6 Ways To Enhance Skin Texture

Skincare is underrated in many ways. If you’re looking to spruce up your skincare routine to help reduce unwanted skin texture- you’ve come to the right place.

Not only is our skin a protective organ, but our skin condition can also tell us a lot about our health. Skin issues — such as rashes, acne, dryness, etc. — can provide us with clues about the state of our health, e.g., poor nutrition, dehydration, or the prevalence of toxins in our body. 

Skin texture is essential as well. Who doesn’t prefer soft, smooth skin over rough and coarse skin? 

Thankfully, there are plenty of ways to help enhance skin texture outside of the standard exfoliation and moisturizing, both of which are important.

A Quick Look at Skin

Our skin is more important than most people think. It plays many different roles for our body, most importantly, the role of protection. 

• Skin acts as a barrier to protect our body from the environment (UV rays, toxins, etc.).

• Skin helps regulate our body temperature and helps reduce the chances of dehydration. 

• Skin gives us our sense of touch and allows us to feel sensations (for better or worse).

• Skin layers provide storage for water, fat, and metabolic products.

The skin consists of three layers, the outermost layer is called the epidermis, followed by the dermis, and then the subcutis. 

Skin Tone, Elascity, and Texture

The condition of your skin is usually described in three ways: tone, elasticity, and texture. 

Skin texture refers to the skin's surface; healthy skin texture is smooth and soft. Uneven skin texture (dry, coarse, rough, blemishes, etc.) can result from aging, environmental factors like sun exposure, and lifestyle factors, such as poor nutrition. 

Skin texture will be our focus here, though some tips for enhancing skin texture will also help provide a healthier skin tone and even elasticity. 

1. Stay Hydrated

The importance of hydration cannot be overstated. In fact, drinking plenty of water helps improve skin texture, but it has ramifications for health overall. 

Dehydration can wreak havoc on many systems in the body; the skin is no different. In addition to helping flush toxins from the body, water intake can help improve skin thickness and density. 

Skin that is properly moisturized, inside and out, helps make skin look smoother and less dull, which of course, is an important element to enhancing skin texture. 

Water intake needs depend largely on lifestyle; e.g., those who exercise regularly require more. The Institute of Medicine recommends about 13 cups (3 liters) of water for men; 9 cups (2 liters) a day for women.  

2. Make Proper Nutrition a Priority

You are what you eat — or so the saying goes. It sounds like a silly cliché, but there is truth to that statement. What you eat (and drink) does have consequences for your health. The same goes for your skin.

Processed foods like refined carbohydrates and sugars are filled with additives. They may taste good; they certainly aren’t doing your skin any favors. Certain processed foods, especially sugars, can contribute to skin conditions.

Thankfully, there are plenty of nutrient-dense foods out there that can help improve skin texture and keep your skin shining. Leafy greens are a great source of vitamin A, which has been linked to skin health. Fatty fish are loaded with essential fatty acids (omega-3s), which boasts some skin health benefits. 

Also, eat plenty of foods that are rich in antioxidants — cruciferous vegetables and fruits. They help fight against the effects of oxidative stress, which can damage skin and contribute to poor skin texture. 

3. Get Plenty of Rest

While you’re getting plenty of water and eating nutrient-dense food, don’t neglect the need for proper sleep. The importance of sleep, like skin health, is often overlooked. But a lot of important things are happening while you sleep. 

Sleep gives your body time to rebuild, readjust, and rejuvenate. During sleep, energy is conserved, and cells are repaired; that includes skin cells. Poor sleep can disrupt these functions. Including restful sleep into your daily routine makes for fresher-looking skin. 

4. Don’t Forget Daily Exercise

Exercise, along with diet and nutrition, is one of the keys to optimal health. But believe it or not, it can also help improve skin texture. Sweat and exercise are synonymous in some people’s minds — for a good reason. 

As you sweat, your body is cleansing itself of impurities. This is true for your pores as well; sweat helps clear out debris. Furthermore, during exercise, your body demands more blood volume. 

As blood vessels dilate during exercise, oxygenated blood and nutrients are disturbed throughout the body, skin included. Exercise also helps transfer carbon dioxide and other waste products (toxins) away from the skin. 

5. Protect Your Skin from Sun Damage

It is hard to speak ill of the sun. It does provide amazing benefits — life itself. But aside from its role in stimulating vitamin D production in the body, the sun can certainly be harmful to the skin. 

UV exposure from the sun can greatly damage the skin; this damage is known as photodamage or photoaging. In terms of skin texture, long-term, unprotected sun exposure can lead to pigmentation changes, loss of skin tone, collagen, and elastin damage and leave you with rough, uneven skin. 

This is why SPF sunscreen is so important for UV protection, especially if you have fair skin.

6. Don’t Neglect Your Vitamins

When it comes to enhancing skin texture, the value of vitamins cannot be overstated.  

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is more widely known as an immune booster, but it has benefits for the skin. This is due to its role as an antioxidant. It is a powerful ally against environmental oxidative stressors and free radicals, which contribute to skin damage. 

Furthermore, vitamin C plays an active role in supporting firmer, more supple-looking skin, which helps promote skin elasticity. Typically, as we age, collagen production decreases, and our skin texture suffers. Photo-aging can affect this as well. 

However, vitamin C has been shown to help reduce some of the harmful effects of photo-aging, helping restore healthy skin texture.  

Biotin

Biotin is part of the B-complex family of vitamins. Biotin has some pretty surprising benefits when it comes to skin health. Biotin deficiencies, though rare, can contribute to serious skin issues. 

The most interesting benefit is biotin’s role in fatty acid synthesis. As stated earlier, fatty acids play a big role in skin health, aiding its structural integrity. Biotin has been shown to support the healthy production of fatty acids. 

Bottom Line

Skin health, though less appreciated, deserves our attention. Our skin plays’ protective role is extremely important, and skin texture can tell us a lot about the state of our skin’s health. 

Shop Hope understands this importance. There are numerous ways to enhance skin texture naturally, without the aid of chemicals.

Enhancing your skin texture is not difficult, but it does require diligence. Employing some of the tips above will send you well on your way to healthier skin. 

 

Sources:

Water, Hydration and Health | NCBI

Essential Fatty Acids and Skin Health | Linus Pauling Institute | Oregon State University

Photoaging (Sun Damage) > Fact Sheet | Yale Medicines

Topical Vitamin C and the Skin: Mechanisms of Action and Clinical Applications | NCBI

Effect of biotin supplementation on fatty acid metabolic pathways in 3T3-L1 adipocytes | NCBI