Hyaluronic acid, the fountain of youth? This naturally existing substance that we have is our body which helps diminish as we age causing sagging and wrinkles. There are plenty of researches showing the effect of hyaluronic acid. Let investigate together and see what this product is about.
Hyaluronic Function in our body
Hyaluronic acid, HA or hyaluronan is a transparent liquid type substance that is said to have already existed in our bodies, mostly found in your skin, connective tissue and eyes. This acids main function is retained water to keep your tissues well lubricated and moist. As you age this substance reduce hence your skin forms wrinkles and losses its fullness.
Hyaluronic acid hold water for our organ and bones. It allows everything to the body function to run smoother
Hyaluronic acid is also found all over our body, besides the high water retention area like our eyes and skin. It’s also found in our bones and joints.
As time passes this area where hyaluronan is present in abundance now is depleting, we tend to have some effect: our skin sag and wrinkle, joint and bone hollow out or losses its lubricant. Hence there has been an increase in HA product in the health and skincare market.
Forms of HA we can incorporate
Hence this acid has become so popular as many want to use this product to replace the reduction in the amount in our body. There are many ways commercial way to incorporate Hyaluronic acid can, by taking supplements, serum, eye drops and injections.
What makes HA so bankable is the fact that one molecule of HA can hold 1000 time its weight in water. This true and impressive fact has causes the beauty industry to add it to ingredients and product range.
Hyaluronic acid is also naturally occurring in the animal world; this ingredient is found in bone broth. If taking supplements is not ideal for you a suggestion is to cook more bone soup. By adding more bone broth or protein powder made from bone broth to your eating habit, you will increase your Hyaluronic acid intake naturally, without taking the supplement.
Hyaluronic acid itself, cannot be absorbed deepen in our skin when we apply it to our skin. It will stay on the surface of the skin. Hence many manufacturer use sodium hyaluronate, the salt of hyaluronic acid or by-product of this acid. In this form, the molecule of sodium hyaluronate is much smaller allowing the molecule to penetrate our skin. Many manufacturers have used this in their cream, mask and serum.
There are many dermatologists, or plastic surgeon injects directly into sunken or wrinkled areas to plump them up. They use this method because as the skin age HA in the skin is loss hence the skin losses its youthful look and wrinkle and sagging occurs. Putting back HA will help rewind sun damage and the natural ageing process.
If injections are not your thing, serum is another way you can incorporate Hyaluronic acid. HA serum or moisturiser can help plump up your skin. It may not give you that dramatic and instantaneous results like the injection, there will be a gradual slower result. You will see changes in the form of softer, smoother and more hydrated skin.
The benefit of HA on your skin
Skin overall appearance
Hyaluronic acid ability to hold water make it an fantastic anti-wrinkle ingredient. It plumps up the skin because of its water retention nature. Skin looks younger, fresher, supple and fuller looks.
Exposure to the sun can not only damage your skin, but it also causes loss of water or cause your skin to dry out. HA helps improve the appearance of sun damage or sun exposure. HA also has shown to improve in the sagginess of the eye and even lighten the bags of the eyes, giving back the lustre of your eyes.
Hyaluronic acid give back your skin youth
The Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology published in 2014, a study on a new topical low molecule nano hyaluronic acid on people skin elasticity, hydration and wrinkles.
This random clinical trial shows that the product containing hyaluronic acid effectively decreased the appearance of wrinkles and reduce skin sagginess with consistent use within 30 days. This study found that after 30 days and some after 14 days, those using Fillerina (product brand, where it has 6 forms of HA)has shown significant improvement in their face contour and skin volume compare to the placebo group or control group.
The HA group experience reduction in wrinkle depth and volume, face and cheekbone reduce is sagginess and more contour, while the control group have no improvements. What we can draw from this is, it does work, but results are only shown on regular us and after 30 days and some 14 days.
Skin damage
Besides making your skin look younger in appearance, there are other skin problem HA can improve or treat. Cold sores and mouth sores, ulcers, wounds, bites and burns. How it helps these condition is because it can keep the damaged tissue moist allowing the body to heal itself. When you apply HA to a wound, it helps regulate inflammation level and signal the body to build more blood vessel in that area. Hence it allows the wounds to heal faster.
HA not only allow wound ulcer heal faster study has shown that it reduces the size of the wound and reduce the pain of the wound. Furthermore, HA can reduce infection risk due to its antibacterial properties. Hence, it an excellent treatment for crack and bleeding. So when you broken skin on your face makes sure to put HA on first.
HA in the mouth and lip structural are made up of connective tissues partly made from collagen and water. The combination of collagen and HA help give the lips their structure and shape. When cold sores appear using HA help heal this due to is water binding nature. It hydrates the lip/mouth skin and tissues and keeps skin tight, in turn, helps bring nutrients to damaged tissues, controlling inflammation and helps fluids carry out waste.
Others benefits
Joints diseases
Besides the skin HA is also found in the joints, cartilage, bones, and connective tissue. In the case when the people have degenerative joint disease, where there are damages to the cartilage especially the hyaline cartilage. The cushion between the bones. Hyaluronic acid helps lower its pain and tenderness and help the body create more resistance to the wear and tear.
Fluid between the bone like the synovial fluid is restored and remain elastic and continue to absorb shock from our moment. A study where HA injection was given to a group of people with osteoarthritis, the result has shown that pain was reduced and a certain level joint function was restore compared to the placebo group.
Eyes
How eyes are mainly made up of fluid, hence HA is present there. Using HA eye drops help replenish moisture in the eye socket, relieving chronic dry eyes and restore the eyes fluids. Others study has found HA eliminate UVB light damage in our eye.
Others
Studies have found that HA Help with bone loss in osteopenia. The studies look at the bone in rate and result show a slower deterioration in the rate of bone.
It is said to help bladder pain and bowel disease. Once again this will go back to its inflammation control and reduce pain property.
The disadvantage of Hyaluronic acid on commercial cosmetic products
Hyaluronic acid itself, cannot be absorbed deepen in our skin when topically applied on our skin as we have mentioned. The molecule of hyaluronic acid is not small enough to penetrate or absorb deep in the layer of our skin.
Hence when the climate condition is dry hyaluronic acid on the skin will draw out moisture from your skin instead of giving back. It is only effective if the climate is humid with moisture in the air.
This molecule size is the problem for us Australian, the majority of our climate here is dry and hot. The size of HA is not small enough to penetrate into our skin. Hence most hyaluronic serum will not be effective here in our environment.
Therefore, claims that hyaluronic acid does not work can be greater due to this reason. These cosmetic products like serum, cream or lotion, the topical product may not work is due to the HA itself or the condition of the environment.
But shows no fear, there is a compound called Sodium hyaluronate a sodium or salt of hyaluronic acid. Sodium Hyaluronate is a protonated or made into acidic salt. This hyaluronic sodium compound is a smaller molecule the HA to penetrate deep into the skin. Hence it will not draw water from inside your skin due to the dry climate.
Therefore when you look for hyaluronic acid look for sodium hyaluronate on the ingredients list.
Another way cosmetic chemist can reduce HA molecule size is to hydrolyze it. This is a process where they put the HA into the water and break it down into a smaller molecule to effectively penetrate into our skin. Hence if the HA is ineffective it means that the molecule is not small enough to suit our weather. So having the word Hyaluronic acid does not mean that it is ineffective. It really depends on if they hydrolyse it.
Another way we can counteract to this molecule size issue is to incorporate an occlusive agent into our skin routine. An occlusive agent is a compound that creates a barrier on top of the skin to prevent the skin from losing water. That is if you use our serum under the occlusion agent.
Occlusion agent is beeswax, vegetable wax, plant oils (usually high oleic acid oils eg olive avocado), butter (shea and cocoa butter), Lecithin, Allantoin, silicone, petrolatum or petroleum jelly and mineral oil.
There is a misconception that higher the percentage of active ingredients then the better it is for your skin. It is not necessarily true. Some ingredients like retinol or l-Ascorbic acid in a higher percentage can cause more harm them good or unwanted side effect. In term of HA, those products who claim to give you 100% HA are properly not telling you the truth. HA power is retaining water to keep your skin fuller plump hence having too much (remember 1 to 1000 ratio), will not be effective. Having too much of HA can over bloat your face. Furthermore, the product itself is very thick and sticky it will be very unappealing to use. Therefore don’t buy pure HA and use it, leave it to the professional.
Hyaluronic acid is natural in our body; hence it works well for our body. It is the secret of youth, by bringing back water into our body. After all, we are made up of 70% water. We need to retain this ratio effective. HA does this. So incorporate more bone broth in your diet. If you have a disease that HA can help, try supplements. For beauty use HA serum, cream, lotion and other forms of a cosmetic product. HA is surprisingly good. For more information on health, and natural living, beauty, please go to our skincare site.
If you want topical hyaluronic acid with sodium hyaluronate, please try out our hyaluronic acid serum from our shop page.
