you have and ensure your skin looks even more beautiful…

Hydrate your skin: Because our skin cells are clinically dead by the time they reach the upper layers of the skin, enzymes govern all the crucial changes that need to happen in the cell.  These dynamic little chemicals regulate everything from the formation of the cell envelope to the production of the lipid ‘mortar’ that glues the cells together.

The key element to effective enzyme action is hydration.  Enzymes need water to work!  Without water enzyme action is inhibited and your skin suffers.  So simple rituals like soaking your skin with warm water before applying your favourite potion help keep your skin hydrated and your enzymes working.

Drink more green tea: The antioxidants in green tea have proven to increase the rate at which your skin cells mature. A higher cell maturation rate results in having more hydrated skin.  More hydrated skin means better enzyme action which again strengthens the skin and so the cycle goes…