Understanding and Repairing a Damaged Skin Barrier Effectively

Skin Barrier and Causes of A Damaged Skin Barrier

When the skin barrier is broken and disrupted, the skin’s health is compromised. This blog will explain the science and anatomy of the skin barrier, Damaged moisture barrier symptoms can be identified using a quiz that dermatologists use to identify the Baumann Skin Type.

What is the Skin Barrier?

The definition of skin barrier is a protective layer of lipids that surround skin cells in the epidermis.

The function of the skin barrier is to keep water in the skin and prevent entry of germs, allergens and irritating substances into the skin.

Other names for the skin barrier are:

the moisture barrier

lipid barrier

skin protective barrier

skin water barrier

multilamellar layer

lipid bilayer

An intact skin barrier prevents water from evaporating off of the skin’s surface.

Intact skin barrier

A compromised skin barrier causes holes in the skin barrier.

A broken moisturize barrier allows:

water to leave the skin’s surface

allergens to enter the skin

microbes like bacteria to enter the skin

better penetration of skincare products

increased retinoid side effects

Toxic chemicals to get into the skin

Compromised skin barrier

What causes barrier damage?

A damaged skin barrier may be genetic or it may be caused by something your skin is exposed to.

The skin barrier is damaged by:

Chlorine in water such as swimming pools

Cholesterol lowering drugs like statins

Friction

Hard water with calcium and magnesium

Harsh detergents or surfactants

Lack of fat or cholesterol in diet

Exfoliants

Poor diet (not enough fat)

Water (type and exposure time matter)

Cholesterol lowering drugs

Habits that Injure the skin barrier

I often see patients who have an injured skin barrier due to their habits. In their case, it is not a genetic issue, but something they are doing wrong. These habits can injure your skin barrier by stripping needed lipids from your skin:

Overexfoliation

Too frequent baths

Bath and showers that are too hot

Prolonged immersion in chlorinated water

Cleansers that have too many detergents (vigorously foaming cleaners)

Soaps

Using baking soda on the skin

Beginning a retinoid

Damaged Skin Barrier

A damaged skin barrier makes your skin susceptible to dehydration, rashes, infection, and inflammation.

A broken moisture barrier has tiny holes in between skin cells that allow damaging substances into the skin.

Compromised skin that has a disrupted skin barrier is more susceptible to:

Allergy

Chemical burn

Dehydration

Infection

Inflammation

Irritation

Stinging

How To Know If Your Skin Barrier Is Compromised

You can tell if your skin barrier is damaged if your skin is:

Dull

Dry

Itchy

Rough

Uncomfortable 20 minutes after washing when no moisturizer is applied

Feels tight and stiff without moisturizer

Happiest when you use a heavy moisturizer

Soothed when oils are applied

There are devices that can measure if the skin barrier is compromised such as a TEWAmeter® and a Corneometer®.

Dermatologists use our skin type quiz to detect a damaged skin barrier.

Take the Quiz

Find out if your skin barrier is damaged

How do you break the skin barrier?

Detergents and soaps in foaming cleansers destroy the skin barrier by removing lipids from the skin.

Examples of lipids in the skin are cholesterol, ceramides and fatty acids.

Detergents weaken the skin barrier by removing these lipids. They surround the lipids and strip them away from the upper layers of the skin.

How detergents injure the skin barrier

Friction and minerals in water can also break the skin’s moisture barrier by stripping it of lipids.

Does water hurt the skin barrier

Does water disrupt the skin barrier?

Water has a big effects on the skin barrier.

These attributes of water can compromise the skin barrier:

Exposure time

Calcium

Chlorine

Magnesium

Salt (sodium chloride)

Temperature

Learn more about the best type of water to wash your face and body with here.

How water affects the skin barrier

How do you know if your skin barrier is damaged?

A damaged moisture barrier leads to dehydration, inflammation and impaired desquamation.

Damaged skin barrier symptoms are:

Ashy skin

Bumpy skin

Dry dehydrated skin

Dull skin

Eczema.

Inflammation

Itching

Poor skin texture

Reactive Skin

Rough skin

Stinging

Uneven skin texture

What Are the Signs of a Damaged Moisture Barrier?

Signs of a compromised skin barrier are:

Frequent rashes

Itching

Poor light reflection

Rough texture

Sensitive skin

Where Is The Skin Barrier Located?

skin barrier is in the upper layer of the epidermis

The skin barrier is in the upper layer of the epidermis called the stratum corneum.

What layer of the skin is the skin barrier?

Skin barrier in the stratum corneum

The skin barrier is in the outermost layer of the epidermis, called the stratum corneum.

It is a bilayer membrane that surrounds the skin cells, called keratinocytes.

There are multiple layers of the lipid bilayers in between each keratinocyte of the stratum corneum.

The skin barrier has multiple bilayers

How Does the Skin Barrier Work?

The skin barrier is a bilayer of lipids that surround the skin cells in the upper part of the epidermis.

These multilamellar membranes bathe keratinocyte skin cells in protective lipids.

The lipids (fats) that make up the skin barrier are:

ceramides

fatty acids

cholesterol

These lipids line up in bilayer membranes so that their hydrophobic tails (yellow in the illustration) form a center section that repels water. The way the lipid line up determines how strong the barrier is. The strongest barriers show a maltese cross pattern under the microscope.

When lipids are packed together in the tightest way, this prevents the passage of water across the multilamellar membranes.

Lipids form a bilayer structure to form the skin barrier

The lipids that form the bilayer membranes are like puzzle pieces.

They must be the correct size and shape to fit together and eliminate any spaces between them.

You must have a 1:1:1 ratio of lipids.

Lipid shape determines skin barrier strength

What Is the Skin Barrier Made Of?

The skin barrier is made of of 3 main lipids:

Ceramides

Fatty acids

Cholesterol

There are many different kinds of fatty acids, and the type of fatty acid affects barrier strength and function.

Barrier repair moisturizers should:

Contain the correct 1:1:1 ratio of lipids to repair the skin barrier

Show a maltese cross pattern when viewed under a cross polarized microscope.

Have soothing oils

Have a combination of humectants and occlusive ingredients

Learn more about the lipids in the skin barrier with my interview with a skin barrier scientist on You Tube.

What Is the Best Way To Repair a Compromised Skin Barrier?

Moisturizers that have the three lipids (ceramides, fatty acids and cholesterol), or that contain barrier repair technologies, will repair the skin barrier.

Click here to learn more about how to repair the skin barrier and find the best barrier repair moisturizers.

How to find barrier repair moisturizers

Where Do the Lipids in the Skin Barrier Come From?

The skin barrier components are mostly made by the skin. The lipids in the skin barrier come from:

Diet- fats and oils in the diet

Enzymes in the epidermis15

Granules in the granular layer of the epidermis

Sebum

Moisturizers and other skin care products that contain lipids and oils

What Can Damage the Skin Barrier?

The wrong skin care products are the most common cause of a broken skin barrier.

These factors also damage skin barrier integrity:

Cholesterol-lowering medications like statins16

Poor diet leads to fewer nutrients

Vegan diets low in cholesterol and fat

Gut microbiome and use of probiotics17

Presence of inflammation from disease

Genetic defects such as a defect in filaggrin gene18

What products can damage your skin barrier?

If you have a damaged skin barrier, avoid these ingredients:

Alcohol- denatured

Essential Oils

Exfoliants

AHAs (alpha hydroxyacids)

Acne medications such as benzoyl peroxide

Retinoids

Foaming cleansers

Preservatives

Fragrances

Retinoids and hydroxyacids initially damage the skin barrier, but once you use them regularly they strengthen the skin barrier. I take this into account when I design your custom skin care routine based on your skin care routine quiz.

DQH Knowledge drop: In your 20s, your skin cell turnover decreases. (Cell turnover is a key component in keeping your skin youthful.) You know what else slows down? Your collagen production. Starting in your 20s, collagen decreases by about 1 percent per year. Should you want to prevent fine lines and wrinkles, start by eliminating behaviors that contribute to premature aging. “If it’s bad for you, it’s bad for your skin,” says dermatologist Michel Somenek. “Cigarette smoking reduces blood flow to the skin and causes premature wrinkling and a dull skin texture. Making the repeated pursed motion to inhale can also cause smoker’s lines. Alcohol and recreational drugs are toxins for the skin that damage its cellular structure and DNA,” Somenek tells us. “The faster you eliminate vices while you are young, the better chance your skin and body have to recuperate.” Also, adopting an anti-aging routine in your 20s is key. After all, the best offense is a good defense. We spoke to Somenek and experts Joshua Ross and Audrey Kunin to find out more. Keep reading for the best anti-aging products for your 20s, according to skincare professionals. Sunscreen “We all know that the sun is the number one cause of skin aging and starting the prevention in your 20s is very important,” Ross says. “The majority of your sun damage won’t start to appear until you’re in your 30s, so don’t wait until you see it surface or you’ll be behind the curve. Stay ahead of it with a good-quality zinc-based sunscreen worn daily.” Farmacy Green Defense Daily Mineral Sunscreen An invisible sunscreen with SPF 30, plus botanical extracts meant to protect skin with tons of antioxidants. Bonus: It’s clean and fine to use under makeup. Bareminerals Complexion Rescue™ Tinted Moisturizer Broad Spectrum SPF 30 Although we recommend you use your SPF and moisturizer separately, we also understand moments when you don’t have time or energy for that extra step. For those times, this bareMinerals moisturizer is a great thing to have on hand. Vitamin C Serum “A great introduction to anti-aging is to start with a vitamin C serum in your morning skincare routine,” Ross says. “It’s a powerful antioxidant that will neutralize free radicals and brighten the skin.” He adds that it’s a great way to counteract the effects of the sun’s harmful rays, which, as previously mentioned, are among the biggest causes of premature aging. Drunk Elephant C-Firma™ Vitamin C Day Serum The Drunk Elephant C-Firma is a lightweight serum that promises to give skin a glow by combining the brightening powers of vitamin C with ferulic acid, l-ascorbic acid, and vitamin E. The included sodium hyaluronate is meant to replace hydration loss, so you shouldn’t have to deal with any irritation. Sunday Riley C.E.O. Rapid Flash Brightening Serum This potent serum is jam-packed with vitamin C (15 percent, to be exact), which means it’s a potential superstar at both brightening skin and dousing it in antioxidants. Peptides Using peptides on your skin has many benefits, says Somenek. “The skin barrier is what defends the body against pollution, UV rays, bacteria, and toxins. It can be damaged by several everyday factors. Using topical peptides aids in building a stronger barrier,” he says. “Peptides comprise elastic fibers, which are a type of protein. These fibers help to make skin appear taut and firm. Peptides can also help repair damaged skin, relieve inflammation, and even out skin tone. Some peptides can kill acne-causing bacteria that is common in 20-somethings.” Kunin agrees, saying, “Peptides are an excellent entry point for supporting collagen.” She recommends looking for face and eye treatments that contain these collagen-boosting powerhouses. Charlotte Tilbury Magic Eye Rescue Cream This Charlotte Tilbury super-emollient eye cream has a base of coconut oil and shea butter (read: it’s incredibly hydrating). Botanicals plus peptides are meant to help reduce dark circles and boost collagen, respectively. This creamy moisturizer serves up potent collagen-boosting peptides and pycnogenol, and antioxidant-rich vitamin C. “Instead of sitting on top of the skin, peptides penetrate the outer layer so they go deep. The ‘signals’ they send tell the cells to produce elastin and collagen, which are needed for youthful-looking skin,” explains Somenek. At-Home Peel Pads Remember that skin cell turnover fiasco we talked about earlier? One way to help support it is by exfoliating. “Exfoliation is important to help keep skin fresh and luminous,” Kunin says. She recommends using at-home peel pads as an easy and effective way to exfoliate. “The goal in your 20s is to fight the slowing pace of cell turnover. It is wise to use products that gently exfoliate, yet still remove oil and other impurities. Products that have Alpha Hydroxy Acids (AHA) or Beta Hydroxy Acids (BHA) are a good choice.” According to Somenek, you should only exfoliate two to three times a week. “People of all ages are guilty of over-exfoliating and that can be too much of a good thing,” he says. Dermadoctor Kakadu C Intensive Vitamin C Peel Pad A few swipes of this Derma Doctor powerful peel pad promise to leave your skin glowing and smooth, thanks to the seven (yes, seven) types of chemical exfoliants, including AHA and BHA. It also contains vitamin C via Kakadu plum extract for added brightening and antioxidant protection. KEY INGREDIENTS Kakadu plum extract is sourced from the Kakadu plum, a fruit grown in northern Australia. It contains vitamin C, which restores the skin’s natural barrier, increases collagen production, and soothes irritation. Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare Alpha Beta® Universal Daily Peel Pads These are the gold standard of peel pads, with a cult following and over 900 five-star reviews on Sephora. They’re easy to use and contain a blend of anti-aging exfoliating acids. Emollient Night Cream “In your 20s, you need to start upping the hydration in your skincare routine. You may have been cautious of over-moisturizing because of acne in your teens, but as you enter your 20s, your skin transitions and becomes drier,” Ross says. “I recommend an emollient night cream added into your evening skincare regimen.” “Twenty-somethings need to make sure that they are not using creams that will clog their pores and cause excess oil production,” says Somenek. Opt for non-comedogenic products. Cerave Skin Renewing Night Cream One great choice is the CeraVe Skin Renewing Night Cream, which is a non-comedogenic night cream that leaves skin soft and glowy. It combines the moisturizing powers of ceramides and hyaluronic acid. RoC Retinol Correxion Max Hydration Creme “The best night cream ingredients contain retinol, benzoyl peroxide, and/or salicylic acid or hyaluronic acid. The goal is to moisturize, yet remove excess oil,” says Somenek. This Roc Retinol Correxion cream fits the bill as it contains both hyaluronic acid and retinol so it promises to moisturize while also being non-comedogenic.

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