Today we’re going to get a bit sciency on you and tell you all about one of our new favourite ingredients, Hyaluronic Acid. This stuff is the goods, so put on your thinking caps and get ready to enter into the brain of our cosmetic chemist, Aaron…. Hang on…. ;)
Hyaluronic Acid (HA) is a pretty fancy name, but to put it simply it’s really just a large sugar molecule (i.e. a natural polysaccharide) that looks a bit gooey and sticky. It plays a really important role in moisturising your skin, keeping it healthy and hydrated.
Your body actually produces its own supply of Hyaluronic Acid, but as you get older and your skin is exposed to environmental aggressors (like sun and pollution), your body produces less and less of this wonderful acid.
That’s why young skin retains its resilience and elasticity so well - because it holds so much moisture. On the flip side, due to having less hyaluronic acid on-board more mature skin that is exposed daily to UV rays and other stressors can become depleted of moisture, leaving it looking dull.
Hyaluronic Acid is the key to keeping your skin hydrated and plump, which has the knock-on effect of reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. And the good news is that you can apply Hyaluronic Acid to your skin topically to make up for what your body isn’t able to supply on its own.
Depending on who you listen to, Hyaluronic Acid can hold 500 to 1000 times its weight in water. Wowsers. That makes it an amaaaazing humectant (a humectant is something that draws in moisture from the outside, which is vital for dry or dehydrated skin).
Hyaluronic Acid doesn’t stop there either. It also helps to rebuild your skin's natural microbiome - you could even call it a “post biotic”. All these years - without us knowing - Hyaluronic Acid has been supporting your skin's microbiome.
With all that awesomeness the feature that we love the best as cosmetic chemists is that Hyaluronic acid acts as a delivery system for other ingredients. It acts like the No.10 bus, ferrying ingredients to the main street of Happy Skin Town, helping other skin-loving ingredients penetrate deeper into your skin.
The many different types of Hyaluronic Acid
Back in the day there was only one type of Hyaluronic acid and it pretty much only came from Rooster combs. Not very cool - especially if you’re vegan or care about making sure your products are cruelty free.
Luckily, times have changed and now Hyaluronic Acid can now be sourced through a fermentation process of glucose (aka sugar). There are certainly some smart cookies out there!
This also opened up new types of Hyaluronic Acid being created, all with different powers.
There are high molecular weight (bigger molecules), low molecular weight (smaller molecules), hydrolyzed (broken down in a chemical reaction with water) and cross polymer (a special small molecule with a 3D molecular structure) variations. It can be a little confusing but don’t stress, they all do good things.
Low molecular weight and hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid are absorbed deeper into your skin, while high molecular weight is more protecting and helps support your skin's barrier.
Who can benefit from adding Hyaluronic Acid to their skincare ritual?
Everyone can benefit from using Hyaluronic in your skincare routine! No matter what your skin type or age, Hyaluronic Acid will do something good for it.
With better moisture balance your skin is visibly smoother, clearer, plump and radiant. What’s not to love about that? Hyaluronic Acid is gentle, calming and visibly reduces redness making it suitable for even the most sensitive skin.
How do to add Hyaluronic Acid to your routine
Up till now Woohoo Skincare didn’t have any products with Hyaluronic Acid. I know, I know... after reading everything above that now seems absolutely bonkers, right!?!
Well that is all changing. Hold onto your hats folks.
The best way to add Hyaluronic Acid into your daily skincare rituals is to use it in a serum or moisturiser, so we’re coming to the party with BOTH of these.
The Butterfly Kisses Probiotic Gel Cream is our 1st product with Hyaluronic Acid, plus, the new and improved formulas for our Fairy Godmother Serums now have Hyaluronic Acid too!
Hyaluronic Acid isn’t just another fad ingredient but something that we recommend as a staple in everyone's skincare routine. We hope you fall in love with it just as much as we have.
