Yes, beauty sleep is real. So often we want to blame other bad habits or poor skin care regimens when there are breakouts and other skin issues, when, in reality, there are more factors involved in what’s going on.

Much more often than not, the culprit is internal. One of the biggest players in skin health is the sometimes elusive, always-craved, sleep!

According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, about 50-70 million Americans have sleep disorders and one in three adults don’t get enough sleep. It’s common knowledge that lack of sleep degrades the body over time. Let’s break it down.

What Happens When Sleep Quality is Poor?

Skin Repair & Rejuvenation

• Cellular repair: During sleep, the body goes into repair mode, producing proteins and growth factors that help regenerate skin cells. Poor sleep reduces this process, leading to dull, uneven skin and decreased ability to recover from environmental stressors

• Collagen Production: Sleep is essential for collagen synthesis, a protein that maintains skin’s elasticity and firmness. Inadequate sleep can lead to a breakdown of collagen, resulting in sagging skin and wrinkles.

Inflammation, Immune Response & Aging

• Increased Inflammation: Poor sleep can increase inflammatory responses in the body, which can exacerbate skin conditions such as acne, psoriasis, and eczema. Inflammation can also lead to skin redness and puffiness.

• Weakened Immune Function: Adequate sleep is crucial for maintaining a healthy immune system. A compromised immune system can make the skin more susceptible to infections, slower to heal, and more prone to conditions like acne.

• Accelerated Aging: Chronic sleep deprivation accelerates the aging process, leading to more pronounced fine lines, wrinkles, and a loss of skin elasticity.

Moisture & pH balance

• Dehydration: Lack of sleep can disrupt the skin’s natural hydration balance, leading to dryness and an uneven texture. Poor sleep also affects the water balance in the body, resulting in puffy eyes and dark circles.

• pH Imbalance: Sleep deprivation can alter the skin’s pH balance, making it more susceptible to bacteria and other microorganisms that can cause breakouts and other skin issues.

Stress Hormones

• Elevated Cortisol: Poor sleep increases cortisol levels, the stress hormone, which can lead to increased sebum production, causing oily skin and acne. High cortisol levels also break down collagen, leading to premature aging.

• Growth Hormone Suppression: Adequate sleep supports the release of growth hormone, which is essential for skin repair and regeneration. Poor sleep reduces the production of growth hormone, slowing down the skin’s ability to repair itself.

Given all the concerns poor sleep raises for our health, it’s natural for many of us to feel overwhelmed about how to tackle the challenge of improvement. There are a few time-tested, well-studied habits that can improve sleep quality significantly even if, and especially, in times of stress that prevent us from some of the bigger consistent lifestyle changes on the wishlist.

Sleep Habits For Quality Sleep

Light: 

🌞 Expose your eyes to natural daylight when you wake up, avoiding phones and computers

🌜Stop electronic devices at least 1-2 hours before bed

Environment:

🌜Create a sleep-friendly environment, a cool, dark, quiet room

🌜If the above is difficult, pull on a sleep mask, use ear plugs, use a noise machine

🌜We love to use Lavender Butters for a boost of aromatherapy

Routine:

🌜Avoid alcohol and large meals before bed

🌜Avoid caffeine after 3pm (the earlier the better)

🌜Avoid exercise 2-3 hours before bed

🌜Stay with consistent sleep times to build habits that signal the brain to sleep time

🌜Meditate before bed (bonus points)

It’s a challenge to strive toward being at our best everyday but simple changes like these can be an easier way to improve overall health, from our skin to our mood and our overall functioning. Combining these efforts when possible with healthy skincare, movement, good food choices, and few other essential tools support our quest toward health and beauty. Investing in you starts here.

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At Ellovi we believe skin health is deeply connected to overall health and well-being. Our mission is to offer wellness using pure ingredients with safe and transparent methods. Self care is not just a luxury and it cannot wait. We’re here to remind you to invest in your health from head to toe, inside and out. 

Team Ellovi 🌺