{"id":14908,"date":"2021-04-07T10:24:00","date_gmt":"2021-04-07T10:24:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/glohs.hk\/?p=14908"},"modified":"2021-03-29T10:25:53","modified_gmt":"2021-03-29T10:25:53","slug":"stress-skin-yes-its-a-thing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glohs.hk\/zh-hant\/stress-skin-yes-its-a-thing\/","title":{"rendered":"Stress Skin \u2013 Yes, It\u2019s A Thing"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I spend a lot of time consulting with clients about their skin and general health issues. Increasingly, I am seeing more and more sudden skin issues that will flare up out of nowhere. Ensuring that it is not an allergic reaction to ingredients or food they have eaten, I start dwelling into the cause of this common phenomena.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The answer is \u2013 our skin is stressed!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Think about it. When human being is formed, our skin and brain are bound for life.  When we sense embarrassment, we blush. When our body gets stressed from pandemic lockdown to work pressure, we get a pimple. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How the stress is manifested depends on your genes \u2013 you may experience a pimple, an eczema outbreak, psoriasis or rosacea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why does our skin get stressed? When our body experiences continuing or chronic stress, the skin-psyche connection leads to an over-production of cortisol<\/strong>, the key stress hormone. Excess cortisol depletes our skin\u2019s ability to trap moisture in and keep allergens, irritants and pollutants out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Specifically, stress inhibits the skin\u2019s ability to produce beneficial oils to protect the skin, or lacking lipids to seal in hydration. This in turn means the skin starts \u201cleaking\u201d water, also called transepidermal water loss (TEWL).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, there is an overproduction of sebum, the oil often implicated in acne, which alters the skin\u2019s pH, making it harder for the skin\u2019s microbiome to exist. In short, we become more prone to acne.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When skin is healthy, we have different microbes on it to keep it healthy. Healthy skin produces peptides and ceramides to keep skin firm and moisturized.  It also protects itself from pollution, sun and invading pathogens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When skin is not healthy, its microbiome overgrows bad bacteria, making it prone to infection, inflammation, irritation and hyperpigmentation, as well as being sensitive to outside aggressors like free radicals from pollution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On top of that, stress prompts the body to produce internal free radicals<\/strong>, which causes cell destruction and oxidative stress. Form of manifestation will depend on where these free radicals target. If they target our DNA, it may become skin cancer.\u00a0 If they target elastin and collagen, we get fine lines and wrinkles (Wrinkles \u2013 The Demons of Ageing<\/a>) . If they target lipids, our skin becomes dehydrated and skin barrier gets damaged, making us more prone to acne. On top of that, cortisol also decreases our skin\u2019s production of hyaluronic acid and collagen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think you get the gist. How can we reduce skin stress?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to dermatologists, the best way to reduce skin stress is to deal with the stressor<\/em> itself. A relaxation response will reduce the amount of cortisol and inflammation in our body, which in turn will improve our skin condition. Sounds simple, but these methods are scientifically proven to have a direct impact on your skin and overall health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n