Radiant skin, healthy aging: skin health and longevity

September 2, 2024

Hautgesundheit ist sehr wichtig für Longevity

September 2, 2024

Why skin health is so important for longevity

We all want great skin. No pimples or wrinkles, redness or blemishes, please. Perfect skin looks healthy, but you can't tell at first glance whether it is healthy or not. Skin health is an important factor for longevity and good health in old age, which is why we are taking a closer look at it in this article. Among other things, we draw on the contributions of Dr. Andrew Huberman, a neurobiologist at Stanford University, and Dr. Teo Soleymani, a dermatologist and dermatological surgeon.

“Skin health and appearance are important indicators of the health of your immune system, your microbiome in the gut and other organs.” Andrew Huberman

It has been known for a long time that skin plays a central role in our health. After all, it is the largest organ in the body and has many functions: It protects us from external influences, is an important mirror of internal bodily processes and can provide early indications of disease, and it renews itself tirelessly. By taking care of your skin, you are protecting and maintaining another piece of the puzzle in the process of holistic healthy aging. A nice side effect: healthy skin naturally looks good and feels pleasant.

Quality sleep is critical for your skin health

Sleep is an essential factor for the health and radiance of your skin. Especially during deep non-REM sleep, the body regenerates cells and repairs damage caused by environmental influences such as UV radiation and air pollution. During this phase, collagen production is stimulated - a protein that ensures elasticity and smoothness of the skin. A lack of sleep, on the other hand, accelerates the skin's ageing process, resulting in a dull complexion, fine lines and dry skin.

“There is a noticeable effect on the skin's moisture and elasticity when you've had a good night's sleep, as opposed to a lack of sleep.” Dr. Matthew Walker

Too little sleep also leads to an increase in the stress hormone cortisol, which promotes the breakdown of collagen and can exacerbate inflammation. This can exacerbate skin problems such as acne, eczema and psoriasis. Good sleep lowers cortisol levels and helps the skin to heal. In addition, sleep promotes blood circulation, which gives your skin a fresh, healthy glow. Lack of sleep, on the other hand, often leads to dark circles under the eyes and a pale appearance. Therefore, 7-9 hours of restful sleep is crucial to keep the skin young and resilient.

Sun in moderation is healthy and important

Sunlight is very important for our organism. It helps to produce vitamin D and supports hormone production. Daylight also improves mood and makes us feel more active. But that doesn't mean you have to be constantly baking in the sun to get these positive effects. Dr. Soleymani's recommendation is: 15-20 minutes of exposure to the sun on the forearms is sufficient for vitamin D synthesis. If you live in an area with low sunlight, you may need an additional vitamin D product to take orally – but before you decide to take one, you should definitely have a status check by a dermatologist.

Do you really need sunscreen?

Short answer: yes. In our latitudes, the UV index will almost never reach Australian heights, but the risk of sun damage and thus serious illnesses such as keratoses or skin cancer is still very real. Think of your skin like a well-filled bank account that you receive at birth. With every single sunburn, even if it is only a slight one, you withdraw something from this account. Although the skin has a natural impulse to repair itself, UV radiation can cause cell damage that prevents this. In this way, skin damage continues to build up until your skin account is overdrawn and dangerous changes such as melanomas can occur. The difficult thing is that you can't see every skin damage. That's why it's important for your long-term health to protect yourself from too much sun.

Chemical or mineral sunscreen, which is better?

Again, a short answer: the best is the sunscreen that you apply voluntarily and in sufficient quantities. There is now an incredibly wide range of products with different textures, ingredients and UV filter combinations available in pharmacies, drugstores and online shops. Both mineral and chemical sunscreens work by absorbing most of the UV rays. It used to be thought that mineral products reflect the sun's rays instead of absorbing them, but this has since been refuted. A common concern with chemical sunscreens is the “hormonal effect” of certain UV filters, which is often mentioned in the headlines. This is a very complex topic, but here is a little context on risk assessment: From rat experiments on pregnant animals, we know that their fetuses suffer certain hormonal damage in development when the mother consumes a large amount of a UV filter.
So yes, there is a potential endocrine effect of some chemical filters, but not with normal use of the product. This is a classic example of “the dose makes the poison”. As long as you don't smear sunscreen on your bread and eat it, you will not reach this amount under any circumstances. In the EU, the maximum levels for many ingredients in sunscreen are regulated even more strictly than in the US, for example – so you can be sure that the products on the shelves are safe. If you want to be on the safe side because you are pregnant or use a lot of sunscreen every day (for example, in a job that mainly takes place outside), you can opt for mineral sunscreens with zinc oxide or titanium oxide.

There is no “better or worse” when it comes to sun protection products in this sense – the main thing is that you protect your skin. Whether a product feels good and works for you in your everyday life depends on your personal needs and skin type. It's worth experimenting a little here. By the way: a good sunscreen not only keeps your skin healthier, but also more beautiful, because it significantly delays visible skin aging.

There is one exception, however: babies under 6 months of age should not be applied with sunscreen at all. Their skin is very sensitive, thin and still permeable to many substances. Appropriate clothing and plenty of shade are better for the little ones, more on this in a moment.

“Sunscreen products help to reduce the incidence of common skin cancers, but they are not the only form of protection.”
Dr. Teo Soleymani

Sun protection involves more than just sunscreen

No sun protection product is perfect. That's why you shouldn't rely on a single sun protection measure, but ideally use a combination of methods. Here are the most important points:

Clothing: Long-sleeved garments that cover arms and shoulders spare you the need for sunscreen on these parts of your body. Natural materials such as linen and cotton are particularly airy and cooling. However, there are also special materials with a proven SPF, which can be very useful for outdoor activities such as hiking, swimming or jogging (and for small children).
Hat and sunglasses: The face naturally receives a lot of UV radiation. A hat or cap with wide brim and sunglasses with UV-blocking lenses provide additional protection for the skin and also reduce your risk of sunstroke.
Shade: UV radiation is at its highest between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. During this time, you should stay in the shade as much as possible. You will still get UV rays there (sand, water and concrete reflect them particularly intensely), but much less.

Air travel: Protect your skin from UVA rays

Especially if you fly frequently and have a window seat, you will be exposed to UVA rays during the flight. Airplane windows block most UVB rays, but only filter 50 to 70 percent of UVA rays, which can cause skin aging and cancer.

Although modern airplanes have improved windows, they do not provide complete protection against UVA rays. Be sure to use a broad-spectrum sunscreen (SPF 30+) on long daylight flights, especially if you are sitting by a window. Applying sunscreen regularly during long flights is important to prevent skin damage and keep your skin healthy and youthful.

Skincare: the basics for your beauty routine

If you have never looked into skincare before, you are likely to be overwhelmed by the huge range of products and ingredients. We can't go into all of them here (that would take a whole book rather than an article), but we want to introduce you to the basics and some particularly well-researched ingredients.
Which skincare routine is best for you depends on your skin type, age, needs and goals, but a basic routine will help support your skin health with just a few steps:

Cleansing: This should always be gentle but thorough. Look for mild products without alcohol, strong perfumes or aggressive surfactants such as sodium lauryl sulfate. Stubborn sunscreen can be easily removed with oil-based products such as shower oil or cleansing oil, both of which are now available at affordable prices in drugstores.
Moisturizing: Apply a moisturizing product. For the face, this could be a serum with hyaluronic acid or glycerin if you want to add an extra step, or just a moisturizer. Oily skin types often do better with light gel-like products, while dry skin will benefit from a richer formula.
Apply morning sunscreen as the last step and as needed. If you are staying indoors all day, you don't need any. If you are wearing makeup, wait 10-15 minutes after applying sunscreen before applying makeup, as the product needs a little time to form a stable film.

Incidentally, regular checkups at a dermatologist's office are also among the basics for good skin health. This way, risky developments can be quickly identified and treated at an early stage. Aside from regular check-ups, you should always see a dermatologist if you notice anything unusual. This could be new or changed moles, hair loss, persistent redness, constant itching and much more – your skin is telling you that something is wrong somewhere.

Apart from skin care products, there are also technologies that can help your skin. For example, red light and infrared light therapies can promote collagen production, reduce inflammation and generally make your skin appear younger.

Less Stress, Better Nutrition, Better Skin

Stress affects the entire body, including the skin: when we are stressed, more collagen is broken down, and collagen is an important skin building block. In this way, stress promotes premature skin aging. Good stress management not only helps your general well-being, heart health and resilience, but also your skin.

Another piece of the puzzle for strengthening your skin from the inside is nutrition: foods with lots of antioxidants and vitamin C are great for your skin. Berries, nuts and green leafy vegetables are real skin friends, protecting it from free radicals that accelerate the skin aging process. Collagen is also a very important component of “skin nutrition”. Collagen is the substance that keeps our skin elastic and wrinkle-free. Unfortunately, the body produces less of it with age, so a suitable dietary supplement can be useful. Dr. Soleymani emphasizes that ingredients such as polypodium and nicotinamide also serve well as a dietary supplement: they support the skin in its natural sun protection and can therefore complement other sun protection measures well.

As you can see, there is no single cream or magic bullet that ensures healthy and beautiful skin; it is always the interplay of several factors, behaviors and products. Fortunately, many of them are inexpensive and not particularly complicated. One thing is for sure: your skin will thank you – and it shows.

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