How Do Hormones Affect the Skin in Your Teenage Years?

Intrinsic aging is determined by heredity, your genetic programming that controls the hormones responsible for aging. The skin will certainly behave differently under the influences of these hormones, but how do they affect skin during the teen years?

A prepubescent skin (age 9-12) is the skin we all would like to have – smooth, invisible pores and simply flawless. For the most part prior to the teenage years, hormones are not influencing the skin but come age 13 and beyond, this is a different story.

From ages 13-19, hormones can really start to do funny things to a teenager’s skin. The fluctuations alone can aggravate the skin and contribute toward blemishes and breakouts. Estrogen is a natural anti-inflammatory and may keep things calm, but around the time of one’s period, the drop in estrogen very often will cause the skin to flare up. Testosterone and other androgens increase oil production and the tendency towards clogging. Those with sticky sebum or weak follicular walls will experience more severe breakouts, including stubborn cystic acne.

This is because the oil gland is located in a hair follicle with a narrow opening. As a result, sticky sebum makes skin prone to more clogged pores. Additionally, a weak follicular wall causes bacteria to leak out into the surrounding areas. This is why squeezing at your blemishes once they first appear is a very bad idea.) Your immune system perceives this as an infection and fights it by causing inflammation.  -Renee Reloux

Kasia reFresh Cleanser:  Wash with a gentle, anti-bacterial cleanser morning and night.

Cleanse and nourish your skin instead of stripping it! reFresh Face Cleanser gently cleanses without drying, maintains moisture levels and removes makeup without irritating sensitive skin.

Refresh:

• The main ingredient, Aloe Vera, replaces lost moisture, restores radiance and contains over two hundred active compounds to stimulate cell growth and deliver potent antibacterial properties.

Cleanse:

• Mild surfactants derived from coconut gently foam up to wash away impurities without irritation
• Salicylic Acid micro-exfoliates to reveal clearer, brighter skin

Soothe:

• Natural herbs combat inflammation and Aloe Vera preserves skin’s natural moisture balance

Why washing your face in the morning is a must!

You wouldn't skip brushing your teeth in the morning, right? So why would you skip washing your face?

Even while you sleep, dust, dirt and bacteria accumulate on your skin, so it's imperative that you wash your face in the morning—not just at the end of the day. Cleansing also serves as a mild exfoliation, which is essential in preventing pores from getting clogged and skin from looking dull. Furthermore, cleansing prepares the skin for further facial treatments, allowing them to better penetrate the skin and deliver the results you're looking for.

reFresh Face Cleanser

Benefits:

• Gently cleanse without drying for normal to sensitive skin.
• Remove makeup with zero irritation.
• Soothing, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial.

The Secret:

Centipeda cunnighamii, or Aloe Vera, contains over two hundred active compounds. Together they stimulate growth in skin cell fibroblasts, provide soothing anti-irritant benefits, and deliver potent anti-bacterial properties.

Fact or Fiction? Stress causes wrinkles.

It's True: According to dermatologist Amy Wechsler, cortisol (the hormone caused by stress) degrades collagen. A wrinkle is a weakening and lessening of collagen and elastin fibers in the skin's dermis. When you live in a chronic state of stress, routinely bathing your body in cortisol, it becomes harder and harder for the skin to repair itself naturally.

Contact Kasia Organic Salon/Spa to make an appointment with our skin specialist Mariah.  In the coming month, watch for the launch of a highly technical, medical grade facial program in the comfort of our spa, delivering results without discomfort.