In partnership with SA’s top medical aesthetic companies
Winter is here for us in the Southern hemisphere. Time to curl up in your fluffy pyjamas and relax? Not quite yet… There’s work to do on getting your skin healthy and looking good.
Why is winter such an important time for your skin?
Firstly, it’s a tough time for your skin. The skin that’s exposed (your face, hands and legs) is dried out by cold and wind, especially if you live in dry winter areas like Gauteng, as well as heating – these all suck moisture from the skin.
This can make the skin tight and uncomfortable and cause flaking and even cracking if you don’t take good care with exfoliation and moisturisation. It also ages your skin before its time.
At the same time, the rest of you is wrapped up in layers, so areas like your back and chest may have a build-up of skin and oil which, if you don’t remove it, may cause acne.
Then winter is a very important time, especially in South Africa, because there is less sunshine, so it is the ideal time to have resurfacing treatments, including treatments that address pigmentation, which remove the superficial layers of your skin.
While resurfacing stimulates the deeper layers of the skin, the skin may be sensitive for a time afterwards, and needs to be protected from the sun. This is the reason skin doctors prefer to do these treatments in winter months, as people spend less time outdoors, and the sun is less intense.
A word of caution, however: even though the sun is gentler, in SA, the winter sun is still strong, so you should continue wearing sunscreen throughout winter, especially after any resurfacing treatments. This could cause stimulation of hyperpigmentation.
Why is skin resurfacing so important?
The Renewal Institute’s mission is improvement of the condition of skin, and resurfacing is one of the key pillars to combat skin ageing, along with injectables, skincare products and lifestyle.
We focus on the condition of the skin because, as we age, our metabolic processes start slowing down, which means that collagen and elastin production also slows down.
This collagen and elastin is responsible for the elasticity, strength and structure in our skins, and when it is reduced, we start seeing the telltale signs of ageing – lax skin as well as fine lines and wrinkles over time. Our mission, therefore, is to rejuvenate skin cells, and in turn stimulate collagen and elastin production.
Imagine your lovely house. With time, the paint may start cracking and peeling. The surface looks dull and the wall underneath may get damaged. What do you do? You scrape off the old, flaky coat and replace it with a fresh, smooth surface that is strong, resists damage and looks good.
Skin resurfacing works in a similar way – the dry, old, damaged outer layers of the skin are removed and replaced with smoother and softer skin. Various different techniques are used to achieve this.
We work on the principle that the skin has the ability to heal itself after experiencing physical trauma. In the instance of skin-resurfacing treatments, the trauma to the skin is applied in a highly controlled manner, with a very definite outcome in mind.
During this process old, damaged skin is discarded of and then, in time, replaced with new, fresh, healthy skin.
Keep your eyes peeled for our next post to discover the different kinds of resurfacing, and which will work best for your needs.
To schedule an individual assessment with one of the doctors on the Skin Renewal team, or to find out more about which skin-resurfacing treatments are best suited to your skin, visit Skin Renewal on www.skinrenewal.co.za or contact 0861 SKIN SA (754 672).
Take the quick Beyond Beauty Survey and you could win a R2 000 Skin Renewal voucher to spend in our online store, with free delivery within South Africa. T&Cs apply.