The Skin Nerd: Are LED masks your next guiding light for beauty?
If you, as I, have unwittingly ended up following at least one hundred celebrities over the course of being on social media, you’ll have noticed that many are hitting the skincare hard whilst remaining in their positively resort-like homes.
A major pattern appearing, at least on my feed, is the LED mask. Even if you’re not sure if you know what an LED mask is, you do.
They’re usually white, Daft-Punkesque glowing face shields, typically worn for 20 minutes daily while you sit back, relax and let the futuristic light heal your skin concerns.
In the last two weeks, I’ve seen them on January Jones (pictured), Victoria Beckham, Chrissy Teigen and beauty gurus galore, revelling in this free time (or Work From Home time) to get a little tech-y when it comes to their skin.
In case you are wondering, no, LED masks are certainly not a gimmick.
LED skin therapy is very much aesthetician and dermatologist approved, with the different light colours bringing different benefits: red light works to promote our skin’s very own collagen and elastin synthesis for plumper skin and potential reduction of appearance in lines and wrinkles, and blue light works to oust bacteria meaning a reduction of future breakouts.
It may be a bit confusing, considering I spend a lot of my time talking about how light damages your skin, especially HEV or high energy visible light.
LED is another type of visible light, however, seeing as your skin will be subjected to only very specific, measured wavelengths for short amounts of time, it is not believed to cause the same type of damage.
Let me be honest here: non-professional LED masks cannot compete with in-clinic light treatments, which I personally rate highly.
We’ve used LED masks in Nerd HQ as part of mini facials at our Nerd Network events as a means of boosting the effects of the facial, and I believe they should be used the same way in the home.
That means alongside a skincare routine jam-packed with skin nutrients and active ingredients, rather than in lieu of it.
LED masks are a great way of getting additional skin benefits without overstimulating or over-exfoliating the skin, so if you’re looking for a way to go the extra mile, maybe an LED mask is for you.
If you’re on board, you’re looking at spending around €200. There’s the FOREO UFO Smart Mask Treatment Device (€199, arnotts.ie), which combines LED, smart masks and infusion technology for a 90 minute home treatment like few others, or the Dr. Dennis Gross Spectralite (€199.00, spacenk.com) for the eye area specifically.
As seen on Suki Waterhouse, Wayne Goss and Nadine Baggott, the Current Body Skin LED Light Therapy Mask (€382.00, currentbody.com) is more lightweight than the others, if comfort is on your mind.
If you want to get a roster going in your household and chip in towards the very LED mask that the celebrities love, the Déesse Pro Mask Next Generation will set you back approximately €1735 .
None of those digits were a typo, unfortunately.
You don’t need LED to emerge from isolation with better skin than before.
Get masking, eat as many nutrients as you possible can, cut down on the vino in the evening, put down that old Easter Egg and remember to double-cleanse… even if you haven’t been wearing makeup.
Nerd Pick
A supplement that helps with sleep and stress sounds bananas to some, but this supplement is Team Nerd tested and had us all sleeping like well-behaved babies.
Along with key skin vitamins, this supplement’s Mild Calming Complex contains valerian root, L-tryptophan (the amino acid in turkey that has us falling asleep on the couch at Christmas) and chamomile amongst other ingredients.
You can take one capsule per night, or you can up it to two a night if needed.
A supplement that helps with sleep and stress sounds bananas to some, but this supplement is Team Nerd tested and had us all sleeping like well-behaved babies.
Along with key skin vitamins, this supplement’s Mild Calming Complex contains valerian root, L-tryptophan (the amino acid in turkey that has us falling asleep on the couch at Christmas) and chamomile amongst other ingredients.
