How Sleep Affects Your Skin Health
Sara Anderson
Global Brand Storytelling
4 min read
Learn more about the beauty of a good night's rest.
A radiant, youthful complexion is often attributed to various skincare products and treatments—and these can certainly take you a long way. However, one way to boost your glow is often overlooked: a good night's rest. Read on to learn more about how your skin recovers at night, plus how you can maximize the benefits of your beauty sleep.
During the day, your skin is in defense mode, protecting itself from environmental stressors such as UV radiation, pollution, and free radicals. At night, however, the skin shifts into repair and regeneration mode. This activity is crucial for maintaining healthy skin and involves several key processes.
While we sleep, the body increases blood flow to the skin, which helps to deliver oxygen and nutrients necessary for cell repair and growth. This process is particularly active during the deeper stages of sleep.
Collagen is a protein that provides structure and elasticity to the skin—think youthful-looking skin with a natural bounce. During sleep, the body ramps up the production of melatonin and growth hormone, both of which play roles in repairing damaged skin cells and boosting the production of collagen. This contributes to the maintenance of the skin's firmness and resilience.
During sleep, the skin undergoes a detoxification process, removing impurities and repairing damage caused by environmental stressors. The increased blood flow helps remove toxins and metabolic waste products that have accumulated throughout the day. This nightly renewal process helps to restore skin health, reduce inflammation, and prepare the skin for the environmental stresses it may face during the day.
Sleep helps balance the body's hydration levels, ensuring the skin retains moisture. By supporting the skin's barrier function, trans-epidermal water loss is prevented, and moisture is locked in; this is critical for minimizing dryness and maintaining a smooth, supple texture.
If you’re spending loads on the perfect skincare products but skipping out on sleep to work, socialize, or scroll, you may want to rethink your routine. Understanding the impact lifestyle factors can have on the health and appearance of your skin is crucial for a holistic approach to skincare.
Use the following tips to curate a cozy bedtime ritual that’ll help you prioritize self-care and the beauty sleep your skin craves.
Prepare your skin's natural nighttime repair and renewal with a solid nighttime skincare ritual. Consider these steps a good place to start:
Engaging in calming activities, such as reading, journaling, or gentle yoga, helps to signal to your body that it’s time to transition from wakefulness to sleep. This relaxation period reduces stress levels and decreases production of cortisol, the stress hormone, which can interfere with sleep.
By establishing a consistent pre-sleep routine and going to bed at the same time most nights, you can reinforce healthy sleep patterns and improve the quality of your rest.
One of our favorite pre-sleep rituals is a warm bath. A relaxing soak with the Sake Bath soak, a calming body scrub massage using the Brown Sugar Body Polish, and a luxurious lather with the Milk Body Lotion is more than enough to inspire a dreamy night of deep restoration.
Good hygiene around bedtime is essential for supporting your body's circadian rhythm—the internal 24-hour clock that regulates sleep-wake cycles and various physiological processes. The circadian rhythm influences sleep quality, hormone production, and cellular repair processes.
To maintain a healthy circadian rhythm, it’s helpful to minimize exposure to artificial light before bedtime—think phone screens, computers, and TVs. Replace nighttime scrolling with an overnight face mask and a podcast or book. The Black Tea Firming Overnight Mask is a high-performance sleep mask that cocoons your skin in a velvety cream, delivering intense moisture and firming benefits.
At fresh, you’ll find a range of collections tailored to your skin type so you can indulge in the skincare and beauty sleep you’ve been dreaming of. Learn more about skincare must-haves, the science behind our ingredients, and more on the fresh blog.
Written by Sara Anderson for Fresh. Sara is a NYC-based global marketer and beauty content strategist. Sara has 12+ years of experience conceptualizing and producing original content in beauty, fashion, music, and entertainment. Sara has created content for Fast Company, Us Weekly, Birchbox, and PopCrush.com with her expertise most recently in the beauty space.