Five most powerful ingredients to have in every skincare routine
Your future self will thank you an awful lot for introducing these ingredients into your routine
Dr Clodagh O'Shea is an aesthetic medical specialist at the Beacon Face and Dermatology is internationally recognized and renowned for her natural approach to skin rejuvenation. Dr O’Shea has clinics in Dublin and Cork and is a highly sought after practitioner.
She spoke at ieStyle Live From The Couch and shared her secret to glowing skin at any age. In particular, she highlighted the five must-have ingredients needed for a pro-ageing skincare routine.
“SPF is not the most glamorous product in the world, but it is the most important product you can have in your routine. I know it's tempting to buy the latest serum or the latest anti ageing moisturiser but SPF is number one.
“80 percent of premature aging is caused by ultraviolet radiation and even though we may think we're living in a very rainy, dull, cloudy country and we don't need to worry about that - we do. The type of radiation that causes ageing is present all year round, and it can penetrate windows and glass.
“Even if you're inside all day working on a computer inside a window, you're still going to get ageing. You can see a lot of truck drivers who expose one side of their face their whole life to the car window, and that side of their face has aged an awful lot faster than the other side.”
“Vitamin C and SPF: if you add two things into your routine, those are the two that I urge you to introduce because prevention is key. If SPF is your Batman, vitamin C is your Robin, they're going to work beautifully together.
“Vitamin C is what's known as an antioxidant, it prevents oxidation. As we go out during the day, our skin is exposed to a lot of environmental stressors, such as smoking, pollution, what we eat, what we drink, harsh weather conditions, and all of these things will accelerate ageing and they're going to cause premature ageing. Vitamin C is what's going to help stop and prevent a lot of that.
“Now, vitamin C, she's a bit of a diva, it’s very difficult to actually get vitamin C in a bottle in the correct percentage or the correct pH in the correct formulation. For that reason I would always urge my clients to opt for medical grade products and medical grade lines, also known as cosmeceuticals.
“Cosmeceutical products wouldn't be found in department stores and pharmacies, they're normally sold in skin clinics, and they would be advised by doctors or skin therapists. They're a little bit more difficult to get your hands on. You need to opt for cosmeceuticals and these have been backed by a lot of research, a lot of scientific studies so you know you're going to get the results that they promise. Not every product you have in your skincare routine needs to be a cosmeceutical product but certainly when it comes to things like your vitamin C, you should really be opting for medical grade or cosmeceutical lines.
“If you do nothing else but put on Vitamin C serum and an SPF on your skin before you leave the house, you'll be doing incredibly well.”
“There are certain ingredients we need to get into our nighttime routine but we don't want to use them every night, we don't want to use them seven nights a week or overdo it. The most important ingredient that we do need in our nighttime routine and use them possibly two nights a week would be a retinoid. Retinoid, retinol and retinoic acid, they all fall under the umbrella term of retinoids and essentially they’re vitamin A. Vitamin A really is the holy grail when it comes to anti-ageing. It's probably the ingredient that has the most research to back it up and that is what's going to help stimulate collagen, it's going to help reorganise your elastin.
“There's a lot of talk about retinols, people are a little bit scared of them, they're fearful because they see the side effects. Basically retinol is going to make your skin behave as if it's 10 years younger. It's incredibly stimulating and because it's so stimulating, it can cause side effects such as redness and peeling, which is why a lot of people are scared to start. So I do urge people to seek a skin specialist or a doctor for that initial consultation because they will guide you on how to start your retinol.
“Depending on your sensitivities, you may need to start from an incredibly low dose but I would urge everyone to consider adding retinol into your routine. The rule of thumb is to start low and slow, so a low percentage, and to slowly incorporate them into your routine.
“I've just mentioned the top three ingredients in my opinion: vitamin C, SPF and retinol. If they're in your routine, you're doing incredibly well and your future self will thank you an awful lot for introducing those ingredients into your routine.”
“The other nights of the week it's really important to exfoliate the skin at any age. An interesting thing about exfoliants is when I mentioned exfoliants to my clients, they will always think of physical scrubs. I would always advise him to stay away from those physical scrubs: chemical exfoliants are our best friends. They're the acids, they sound a little bit more harsh than the physical scrubs when you hear the word acid, but in reality they're an awful lot more gentle on the skin and they have wonderful benefits.
“Glycolic acid, lactic acid, salicylic acid: they're all chemical exfoliants and your specific skin type will decide which one you use. Lactic is the one that most people start with, it's for sensitive skin types. Using an exfoliant two or three times a week is going to ensure your skin stays bright and exfoliated and polished. They go hand in hand with a retinol.”
“You just need to make sure that you're hydrating your skin as well, which is really important. Hyaluronic acid is a huge buzzword, it's a real buzzword in the aesthetic industry. It’s found in serums and moisturisers and it's a wonderful product that everybody can use, really you can't under or overuse it.
“I would urge everyone to have hyaluronic acid in their routine, especially coming into the winter. That with a nice moisturiser is going to keep your skin hydrated for the winter months.
“In summary, ensuring that you have a vitamin C serum, an SPF, a retinoid, an exfoliant, and a hydrating serum in your routine is a wonderful start.”
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