More Than Skin Deep: Why Your Skin Barrier Is So Important & How to Protect It

As with any season that brings extreme temperatures and conditions, winter comes with no shortage of seasonal skin woes. One common problem many people face is the repercussions of a weakened or damaged skin barrier. Thankfully, there are ways to prevent and correct this with a few tweaks to your daily habits. Before we get into those, though, let’s start with the basics.

What Is the Skin Barrier & Why Is It Important?

Also referred to as your moisture barrier, your “skin barrier” is the outermost layer of skin that acts as your body’s first line of defense. A healthy skin barrier functions to protect you against free radicals, keep out environmental aggressors (like pollutants, toxins, pathogens and other irritants) and seal in essential moisture and natural oils. When impacted, a damaged skin barrier can cause the opposite to occur, allowing harmful substances to get in and water to escape.

Causes of Skin Barrier Damage & Signs Yours Needs Repair

The unfortunate fact is there are numerous naturally existing threats to your skin barrier. These can include anything from over-exposure to the sun, wind, dry air, humidity, harsh chemicals, stress, the list goes on. Your skincare habits can also negatively impact your barrier, including over-exfoliation or the use of abrasive or drying cleansers.

Over time, any combination of the above can take a visible toll on your skin. For some, this may result in itchiness, redness, breakouts, rough patches or flakiness. If you’re experiencing at least one or a combination of the above, it’s likely that you have a compromised skin barrier, which leads us to the next part.

How to Support & Restore Your Skin Barrier

Though it’s easier to prevent skin barrier damage than it is to correct it, both are possible with a little extra attention and care. According to Perricone MD’s Director of Education, Rosalba Martone, the following are non-negotiables.

• Opt for gentle skincare products.

When in doubt, it’s best to err on the side of caution when it comes to your skincare. After all, your skin is your body’s largest organ, so you want to protect it for a lifetime. Choose skincare products without common irritants or harsh exfoliants to help prevent unintentionally compromising your skin's barrier. 

• Wear SPF daily, rain or shine.

The sun’s aging UVA and burning UVB rays can impair skin’s moisture barrier by disrupting its natural structure. Such damage can cause the skin to lose the moisture it’s meant to retain and ultimately lead to dehydration, sensitivity and a variety of other skin problems. The best way to prevent this is by wearing sunscreen every day, no matter the forecast (yes, even when it’s cloudy or rainy).

• Avoid over-exfoliating.

While exfoliation is an exceptional way to rid the skin of impurity buildup and excess oil, overdoing it can strip the skin of necessary oils and buff away its protective layer. To prevent this, stick to exfoliating your face a maximum of two times per week (and on non-consecutive days).

• Incorporate these ingredients into your skincare regimen:

Found naturally in the skin, ceramides make up approximately half of the outermost layer of the epidermis, the stratum corneum — AKA the skin barrier. Acting as its “glue,” these lipids are crucial for sealing in hydration, preventing moisture loss and shielding skin to maintain overall skin health and integrity. Topical application of ceramides aids in this natural process to continuously support and repair skin’s moisture barrier.

Fatty acids, particularly omegas 3, 6 and 9, are also key for a healthy moisture barrier. Ultra-hydrating omegas act as building blocks for the skin’s surface layers to help support its ability to retain moisture and protect against environmental aggressors.

Also a natural substance in the skin, hyaluronic acid (HA) is a powerful humectant, so it is exceptionally hydrating and has a unique capacity to retain water for a happy, healthy-looking barrier. Since we gradually lose HA in our bodies as we age, topical application becomes increasingly more important over time to continue keeping hydration in and toxins out.

Antioxidants help protect the skin by neutralizing free radicals from environmental stressors and, therefore, helping to prevent them from causing skin damage. In doing so, these antioxidants help shield against sun damage, preserve collagen, maintain elasticity, prevent dark spots and more. A few of our favorite topical antioxidants include Vitamin C Ester, ferulic acid, alpha-lipoic acid and glutathione (the list goes on).

The Ultimate Skincare Regimen for Barrier Repair

Speaking of barrier-approved ingredients, you’re officially ready to adopt a regimen that Martone has specifically curated with your moisture barrier in mind.

Step 1: Hypoallergenic Clean Correction Gentle Cleanser

This gentle, low-foaming cleanser is free of the 26 known allergens, as well as fragrance, gluten, sulfates, silicones, parabens, formaldehyde, butylene- and propylene-glycol, PEG, phthalates, BHA and BHT. In fewer words, it’s ideal for even the most sensitive skin (and even recognized by the National Psoriasis Foundation). It’s formulated with glycerin, which is a humectant that helps bind moisture to the skin, and fermented rice water, which is ideal for supporting, strengthening and protecting skin’s barrier.

Step 2: High Potency Hyaluronic Intensive Hydrating Serum

Next, allow your skin to soak in the benefits of this intensely nourishing HA serum. It’s powered by our exclusive Hyaluronic 4 + 2 Complex featuring 4 forms and 2 natural building blocks of HA for effective absorption. Also formulated with firming DMAE and renewing niacinamide, it provides optimal moisture barrier support by binding moisture to the skin, promotes moisture barrier function and protects against drying environmental aggressors.

Step 3: Hypoallergenic Clean Correction Barrier Repair Nourishing Moisturizer

Aptly named, this ultra-restorative and hydrating moisturizer is loaded with ceramides, which naturally make up 40% of our surface skin layer, to help deeply nourish skin while protecting against environmental aggressors. This gentle yet effective moisturizer is also formulated with peptides to fight against visible collagen depletion and mushroom extract to soothe and condition.

Step 4: Essential Fx Acyl-Glutathione Smoothing & Brightening Under-Eye Cream

Since the delicate skin around the eyes is especially prone to the wear and tear of environmental aggressors, a deeply nourishing and conditioning eye cream is essential. This smooth, balm-like formula is designed with master antioxidant acyl-glutathione to replenish and protect fragile skin. Also packed with an unmatched vitamin F blend of omega-rich flax, chia and macadamia seed oils, it intensely nourishes and provides ultimate moisture barrier protection.

Step 5: Essential Fx Acyl-Glutathione Chia Oil

Seal in all that nourishment with this nutrient-packed chia oil — a true must-have in any regimen dedicated to supporting and repairing your moisture barrier. It delivers optimal nourishment with the highest concentration of omega fatty acids and the perfect ratio of skin-strengthening lipids for overall skin health, moisturization and barrier support.

Step 6: Cold Plasma Plus+ Lip Therapy

Your lips are another vulnerable area that’s often overlooked in a skincare routine, but we’re here to change that. This multi-tasking, peptide-rich lip treatment is also formulated with omegas 3, 6 and 9 to improve moisture retention and hyaluronic acid to provide effective, all-day hydration. The result? Visibly softer, fuller and more supple lips.

Of course, the skin on your body is also prone to damage from everyday wear and tear and exposure to harsh elements. Though wearing protective clothing and sunscreen can help with this, Martone’s aforementioned skincare tips apply here as well. Using products like our Cold Plasma Plus+ Neck & Chest Broad Spectrum SPF 25 and High Potency Hyaluronic  Intensive Body Therapy to nourish and protect your skin allover will help you maintain visibly healthy, firm and smooth skin below your chin.

Ultimately, protecting your skin’s precious barrier from head to toe and restoring it when things go awry is simpler than one might originally think. Use gentle skincare products, wear sunscreen, avoid exfoliating too much, and maintain a consistent regimen rich in nourishing ingredients and antioxidants to set yourself up for success.