As in we want bright skin, right now!
Everyone wants a healthy, radiant glowing complexion, right? But what is it that makes our skin bright? Genetics play a part and unfortunately your age can too, but if you look at your diet, lifestyle and daily skincare habits we are sure you can find a way to achieve a brighter complexion.
Bright colours does not = bright skin.
Your skin contains 3 main colours and healthy glowing skin depends on these colours being uniform and even with an uninterrupted reflection or bounce back of light from the skin’s surface.
Colour #1: Red from haemoglobin
Think of the pinkish hue of a child’s cheek, which has a lovely even blush. What we don’t want are the bright red spots caused by broken blood vessels.
DIV procedural nurse Tara Coetzer shows us her glowing skin. Note the way light bounces from her cheek and brow area. She wears no facial makeup.
Colour #2: The milky “glow” from collagen
Collagen fibres actually reflect back to the eyes and when we are young and have an abundance of healthy collagen our skin glows. This glow is what makeup illuminators try to recreate.
An even number of pigment cells creates an even colour in the skin and an even bounce of light.
Colour #3: The brown of your actual skin colour
Almost everyone has some degree of brown in their skin and the amount is dictated by the number of pigment cells you have. Fair people have few, while dark people have many. The number of pigment cells isn’t important, what is important is that they are regularly dispersed so that the entire area of skin has an even colour rather than patches of lighter and darker.
How to get glowing?
Diet
Inside health is reflected on the outside. A healthy diet full of antioxidant rich foods will take care of the inside and go a long way towards improving your skin’s complexion. Antioxidants are anti-inflammatory, cancer fighting and protect against the sun (both UVA and UVB), they aid in fighting skin infection, help regulate our immune responses, improve blood flow (colour #1) and may increase collagen production (colour #2) improving skin texture. Not only are antioxidants very important in maximising collagen production from the cells that make it but they also act as protection once it is made. Ingesting antioxidants is simple, just eat as many coloured and varied fresh fruits and vegetables as possible, additionally add in some tea - preferably green or white. Supplement your antioxidant intake by applying an antioxidant serum in the morning such as Cosmedix Affirm, which is part of DIVs large cosmeceutical skincare range.
Click here to read our blog on why we are pro, antioxidants in skincare.
Cosmedix Affirm
AVOID THE SUN
The sun has the ability to cause unevenness in all 3 colours destroying any chance of achieving bright skin. It can cause broken blood vessels, patches of brown pigmentation and damage collagen. If the collagen layer is old, damaged or scarred it will not bounce light back evenly and the skin won’t have that milky glow.
Always use a broad spectrum SPF daily such as La Roche Posay’s 50+ BB cream, the light tint has the added bonus of giving an even appearance to the skin and covering up any slight colour abnormalities. Ask us about which shade of BB is best for you.
Photos on the left shows cheeks affected by broken blood vessels. Once they were removed by Assoc Prof Greg Goodman using a Vascular Laser the skin colour becomes even as does the bounce of light allowing the skin to glow, as shown by the 'After' photos on the right.
*All results shown on our website have been achieved by our team members. Please note that results are individual and may vary.
USE APPROPRIATE SKINCARE
We asked DIVs Alani Fowler what she would recommend to boost brightness?
“There are a number of products that can easily be added to your skin care regime to help brighten your skin", says Alani. "The perfect product for you will depend on your personal skin characteristics so a skin assessment is best but below are some definite favourites.
For those that are new to the cosmeceutical world or are working with a budget, Cosmedix’s Simply Brilliant is a great place to start. Best for normal – oily skin this “simply brilliant” product is jammed packed full of ingredients designed specifically to even out visible discolouration.
"If you’re after the Rolls Royce of brightening products then Skin Medica’s Lytera packs the ultimate punch. This product has been proven effective in studies showing: high patient satisfaction, skin improvement after just 4 weeks of use, significant reduction in pigmentation after 12 weeks and continuous reduction over 6 months." *
*Makino ET, Herndon JH, Sigler ML, et.al. J Drug Dermatol. Mar 2013; 12(3): s21-s26.
IN CLINIC TREATMENTS
Procedural nurse Tara Coetzer applies an Oxygen treatment to the skin before a light skin peel to give the treatment a boost for a result that glows.
DIV has a large list of treatments that can help you to achieve glowing skin, a personalised treatment plan is necessary to work out the best option for you.
Vascular laser such as the Excel V can be used to address redness and broken blood vessels. Peels, Q-switched YAG and Fraxel are just a few of the treatments available to treat pigmentation and IPL can be used to treat both colours at once. To improve your collagen and achieve a healthy glow there is Skin Needling, Venus Viva or Fractioned CO2 – and this is just to name a few!