Scientists are discovering that repairing age and sun-damaged skin with a simple moisturizing cream can lower inflammation levels and potentially reduce the risk of a number of age-related diseases.
As we get older we tend to develop a level of chronic or ongoing inflammation—sometimes called inflammaging — caused by an increase in inflammatory molecules in the blood called cytokines.
And inflammaging has been linked to multiple age-related diseases like Alzheimer’s, cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes.
It’s thought multiple factors contribute to inflammaging in the body but researchers from the University of California San Francisco and the Veterans Affairs Medical Center also suspected skin could play a role which they decided to put to the test in a study back in 2019.
How I picked up on the research
I first started to properly explore this topic a few months back while preparing to interview one of the scientists and co-founders of OneSkin skincare company.
They’ve developed face and body products with a peptide they created that’s designed to target senescent or zombie cells in our skin thought to secrete pro-inflammatory substances. And in that interview we discussed how inflammatory cytokines that build up in the skin can be absorbed into the blood stream adding to levels of inflammation in the body.
OneSkin had done their own study which found that after 12 weeks of treating skin with their topical supplement, inflammatory markers in the blood had reduced.
Their findings tallied with an excellent article in the New Scientist magazine about the link between damaged skin and health highlighting the research by the teams in San Francisco.
What the scientists set out to show
As we age there are changes to the epidermal pH of our skin along with hydration levels and something called the permeability barrier, which keeps water in and bacteria and other potential pathogens out. A loss of moisture and breaks in the permeability barrier cause the skin to release inflammatory cytokines.
These cytokines help to repair defects in the barrier, but in aging skin the barrier can’t be fixed as easily, so the inflammatory signals continue to be released, eventually reaching the blood.
Signs of a damaged skin barrier include ongoing dryness, redness and irritation.
What the scientists in San Francisco set out to discover was can decreasing inflammation in the skin by healing the skin barrier reduce inflammation in the body potentially reducing our risk of developing age-related diseases?
What they found
To do it they used an over-the-counter skin cream which they had shown in a previous study to contribute to skin repair because of its particular ratio of three types of natural lipids which are important for skin health – they are cholesterol, fatty acids (like linoleic, oleic and stearic acids), and ceramides.
In the study, the cream appeared to significantly improve hydration and reduced the rate of water loss from the skin, with those effects lasting for up to 4 weeks after discontinued use.
For the study, 33 older adults aged between 58 and 95 applied the cream all over their bodies twice a day for 30 days.
After a month, the researchers measured blood levels of three cytokines that have all been linked to age-related inflammatory diseases. Using the cream reduced the amount of all three cytokines compared to both the participants’ levels before using the cream and the levels of similarly aged adults who did not use the cream.
The cream also improved skin hydration, lowered the skin’s pH which supports its natural microbiome, and repaired the permeability barrier.
It’s a small study so the scientists noted more research was needed to explore these effects further, but it’s still pretty impressive stuff.
The same group of researchers, teamed up with scientists in China for a three-year study involving 200 people aged over 65, published in 2022, which found that improving skin barrier function was also linked to improved brain health.
The cream used in the studies
For these studies the cream used was Atopalm MLE cream made by South Korean cosmetic company Neopharm. We’ll take a look at some of the ingredients shortly because this isn’t about one singular cream but more the power of protecting our skin barrier as we age and keeping skin well hydrated.
So I want to bring my mum in here.
After I did the OneSkin interview about the link between skin inflammation and health we got a bottle of their body supplement which she started using on just one arm (shown below) which had more damaged skin due to sun exposure than the other and was very dry..
And after applying the cream just once daily for three months we thought her skin was looking much better hydrated (which realistically you would hope to see just by applying any good moisturizer where she hadn’t been before).
Before starting to moisturize she had been getting some purpura marks on her skin which are more common in older, thinning skin.
And although they were still popping up after moisturizing her arm daily they were smaller and much less obvious.
What happened when my mum used the Atopalm cream
So when I read the Atopalm research of course I ordered a tub of the MLE cream. I found it on Amazon and it was £18 or $22 for 65ml. I gave the cream to my mum in March to use on her other arm which was less sun damaged but still dry.
She liked the feel (it has a lovely silky quality) of the Atopalm cream so much she decided to start applying it to her face where she had some irritation under the rim of her glasses which would flare up and nothing, including the Aveeno moisturizer we both love, was completely getting rid of.
But within days of using the cream the patches of irritation under her eyes were gone. The 65ml tub didn’t last long though so I also bought her the Atopalm lotion which includes the MLE formula but is available in a larger pump bottle so is better suited to using on the body.
The cream, in my mum’s view, is ideal for your face as it’s not greasy but is highly effective.
Her left arm where she is using the lotion feels lovely and smooth and hydrated these days and feels smoother than the right where she has been using OneSkin. Her arm is, however, more sun-damaged arm.
What are some of the key ingredients?
The AtopalmMLE cream and the body lotion that we later bought contain something called their Multi Lamellar Emulsion and it’s a patented formula designed to mimic the natural structure of the skin’s lipid layers including ceramides and free fatty acids so those are key ingredients to look out for in a moisturizing formula for skin repair.
And it has some other commonly used ingredients in barrier repair creams including glycerin, squalane, known to be an effective emollient and also allantoin, another skin-conditioning agent known to help soothe irritated skin, plus antioxidant-rich vitamin E.
Other free fatty acids, like linoleic, oleic and stearic acid, also play important roles in moisturizing and barrier support and are contained in Atopalm.
So these are some ingredients we can look out for when we’re looking for effective moisturizers that are going to help restore and protect our skin barrier as our skin ages.
The studies point to the potential benefits of keeping dry thinning skin hydrated because, while the scientists say there needs to be more research to confirm the findings we’ve heard about, there is good evidence of a link between dry, thin and age-damaged skin and increased levels of inflammation.
And if you have a skin condition (ongoing rashes, itching, changes in skin texture, color, sores etc) this research also highlights why it’s really important for your skin and overall health to see your doctor or a dermatologist to find an effective treatment.
Remember that protecting our skin from the sun, particularly when you’re exposed to it for longer periods, is also going to go a long way to reducing damage caused in the first place.
Some of the top-rated barrier repair products
Skin Barrier Repair Moisturizers Rated Highly by Consumers & Experts Containing Ceramides & Free Fatty Acids
- CeraVe Moisturizing Cream: Contains essential ceramides, hyaluronic acid, cholesterol and fatty acids and is a popular choice with dermatologists and consumers alike. Its low price makes it a great value choice and means you can use it for the face and body.
- SkinCeuticals Triple Lipid Restore 2:4:2: This cream is often cited by dermatologists as effective for barrier repair. Its formulation is based on the skin’s natural lipid composition, including ceramides, cholesterol, and fatty acids. While it’s positioned as an anti-aging moisturizer, its barrier repair efficacy is highly praised – but it’s pricey so more of a luxury option for the face!
- Drunk Elephant Bora Barrier™ Repair Cream: This rich cream is designed to treat chronic dryness. It contains a “6-butterlipid complex” to provide deep moisture and support the barrier.
- Medature PSL Repair Moisturizer: This is a medical-grade moisturizer frequently recommended by dermatologists.
Best for Body
Both CeraVe Moisturizing Cream and Atopalm Lotion stand out as being highly effective whilst also being low cost enough to use on your body.
Anti-aging + barrier protection
OneSkin’s body supplement has been shown to reduce inflammatory markers and its OS-1 proprietary peptide is claimed to switch off senescent cells that degrade collagen. It also contains skin-barrier-supporting ceramides and fatty acids. Certainly it helped my mum, but so did Atopalm.
Another one to watch is Delavie Science’s Sculpting Cream which I’m trying out at the moment. I’ve been using the Aeonia Age Defying Serum every morning now for over a year and find it noticeably hydrating. The cream uses the same ‘super-antioxidant’ ingredient, bacillus lysate, alongside ceramides and fatty acids and has a similar silky quality to the Atopalm – but is considerably more expensive.
Like OneSkin, Delavie Sciences is founded by a team of scientists and they’ve also shared evidence from a clinical trial showing significantly improved skin moisture content as well as anti-aging effects in a 28-day study.
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