By now, you’re probably tired of being told to get your eight hours of sleep every night but it’s for good reason! Sleep allows us to function properly, rejuvenate our bodies and re-energise for the following day.
Sleep is a necessity and not getting enough of it, not only compromises your performance throughout the day, but can have implications for how your skin looks, feels and behaves.
While we don’t have the luxury of sleeping as much as Sleeping Beauty, you can squeeze in a few extra hours of beauty sleep to help your skin become healthier!
Here’s the ultimate guide on how your skin can benefit from sleep and how you can start your journey to glowing skin.
The importance of sleep really boils down to maintaining your physical and mental health. It is a necessity that you need every day and helps you to be the best that you can be.
Healthy sleep allows the brain to properly function allowing you to be alert and rejuvenated when you wake up.
Poor sleeping patterns makes you more at risk of health concerns, like heart disease and diabetes, and can decrease life expectancy in the long run.
The recommended number of hours you need to sleep a night is around 7-9 hours but this is also dependent on your age. Young children and babies will need more sleep than healthy adults to allow them to maximise their development and growth.
Beauty sleep refers to the sleep that helps to repair any damage to your skin's barrier. Your skin heals best overnight and is at its optimum when given time to rejuvenate. If you’ve woken up with darker circles, drier and itchier skin than usual, it may be due to lack of sleep.
Getting your eight hours a day will help to brighten dull skin and relieve dry skin when tired.
When you sleep, this is when your body renews and repairs any damage from the day and this is the same for your skin.
Your body increases blood flow when you rest, allowing for faster skin rejuvenation. Sleep deprivation works in the opposite way. It decreases blood flow leading to tired looking skin and suppresses collagen production. You may find your skin to be lacklustre and prone to premature ageing when you lack sleep.
Lack of proper rest at night may also result in you being more stressed throughout the day. Stressed skin can look dull and blemish-prone due to an increase in cortisol levels. These cortisol levels increase oil production from our sebaceous glands that cause acne breakouts.
While it is tricky to achieve clear skin overnight, sleeping better will help improve skin texture, hyperpigmentation and acne.
Acne and sleep are more linked than you may think. Lack of sleep can deprive your body of the chance to repair broken skin from acne breakouts.
Sleep deprivation may increase acne flare ups where you are more stressed. Stressed skin may also encourage us to pick at spots that result in inflammation and redness.
For those who have existing skin conditions, like acne, eczema, and psoriasis, sleeping too little may exacerbate these symptoms making you more restless than usual. You may find yourself to experience itchy skin that is sensitive.
If you’re unsure if your skin is stressed, you may be able to tell by looking at how your skin behaves when you are under a lot of pressure. You may find stress acne to appear on places like your chin, forehead and back where sebum production is common. Throughout the day, you may also subconsciously pick at acne breakouts causing skin rashes and redness.
The best skincare products for stressed skin are ones that provide relief and calm the skin of irritation. Here is a simple skincare routine for acne-prone skin.
This may seem like a bit of a faff but double cleansing using two different cleansers ensures that you are giving your skin a clean base to layer on hydration. Clean skin also ensures that you are getting rid of all the bacteria from your face to prevent further breakouts.
Double cleansing is especially important for those who wear sunscreen or makeup during the day. Proper cleansing is the first preventative measure against stress acne.
Use a hydrating cleansing balm first. Our Gentle Cleansing Melt is a natural cleansing balm that melts away makeup whilst hydrating using organic Baobab oil. It's a gentle jelly cleanser that is soothing enough for all skin types.
Next, use a natural cleansing gel. Our Daily Detox Facial Wash is perfect for blemish-prone skin types as it uses organic aloe vera to soothe skin. The Moringa Peptides fight against environmental stresses like pollution and free radical damage that can make acne worse.
It is not essential to double cleanse every time you do your skincare routine. Doing this only in your nighttime skincare routine or whenever you wear makeup will be enough to properly cleanse without stripping the skin of its natural oils.
Scrub exfoliators may be too harsh for damaged skin so opting for a gentle exfoliating toner will help to deep clean your pores and prevent further breakouts.
The Liquid Radiance Glycolic Toner is the perfect exfoliant for blemish-prone skin. It uses both AHAs (alpha-hydroxy-acids) and BHAs (beta-hydroxy-acids) to exfoliate the surface of your skin as well as deep into your pores. The BHA salicylic acid pushes out all the dirt and oils that are harbouring in your skin, preventing further breakouts.
To use, apply a few pumps in the palms of your hands or on a reusable cotton pad. Sweep gently across the face.
If you have acne that doesn’t seem to go away, the addition of a powerful spot treatment will help to target spots on the surface of the skin.
Our Rainforest Blemish Rescue Serum uses a low percentage of natural salicylic acid from Willow Bark to gently exfoliate. It is also infused with an Amazonian blend of Acai and Copaiba to balance sebum production on the skin and refine the appearance of pores.
You can use this all over the face or apply a small dab on the affected areas for a targeted blemish treatment.
If you have oily or blemish-prone skin, you may have a tendency to skip moisturiser in fear of that thick and heavy texture. But without proper hydration, your skin will struggle to repair itself!
Choosing a lightweight natural moisturiser over a thick cream will make all the difference. One like our True Balance Lotion gives the skin a beautiful mattified look and uses the Ginger plant cells to refine the appearance of large pores. It's formulated to give enough hydration throughout the day leaving that sticky feeling behind.
Take a few pumps and apply all over the face and neck.
We all know that lack of sleep can result in dark circles and heavy under eye bags. While you can’t get rid of them completely, there are some things you can do at home to help the appearance of them.
Using a natural eye product will revived dehydrated and tired eyes by delivering moisture and improving blood circulation.
You can use a lightweight eye gel, like our Hyaluronic Eye Complex, in your morning skincare routine. This uses low molecular weight hyaluronic acid to penetrate deep in the layers of the skin and hydrate from within. It also helps to plump the under eyes and uses a cooling roller to depuff morning eyes.
For your nighttime routine, opt for a heavier eye cream. Our 360 Eye and Lip Contour is the perfect eye cream to depuff tired eyes. It uses a blend of probiotics to refine fine lines and wrinkles to support you through ageing.
Use your ring finger to delicately apply to the eyes and lips. Pat in any excess product.
Getting better quality sleep will do wonders for your physical and mental wellbeing. If you’re having difficulty falling asleep at night, here are just a few tips and tricks that might help
Teas, like Chamomile tea, are known for their calming and soothing benefits. Sipping on a warm cup of tea just before bed will help your body and mind to relax.
Chamomile tea is also packed full of antioxidants, such as apigenin, that help detox the body whilst relieving the mind of any night anxieties.
When you’re having a hard time sleeping, the first thing you might do is reach for your phone to pass the time. But this may actually be making your sleep schedule even worse.
Blue light from screens can disrupt sleep as it makes your mind more alert and delays sleepiness. This happens because it stops melatonin from secreting, resulting in a boost of attention.
Try to avoid looking at your phone around 30 minutes before bed.
Setting a daily routine will help your body form a habit helping you to sleep faster. Try choosing a few activities to do every night before you go to bed to get your body in the mood for sleep. Here is just one example of a nightly bedtime routine.
What better way to soothe the body than to wash the day away. Running a warm bath or shower will relax tense muscles and calm the mind.
Be sure to take time to notice any stressed and knotted places on the body that need a little extra attention.
If an aching body is what stops you from sleeping at night, massaging the affected body parts will bring relaxation and improve sleep. Particularly those who are working from home more often, your body may be more strained than usual.
After bathing, use an organic body oil to nourish dry skin and relieving your body of any muscle tension.
Our Super Berry Body Oil is a pregnancy-safe body oil infused with Rosehip Oil and upcycled Raspberry Oil to moisturise dehydrated skin. Simply take a few pumps on the hands and massage in circular motions on your body. Pay extra attention to any knotted areas such as the back, legs and neck.
If night anxiety keeps you up at night, writing a list of things to do for the next day will help you to get organised and empty the mind of worries. Oftentimes we stay awake overthinking about the things we have to get done, and this distracts us from getting quality sleep.
Keeping a pen and paper handy by your bedside table will allow you to write your thoughts down. Simply sharing them on a piece of paper will help to lift some weight off your shoulders and soothe bedtime anxieties.
Meditation is a great way to end the day. It can help you to reduce stress and anxiety by allowing you to let go of the day’s worries. There are many guided meditation podcasts out there that help you to centre your breathing patterns and help to treat insomnia.
Find a quiet place and lie down. Put on the best meditation for sleep that works for you and follow the guide until you fall asleep.
Doing this daily will not only help you get better sleep at night but will help with any mental health concerns. How we take care of our mental and physical health will shine through in how our skin looks too!
It can be difficult to take care of yourself especially with the recent changes in your daily life. Sleeping better and improving the quality of the sleep you get will better many aspects of your life including how you function at work, your mental wellbeing and physical health as well as how healthy your skin is.
Change doesn't have to be hard. Incorporate a few of these tips slowly and form a habit. You’ll see a difference in no time!
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