Caring for your skin is an important daily routine, right up there with brushing your teeth. Your skin is your largest organ and it requires specific skincare ingredients to preserve and restore skin health. Just as your body needs food to fuel to function, your skin need nutrients to thrive—poor skin nutrition is a real thing.

When beginning a skincare routine, your main focus should be on hydration. Generally, when we think of hydrating our skin the first thing that comes to mind is a moisturizer, however, this is only part of the hydration equation. Our skin is comprised of layers. Moisturizer only addresses the outermost layer; it simply cannot penetrate deeper. The second layer is called the dermal layer, which is home to collagen, elastin and water. The only type of product that can penetrate the dermal layer is a water-based serum—no moisturizer or oil can ever reach it. This is critical information and the reason why a well-formulated water-based serum is the foundation of any effective skincare routine. Not only do water-based serums prevent and resolve dehydration, they bathe and nourish your collagen, keeping it supple and moist. An effective serum will be formulated with high quality antioxidants, and list “hyaluronic acid” as an ingredient. Befriend your skin during the cold months with a well-formulated moisturizer and water-based serum—you’ll be glad you did!

Add Collagen-Stimulating Skincare to Your Daily Routine

Once your skin is hydrated, healthy, and well nourished, it’s ready for active collagen-promoting ingredients. Vitamin A and Vitamin C are the two powerhouse actives that work directly on collagen preservation and promotion.

The most active and effective form of vitamin C is L-Ascorbic Acid. Vitamin C works to brighten the skin, provides antioxidant protection all while promoting collagen. It enhances your skin’s health and well being, resulting in a radiant glow and a reduction in hyperpigmentation. The active should always be used in a powder form and mixed into a water based serum right before you use it. This method ensures that your vitamin C remains safe and effective.

Many of us have experienced the benefits of vitamin A in its most popular forms: retinol, and the prescription form retinoic acid. However a lesser-known form of vitamin A is actually a superior product. Encapsulated Retinaldehyde (ER) is vitamin A in its most potent but least irritating form. ER promotes collagen and regulates cell turnover ensuring you are producing healthy new cells on a regular basis, which leads to a healthy, glowing complexion, and a reduction in fine lines, wrinkles and sagging.

Practice Daily Meditation

Intuitively, we know a plant won’t flower if it’s not healthy from root to leaf. Our beauty is like that flower—there is an undeniable connection between our emotional selves and our skins’ health and beauty. If mind, body or spirit are unhealthy, we can never bloom. Radiant skin requires inner self care, along with active topical care. Begin by simply sitting in silence for 10 minutes a day, placing awareness on your breath, knowing that each moment of presence brings you closer to your own true beauty