Anti-Inflammatory

One of the most important qualities for a skincare product to have is some sort of inflammation-fighting ability. That’s because anti-inflammatory compounds can work to improve the health of your skin. 

What Is Inflammation?

Inflammation is one of those biomarkers whose levels you want to be just right. A little bit of inflammation can help speed the immune response and send important signals. Whenever you stress out a muscle, your body’s natural inflammatory response gives some extra attention to that area until it’s healed.

Like many things, however, inflammation needs to be kept in balance. Too much inflammation can lead to negative side effects, like:

• Slower recovery
• Lower energy levels
• Lower immunity
• Faster aging
• Wear & tear

In general,as Americans we tend to live a highly inflammatory lifestyle. From the foods we eat to the substances we put on our skin, many of us are making our bodies deal with extra inflammation daily. This might not seem like a big deal at first, but over time the effects of inflammation start to become more and more tangible.

How Inflammation Can Wreck Your Skin

Just like internal inflammation is bad for your internal organs, external inflammation isn’t great for external ones — like your epidermis.  It can actually eat away at your skin barrier over time, breaking down the collagen that keeps things structured and the elastin that keeps things flexible.

What Are Anti-inflammatory Compounds?

Thankfully, nature has given us more than a few antidotes to inflammation’s wear and tear. Certain compounds can quell inflammation by “eating up” inflammatory molecules like free radicals. Basically, these compounds reduce the harmful byproducts of normal life and normal metabolism.  

For a few examples of anti-inflammatory compounds, look no further than hemp’s beloved cannabinoids and terpenes. They’re both powerfully anti-inflammatory.  

How to Use Anti-Inflammatory Compounds?

Another thing you should know about anti-inflammatories: they go hand in hand with antioxidants. Many of nature’s best compounds, in fact, are both anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidation. 

And the best skincare routine makes use of both these qualities — often at the very same time. Common skincare-specific anti-inflammatories include: 

• Vitamin C
• Vitamin E
• Squalane
• Jojoba oil
• Hempseed oil
• CBD & CBD oil

When used judiciously, these compounds can turn back the clock on skin aging. How? More on that here.