What if the secret to radiant, young-looking skin isn’t another skincare product, but simply… more sleep?
Dark circles and puffy eyes don’t lie — it takes one glance in the mirror in the morning to tell how well you slept the night before. Unfortunately, life gets hectic, and even though we know how important good-quality sleep is for our health, we often cut it shorter than the recommended seven or more hours of Zzzs per night to get more out of each day.
This could be doing your skin more harm than good, as no face mask or gym session will ever replace the crucial regeneration process our bodies undergo while we’re in a deep sleep.
How Does Sleep Impact Your Skin?
Sleep is when your body heals itself. Overnight, when your face isn’t exposed to UV (ultraviolet) rays or dynamic facial muscle movement, your body produces growth hormones responsible for removing aging skin cells, and replacing them with new ones to give you that fresh and younger-looking complexion in the morning.
Not sleeping enough sleep also reduces the production of collagen, a protein that allows our skin to stretch and look smoother. So when you deprive yourself of sleep, you’re also compromising your skin’s natural recovery process. Soon, you’ll start noticing that your skin looks paler than usual, or that you have more wrinkles and fine lines — all because your body is not getting a chance to fully repair and rejuvenate at night.
But there’s more.
Sleep Can Help Prevent Acne
Not sleeping enough leads to increased levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, which plays a big role in our immune system and prevents inflammation. Higher cortisol levels can aggravate the dreaded acne flare-ups, as well as other skin conditions like eczema or psoriasis.
Sleep Protects the Skin Barrier
Did you know that sleep acts almost like a natural moisturizer? Our body’s tendency to perspire more while sleeping leaves our skin barrier vulnerable — and even more prone to environmental damage during the day when we don’t give it enough time to rest and repair.
Sleep Improves Overall Mood
This last one seems like cheating, but it’s true: the better night's sleep you get, the better your mood, and the more positive you become. So when you get enough sleep, not only your appearance improves, but also the way you see yourself in the mirror ❤️
What Steps Can You Take To Sleep Better At Night Naturally?
If you want to make sure your skin heals and rejuvenates during the night as it’s supposed to, there are a few simple things you can add to your nighttime skincare routine to sleep better at night:
Create A Sleep Schedule And Stick To It
It probably sounds boring, but creating a fixed sleep schedule and sticking to it creates consistency your body craves. Make sure you’re setting aside 7-8 hours of sleep for each night, and that your bedtime and wake up times are always around the same time so your body gets used to the routine.
Wind Down Before Going To Bed
Your sleep quality also depends on how successfully you decompress at the end of your day. Creating a little wind-down routine, like reducing exposure to blue light, reading a book or doing a peaceful yoga flow helps reduce your stress and anxiety levels that could disrupt your Zzzzs even hours after falling asleep.
Declutter Your Bedroom
Is your bedroom dark, cool and quiet? Like it or not, your sleeping environment has to reflect the ease of mind you want to create for yourself when going to bed. Consider adding blackout curtains to block light exposure, ban smartphone usage past 9 PM or listen to soothing music to infuse peace into your bedroom.
Beauty Sleep Is A Real Thing
We know that sometimes 24 hours in a day just isn’t enough to achieve all your goals — but sleep should never be considered as one of the things you can compromise on to try. Our bodies and skin need time to recover and repair, so the next time you find yourself running short on beauty rest and tempted to skimp on sleep, think of your skin and the benefits it brings your wellbeing!
