Remember the good days when your parents burst into your room at 1:00 am without knocking just to nag you to get some sleep? Back when cat videos were the most popular form of entertainment found on the internet. Now those were the days!
Like the time you would sheepishly stalk your crush on Facebook while accidentally liking and immediately unliking one of their posts. Sounds like the kind of thing a sleep-deprived person would do. And, of course, I’ve done it.
Yes, they probably saw it appear for a split second as a notification on their phone. They definitely did not lose any sleep on it that night like you did.
Sleep is such a big deciding factor on whether you’re going in for a shit day or an everything is going my way kind of day. It’s always one or the other. Seldom do I hear “I got shat on by a flock of birds today, but my day was amazing”. The same goes for your skin, the living organ constantly renewing itself.
We all have good and bad skin days! Your skin needs a little boost with the renewal process and sleep is a HUGE contributing factor to it.
You’ve got to give sleep more credit. Girl, let’s be honest, those dark circles looked way worse after that all-nighter spent studying for a biology exam that you’ll probably end up having to retake because you procrastinated on studying for 2 whole ass months.
So, let’s get to the juicy bit. Beauty sleep is indeed a real thing. How exactly does sleep make your skin better?
1. One word: collagen. It helps your skin look young and gives it that healthy glow!
Oh yeah, love the sound of that word! Yep, the protein found in connective tissue like your skin that promotes its elasticity and firmness. It makes up a whopping 80% of your skin’s structure.
While sleeping, your skin cells are regenerating as this is part of the body’s repair process. The production of collagen is increased immensely helping your skin look young and radiant. More collagen means bouncier skin that is less likely to wrinkle.
2. Your skin is more moisturized overall and can protect itself better.
This means that if you sleep less than 5 hours, you are more likely to have drier skin and burn more easily in the sun. Your skin is affected more by ultraviolet light exposure with reduced sleep.
Your skin also typically experiences more transepidermal water loss at night so the importance of sleep is dire here. The less you sleep, the more water loss occurs and the less hydrated your skin is.
Less moisturized skin also means the appearance of fine lines is more evident on the skin and that is the last thing we want.
3. Your cortisol levels, are lower if you get an adequate amount of sleep.
When this hormone rises too high, inflammation occurs. This breaks down the proteins like collagen that add smoothness to your skin and make it appear younger. And the worst of it all, the skin is more prone to acne due to inflammation and excess sebum production.
Cortisol stimulates your hypothalamus to produce a hormone called CRH which increases oil production from the sebaceous glands near your hair follicles. This excess oil can clog your pores and these clogged pores are likely to promote acne.
Now I’m starting to understand all those acne flare-ups right before an exam… Keep those cortisol levels in check!
4. There is increased blood flow to the skin near your face.
Your complexion may have a duller and more lifeless look when less blood flows to your skin. Increased blood flow helps nourish your skin cells and carries away the bad stuff like free radicals that can cause fine lines, loose skin, and dark spots.
The free radicals have a blast wrecking havoc and breaking down your collagen. Those pesky unstable molecules must be evacuated and good circulation can help with that!
Bad circulation does not only affect your skin tone, it can also emphasize the appearance of dark circles due to the fluid retention around the eyes. So, more sleep = better circulation = less fluid retention, and this all equals happier skin.
5. While sleeping, you’re shedding more of the dead skin cells that are no longer useful.
It does sound pretty nasty and reptilian-like but this is part of the renewal process towards revealing glowing new skin. These dead skin cells will be replaced by healthy new cells that are just beginning to live out their 3-week life span.
During deep sleep, cell turnover increases exponentially. There are more and more new skin cells produced by the epidermis at a quick rate which leaves fewer of the older cells.
6. There are peak times at which skin regeneration is maximized.
These peak times are said to be in the evening between 9 PM to 12 AM as our skin cells follow a 24-hour cycle just like we do.
Since melatonin and HGH (human growth hormone) is produced at an accelerated rate during these hours, skin regeneration is boosted. Melatonin triggers the synthesis of antioxidant enzymes that are good for the skin and HGH aids in collagen production.
To get the most benefits from this, we should be doing our nightly skincare routine between these hours and we should be in bed before 12 AM. Definitely closer to 9 PM than 12 AM but easier said than done, right? I guess a little bit of time is the price of beauty.
There are a plethora of other benefits from sleeping including mood improvement, lower risk for health problems, clearer thoughts, a better immune system, and I could go on and on but the most important point here is, your skin is going to be looking freaking radiant! Isn’t that what we’re here for?