What is Humectant in Skin Care?
A humectant is one of the most critical and essential ingredients of all skincare products; these products might be creams and lotions. These products might be skincare sprays. The word humectant for the skincare is something which attracts and then water.
Humectants are present in almost every skincare product. These humectants are present in raw forms as well; these are amazing in their functions. They make the skin hydrated and charming. Humectants fight with several problems of the skin.
Humectants provide the best hydration to the skin. Here confusion arises, and the deal here is that what the use of these humectants is and why these are important in the skincare products. Another point is from where the humectants are absorbing this water.
The attraction of water by the humectants is from outside or from inside. The source of the water must be constant, and it must provide a continuous stream of water to the skin. Humectants are the hydration providers for the skin. The hydration to the skin is the most critical factor. Either it’s about skin aging of it is concern with skin whitening and fairness.
This humectant absorbs water from the deepest level of the skin, which directly or indirectly means that the source of water is absolutely the skin itself. The skin tissues have water in them, and they keep the lower level of skin hydrated. Humectants, in that case, derive water from the deep down layer and then give and spread this water to all the tissue of the skin and the upper layer of skin.
Contents
What is Humectant in Skin Care?
The uppermost layer of the skin is called the epithelium, which is pinkish and fresh and watery. This layer needs much water to remain hydrated all the time. Humectant, in the form of skincare products, helps the skin, and allows it to stay hydrated all the time.
These humectants play a vital role in keeping the skin fresh, and they prevent the skin from attaining the aging process. The humectant makes the skin fair and tight.
Now the point is which humectant is useful for the skin.
What product contains the best of the humectant and which skincare item has the copious quantities of humectants.
How to select good quality skin products with humectant?
Several qualities should consider before purchasing a humectant in raw form or a skincare product.
These qualities are as follows Polarity, nonvolatile, hydrogen bond.
Polarity
There is a concept of polar and non-polar substances in the field of chemistry. The term extreme states for water-loving and non-polar stands for oil-loving, the humectant must be desperate. It must have the intermolecular force to attract the water molecules from the skin and to keep the skin hydrated.
Hydrogen bond
One of the essential features of a humectant is to form a hydrogen bond with water. This bond must be between the humectant and the molecules of water. This feature makes the humectant one of the most demanding material for keeping the skin hydrated and soft.
Humectants must have an ability to attract the water molecules like a magnet, and this will help to keep the skin hydrated.
Nonvolatile
Humectant must have a property that it should not evaporate from the skin. That is why the humectant must not be volatile. It should not take the water from the skin, and when the heat arrives at it, the process of evaporation starts. This evaporation, which happens it should not take the water with itself.
Types of humectants
There are two types of humectants. One of them is known as natural humectants. Others are known as synthetic humectants. Two kinds of humectants are helpful for the hydration of the skin, but the natural humectants are more beneficial and amazing for providing water to the surface.
Natural Humectants
Natural humectants are of various kinds. These are expensive but are very useful; the natural humectants offer the most fantastic hydration to the skin. Natural humectants are Glycerin, Aloe, Honey, Hyaluronic acid.
Glycerin
Glycerin is one of the essential humectants which can use in various types of skincare products. Today glycerin is one of the most critical substitutes of any of the skincare products. The property of glycerin is that it not only attracts the water from the deeper layer of the skin, but it also makes the skin hydrated for a more extended period.
After the absorption of water, glycerin not only spread water to the upper layer, but it also offers a pool to the deeper tissues and layers of skin. Glycerin, as a humectant, keeps the skin hydrated daily. Glycerin is almost present in the living cells.
Glycerin is a humectant that has an admirable quality of attracting the water and then absorbing it. Glycerin not only gives water to the skin but also develops equilibrium to the surface, air, and water. As humectant glycerin not only provides water to the skin layer, but it also makes the skin shiny and smooth as it glides over the whole skin layers very smoothly.
Glycerin is one of the best humectants for the skincare. Glycerin has long-lasting benefits as a humectant. It helps to reduce the signs of aging and makes the skin beautiful and amazing in different ways.
Raw Aloe Vera
Aloe is one of the most fantastic humectants. It has remarkable properties of attracting water. After this attraction, the water absorbed by the humectant aloe, this is present in the raw natural form. It is present in various skincare products as well. It penetrates the skin very quickly. This property of aloe as humectant makes it more amazing and trustworthy to the surface.
The skin becomes beautiful and hydrated with the use of aloe as a humectant. Aloe Vera gels are present in the market. These gels help to keep the skin hydrated for a more extended period. Aloe includes in the list of humectant, which has long-lasting beneficial features. This humectant is outstanding in function. It helps to fight many problems of the skin, which are related to skin dryness. It keeps the skin hydrated and fresh all the time.
Honey as humectant
Honey has considered being one of the wondrous humectants for skincare. It can be touched directly to the skin. Otherwise, it is present in a lot of skincare products. It is known as one of the most fantastic skincare humectants because it has a wondrous property of attracting the molecules of water from the skin. It is the best humectant for the skin because it keeps the skin hydrated without even making the skin greasy or oily.
This point is an essential feature of a humectant that it should provide essential hydration to the skin without even making the skin oily. Honey contains the alpha hydroxyl acid, which plays a vital role when Honey used as a humectant. Honey helps in the exfoliations of the skin. This exfoliation property of the humectant makes the absorption of other moisturizing agents easier. The skin becomes hydrated and fabulous all the time.
Hyaluronic acid
Sometimes it feels like hyaluronic acid is a chemical the name of the humectant depicts that it’s a chemical agent. But it is not a chemical or a synthetic humectant. Hyaluronic acid is a natural humectant. This humectant can be present throughout the body, and it takes the water from the lower tissues of the skin.
It keeps the skin hydrated and beautiful. This acid is present in many skincare products, which helps to keep the skin hydrated. This humectant has a natural property of holding and absorbing water in it. This humectant keeps the skin hydrated for a more extended period. Hyaluronic acid has a fantastic feature in balancing the levels of the environment and the skin.
If there is humidity outside the skin, it balances the ratio of water inside the skin and hydration remains constant. This acid is very beneficial as a humectant for the skincare and skin brightening.
This humectant is present in various serums, which help to reduce the aging process.It helps to look the skin tighter and more firm. The humectant helps to reduce the wrinkles and many other skin problems, which include acne and rashes of the skin. Hyaluronic acid keeps the skin hydrated and moist for more extended periods.
Synthetic humectant in skin care products
As the natural humectants are available, there are some synthetic humectants present. These humectants prepare on the large industrial scale. These are also very beneficial for the skin. These keep the skin hydrated, but these have fewer functions and durability as compared to the natural humectants. These humectants are Sorbitol, Butylene glycol, Urea, Silicones, propylene, PEG.
These humectants have the functioning of keeping the skin hydrated. They have the property of pulling and absorbing the eater from the surface, but these have lesser potential as compared to the natural humectants.
Synthetic humectants are present in many skincare products that offer almost the same properties regarding natural humectants. But the difference is they have lesser durability. These humectants have less cost as compared to natural humectants, but the effects are not long-lasting.
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