Why Free Radicals Speed Up Aging and How To Eliminate Them
Glowing, youthful skin—who doesn’t want to look impervious to time? But when it comes to skincare, the science behind what works and what doesn’t work can be confusing. Like the term you’ve probably heard from time to time: free radicals. Kind of sounds like a nostalgic description of the 1970s, doesn’t it?
Despite its fun name, free radicals aren’t exactly a good thing, far from it actually. This is especially true if your goal is to maintain plump and youthful skin.
So what are free radicals? Why are free radicals bad? And how can you eliminate them in your daily life? Let’s dive in and find out.
But why is this instability a bad thing? When atoms are highly reactive like this, they tend to damage DNA, proteins, lipids and carbohydrates in cells. This cell damage is what leads to skin looking dull and thin as well as speeding up the aging process. Not to mention free radicals are also partly responsible for diseases such as cancer. Yikes! Needless to say, it’s best to avoid and eliminate free radicals as much as possible.
Free radicals can either come from external or internal sources. Internal sources occur naturally within us as we go about our day-to-day lives. One example occurs when we’re digesting food. That’s why we’re more prone to certain diseases as we age; these kinds of free radicals are simply unavoidable.
But the free radicals you can potentially avoid come from external sources. Some of these include:
Though we can do our best to avoid these sources of free radicals, avoiding them entirely isn’t always feasible. Many people live in big cities where pollution is high while others may have occupations where they’re exposed to cigarette smoke or pesticides. If you fall into any of these groups (as many of us do), the good news is there is a way to eliminate free radicals and ultimately slow down the aging process.
Specifically, we’re talking about nutrient antioxidants, which can't be produced by your body. They come in many forms, such as vitamins A, C and E, beta-carotene, zinc, selenium and flavonoids. Remember how free radicals have unpaired electrons? Antioxidants eliminate free radicals because they are stable enough to donate an electron and neutralize the free radical. Time to pull out your best mom voice and “eat your fruits and veggies!” Eating a diet rich in a variety of fruits and vegetables is a fantastic way to get these antioxidants and stave off diseases and aging.
But sometimes diet alone isn’t enough or isn’t practical for your lifestyle. That’s why when it comes to anti-aging properties, it’s important to incorporate a product into your skincare routine that’s loaded with antioxidants. Oils and serums that feature vitamin C are always a great choice and are easy to find. You might even already own one!
Illumine Face Oil
This silky face oil features ingredients like cloudberry, a berry used to prevent scurvy (a disease caused by, yes you guessed it, vitamin C deficiency) in Viking explorers way back in the 1400s. Its age-defying, antioxidant-rich formula has all the key vitamins from A to C to the less talked about but equally important beta-carotene. If you want a daily treatment oil that will eliminate free radicals from your skin, let this one be the shining gem in your beauty bag.
Lip Serum
We didn’t forget the importance of lip care and neither should you! Similar to Illumine, our Henné Lip Serum also features cloudberry as its antioxidant powerhouse ingredient. When you add the Lip Serum to your daily skincare routine, it’ll work tirelessly to help eliminate free radicals and give you lusciously plump lips…and say hello to smoother, less visible lip lines!
While free radicals may seem scary, they don’t have to be with the right skincare routine. Even if you live somewhere with a lot of those pesky external free radicals, incorporating antioxidants into your skincare will keep them at bay.
With your newfound knowledge, you’re ready to tackle these pesky free radicals and improve your skin (and health). Pretty soon you might have people asking you how you’ve managed to avoid Father Time. Whether or not you divulge the secret is up to you.
Want to receive more insights into what goes into your beauty products? Sign up for our free newsletter and be the first to get the inside scoop on tips, behind-the-scenes details, and exclusive deals.
Sources:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3249911/
https://www.verywellhealth.com/information-about-free-radicals-2249103
Despite its fun name, free radicals aren’t exactly a good thing, far from it actually. This is especially true if your goal is to maintain plump and youthful skin.
So what are free radicals? Why are free radicals bad? And how can you eliminate them in your daily life? Let’s dive in and find out.
A Crash Course in Free Radicals
Pull out your old high school science lessons from the memory bank because we’re going to delve a bit into molecules. There’s a lot of technical science behind free radicals, so let’s break it up into digestible terms. First, recall how everything is made up of atoms from plants to animals to the hair on your head. These atoms are composed of the subatomic particles: protons, electrons, and neutrons. A free radical occurs when electrons (the negatively charged subatomic particles) are unpaired with other electrons, existing on their own in their atoms. These free radicals are often unstable and reactive because atoms naturally want their electrons to be paired. To achieve this, free radicals will oftentimes donate or receive an electron to or from another atom. This exchange of electrons can happen several times in a fraction of a second and is the reason why free radicals are unstable.But why is this instability a bad thing? When atoms are highly reactive like this, they tend to damage DNA, proteins, lipids and carbohydrates in cells. This cell damage is what leads to skin looking dull and thin as well as speeding up the aging process. Not to mention free radicals are also partly responsible for diseases such as cancer. Yikes! Needless to say, it’s best to avoid and eliminate free radicals as much as possible.
Where do Free Radicals Come From?
Now that we’ve dusted off our science books and understand why free radicals are bad, let’s ask some big questions: Where in the world do they come from and how can we avoid them?Free radicals can either come from external or internal sources. Internal sources occur naturally within us as we go about our day-to-day lives. One example occurs when we’re digesting food. That’s why we’re more prone to certain diseases as we age; these kinds of free radicals are simply unavoidable.
But the free radicals you can potentially avoid come from external sources. Some of these include:
- Cigarette smoke
- UV rays
- Pollution
- Some medications and viruses
- Pesticides
Though we can do our best to avoid these sources of free radicals, avoiding them entirely isn’t always feasible. Many people live in big cities where pollution is high while others may have occupations where they’re exposed to cigarette smoke or pesticides. If you fall into any of these groups (as many of us do), the good news is there is a way to eliminate free radicals and ultimately slow down the aging process.
The Secret to Eliminating Free Radicals
Free radicals may not be entirely avoidable but at least there’s a way to eliminate them. Phew! So what’s the secret? We have one word for you: antioxidants.Specifically, we’re talking about nutrient antioxidants, which can't be produced by your body. They come in many forms, such as vitamins A, C and E, beta-carotene, zinc, selenium and flavonoids. Remember how free radicals have unpaired electrons? Antioxidants eliminate free radicals because they are stable enough to donate an electron and neutralize the free radical. Time to pull out your best mom voice and “eat your fruits and veggies!” Eating a diet rich in a variety of fruits and vegetables is a fantastic way to get these antioxidants and stave off diseases and aging.
But sometimes diet alone isn’t enough or isn’t practical for your lifestyle. That’s why when it comes to anti-aging properties, it’s important to incorporate a product into your skincare routine that’s loaded with antioxidants. Oils and serums that feature vitamin C are always a great choice and are easy to find. You might even already own one!
Bringing Antioxidants to You
Here at Henné, we incorporate antioxidants into several of our products because we know just how important this ingredient is in achieving luminous and youthful skin. We think you (and your skin) will absolutely love these antioxidant-rich formulas:Illumine Face Oil
This silky face oil features ingredients like cloudberry, a berry used to prevent scurvy (a disease caused by, yes you guessed it, vitamin C deficiency) in Viking explorers way back in the 1400s. Its age-defying, antioxidant-rich formula has all the key vitamins from A to C to the less talked about but equally important beta-carotene. If you want a daily treatment oil that will eliminate free radicals from your skin, let this one be the shining gem in your beauty bag.
Lip Serum
We didn’t forget the importance of lip care and neither should you! Similar to Illumine, our Henné Lip Serum also features cloudberry as its antioxidant powerhouse ingredient. When you add the Lip Serum to your daily skincare routine, it’ll work tirelessly to help eliminate free radicals and give you lusciously plump lips…and say hello to smoother, less visible lip lines!
While free radicals may seem scary, they don’t have to be with the right skincare routine. Even if you live somewhere with a lot of those pesky external free radicals, incorporating antioxidants into your skincare will keep them at bay.
With your newfound knowledge, you’re ready to tackle these pesky free radicals and improve your skin (and health). Pretty soon you might have people asking you how you’ve managed to avoid Father Time. Whether or not you divulge the secret is up to you.
Want to receive more insights into what goes into your beauty products? Sign up for our free newsletter and be the first to get the inside scoop on tips, behind-the-scenes details, and exclusive deals.
Sources:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3249911/
https://www.verywellhealth.com/information-about-free-radicals-2249103
