How does firming skin care work?

There are many factors that help skin appear firmer or reduce skin slackening. But before we examine what can alleviate sagging skin, we must understand what provides structure to the skin. The two most relevant skin elements are collagen and elastin. Elastin provides skin’s springiness – its elasticity. While collagen forms the scaffolding for your skin. Together collagen and elastin give skin it’s youthful appearance and vitality.

When elastin deteriorates the skin will sag. And when collagen decreases the skin will weaken and become less firm. The result, skin eventually looks thinner and slackened and is more prone to wrinkling.

Collagen production peaks in your early twenties and then declines as we age. Elastin also declines as we get older. Other factors also contribute to the deterioration of these vital proteins – such as sun exposure and other environmental factors. So, protecting the skin is vital to preserving your collagen and elastin as well as protecting your skin overall.

What are the collagen and elastin challenged supposed to do?

There are several short-term and long-term solutions to help return your skin nearer its youthful vitality. Application of collagen and elastin is an option. There’s some controversy regarding the efficacy of topical application. The molecular size of these two proteins is too large to pass through the stratum corneum. Which is why most skin care uses hydrolyzed collagen and/or elastin. In simplistic terms, the molecules are chopped up, so their smaller size allows them to penetrate the skin’s barrier.

The overall impact of applying these ingredients to the epidermis, even when hydrolyzed, remains open-ended. Research tends to indicate that the ingredients won’t reconstitute into full-sized molecules, nor do they augment existing collagen or elastin. However, this doesn’t mean the topical application isn’t beneficial. Studies demonstrate that hydrolyzed collagen promotes cell proliferation and boosted collagen secretion. So, it does stimulate the body’s own collagen mechanisms. More importantly, dermal application helps retain moisture near and in the skin, helping to “plump” and smooth the skin, lending to a more youthful appearance. This is particularly true for soluble collagen – which is essentially larger collagen molecules that are used to bind water to the skin.

Antioxidants, Peptides, and More

Supporting existing collagen and elastin and simulating the body to produce more is key to long-term success. Retinol (Vitamin A) and other antioxidants (i.e., Vitamin C, Vitamin E, etc.) help naturally boost the body’s collagen formation. At the very least, it’ll support the collagen and elastin you already have – slowing its deterioration.

Other ingredients, such as the traditional ayurvedic medicinal extract from the babchi plant, known as bakuchiol seems to have strong benefits for promoting collagen synthesis. This extract functions like a retinol, increasing cell turnover, which stimulates collagen production reducing the signs of aging overall.

Cosmecuetical peptides have exploded in use, and they come in all forms, from neurotransmitter inhibitors to signaling and carrier peptides and beyond. Palmitoyl pentapeptides (e.g., Matrixyl) gained notoriety for its effectiveness in boosting and protecting collagen – and many topical collagen boosting creams will feature one or more of this type of peptide. Others, such as copper peptides help to improve collagen production too while soy peptides help slow the degradation of collagen. Each helps to support the body’s collagen and elastin to keep skin looking firmer and younger.

And finally, there’s the “face lift in a jar” ingredient DMAE (dimethylaminoethanol). This ingredient is a derivative of the B Vitamin Choline. Originally popular as a supplement for its ability to mimic acetylcholine which helps it boost mental alertness – during trials users reported improvement in their skin. This eventually led to topical application trials via serums and creams where it definitively boosted skin firmness along with reducing inflammation. Overall, clinical trials showed it helps to lessen wrinkles and improves the overall appearance of the skin.

Quick results while things improve over time

Firming products can take a while to reveal improvements, so many firming products also contain some immediate film-forming ingredients to give a quick tightness to the skin that can last four hours or more. These ingredients use natural polymers or polysaccharides that shrink as they dry to gently pull the skin giving it a temporary lifted appearance. Or in some instances caffeine can be used for its vasoconstricting and diuretic effects that combine to temporarily contract skin to give it a firmer appearance.  

Simple moisturizers can also impart a plumpness to skin via hydration. This can help eliminate fine lines and wrinkles and make the skin appear fuller and more supple for a period. And moisturized skin is always healthier skin overall – so it’s a win win in that regard.

The best approach is all the above

A smart approach is to find a cream, serum, or lotion that offers a combination of these additive, protective, and empowering ingredients to gain a robust multi-pronged solution. Or as Reviva always advocates, you can layer multiple products to amplify the results of each. Moreover, starting a simple by consistent skin care routine will help prevent accumulating long-term problems. And it’s much easier to prevent skin issues than it is to correct them after the fact.

While “firming skin care” can seem scandalous, it really depends on the claims being made. No, you cannot achieve facelift results overnight – but you can improve the look and feel of your skin over time. Studies repeatedly show that classical and modern ingredients do help boost collagen synthesis or help elastin while also imparting moisture and other benefits.

Reviva has a full collection of firming skin care that ranges from Elastin + DMAE Cream to a pure DMAE Serum. And for many the debate over their dessert island must have often comes down to our Collagen Elastin Body Lotion with DMAE and Resveratrol or our Alpha Lipoic Acid, Vitamin C Ester, DMAE Crème. Plus, Reviva offers several collagen boosting solutions too – such as our Collagen Revitalizing Crème or Bakuchiol Serum and our Retinol Serum. And we can’t forget our Collagen Serum and Collagen Night Crème – both long time top sellers because they’re delightfully effective.