Your skin is an extremely complex organ. As an average adult, it covers an area of around 20 square feet and accounts for about 15 percent of your body weight. It protects your entire body from injury, toxins, pollutants and other hazardous substances. It regulates body temperature.

It acts as a sensory organ. It stretches when you move, but remains tough enough not to break or tear. And it’s waterproof, yet can still absorb and emit water. 

Pretty amazing, don’t you think?

And that’s not all. Your skin is a living thing of course. Let’s talk about that for a minute…

The Life Cycle Of Your Skin

You have about 300 million skin cells which form and die every single second. Here’s the science bit. Your skin is comprised of three main layers: the hypodermis (aka the subcutaneous layer), the dermis and the epidermis. The hypodermis sits at the base, attaching your skin to the muscles and tissue below and providing insulation to your body.

Above this, is the dermis, the thick inner layer that contains all the good stuff like collagen and elastin fibres, connective tissues, blood vessels, sweat glands, nerve endings and sebaceous glands.

Finally, you have a thin, protective layer at the top called your epidermis. This provides a waterproof barrier, gives your skin its colour and protects your body from unwanted external aggressors.

The epidermis is the part you see and it’s here that visible skin cells are created. Each skin cell has a lifespan of around four to six weeks, in which time it forms, then is slowly pushed up from the base of the epidermis to the surface, getting flatter and drier as it progresses.

When it eventually arrives at the stratum corneum (the outermost layer), it dies, falls off and is replaced by a newer skin cell going through the same process right below it.

Still with us? Good. 

The truth, therefore, is the skin you see on a daily basis is never really ‘new’ per se.  In fact, it’s right at the end of its life cycle and ready to add to the dust on your skirting boards. But, it’s this sweet spot of 40 days that gives you fresh, radiant, healthy-looking skin that’s often coined as ‘new.’

Dead skin cells that hang around for longer than 40 days? They’re the ones that aren’t welcome and they’re the ones that make your skin look dull and lifeless. 

Does The Life Cycle Of Your Skin Change?

It sure does. Skin turnover dramatically slows down as you get older (often taking as long as 60 days after you hit 50). And many internal and external factors come into play. Your genes, of course, play a massive role and they’re something you can’t change – no matter how much magic you have up your sleeves.

But you can take control of many other factors including sun damage, pollution, stress, your diet, a poor skincare routine and the other usual suspects. Every one of these will slow down cell turnover, increase the life cycle of your skin and cause dullness, premature ageing and all sorts of other annoyances.

So, How Can You Make The Most Of Your ‘Newest’ Skin?

Millions of skin cells die every day, but unless you help the natural shedding process and subsequent replacement of fresh, younger cells (which is called desquamation), your skin will suffer.

It’ll most probably take on a dull, greyish tone, but it could also look patchy and mottled, fine lines will appear deeper, and breakouts will become more likely as pores get blocked by dead skin cells, oil and bacteria.

Now, forgive us for being presumptuous, but we don’t think any of these things rate highly on your wish list. So, here are three ways to maximise your ‘new’ skin and get that glowy, vibrant complexion you deserve.

1. Exfoliate

The best way to increase cell turnover is through exfoliation. A real game changer for the vibrancy of your complexion, regular exfoliation reduces the build-up of dead skin cells at the surface, making way for the younger, fresher ones below. It’s pretty simple, but oh-so-effective.

There are many ways to exfoliate your skin, so if you’re not sure where to start, try our Natural Luminosity Scrub. Containing gentle pumice along with glycerin and botanical oils to hydrate and moisturise, this scrub takes care of dull, lifeless skin cells in just a couple of minutes.

Apply it in gentle, circular motions to damp skin, working it carefully over your entire face, neck and décolletage for around 30 seconds, then rinse with lukewarm (never hot) water and pat your skin dry with a clean towel. 

Depending on your skin type, you can use our scrub daily, but if you’re super sensitive we recommend just two or three times a week.

2. Embrace Topical Antioxidants 

Skin renewal can seriously slow down when those pesky free radicals get in the way. Free radicals form in your skin when it’s exposed to things like pollution, UV radiation, chemicals and cigarette smoke. And they’re seriously bad news, damaging vital proteins in your skin and causing premature ageing lightning fast.

The best way to combat free radical damage is to neutralise them with topical antioxidants before they get a chance to do their worst. Vitamin C, in particular, is an extremely effective antioxidant and not only helps regulate cell turnover, but adds a little extra glow of its own.

Apply Organic Age-Defying Facial Oil to cleansed skin before bed for an instant hit of vitamin C… and so much more. Couple this with Organic Tinted Moisturiser with SPF 25 every morning and you’ll notice brighter, more radiant skin in no time.

3. Boost Collagen With Retinol

Cell turnover slows down as you age, simply because your bodily functions aren’t as young as they used to be. And this is where retinol can play an important part. A topical form of vitamin A, retinol penetrates the skin cells and stimulates the process of cell turnover by signalling new cells to form.

It’s also a powerful antioxidant which further adds to its incredible benefits and is why it deservedly gets its name as the gold standard of skincare ingredients.

Get your daily fix of retinol by applying Pre-Eminent Beauty Serum to cleansed skin, before moisturising. This awesome beauty serum contains a gentle form of retinol called retinyl palmitate, making it ideal for most skin types.

Dull skin? What dull skin? Say hello to gorgeous, radiant new skin!