How to Effectively Revitalise the Skin Post-Summer

Travel and sun-soaked holidays expose the skin to various environments and temperatures; from poor air quality and toxins in airplanes to the mix of UV rays and air-conditioning that compromises the skin’s ability to protect from harmful environmental aggressors. Advanced Facialist Mariam Abbas discusses with us how to effectively revitalise the skin post-summer season.

Prolonged sun exposure causes free radical damage and deprives cells of antioxidants needed to fight free radicals, damaging both the upper and deeper layers of the skin.

The disparity in environment and temperatures on holiday causes cell turnover to slow down in the upper layers, causing short-term congestion and clogged pores, when mixed with the many layers of SPF, increased sweating from the sun and the exposure to environmental toxins, we have the perfect recipe for spots, breakouts and dull, congested skin.

Skin Detox

The best way to tackle the aftermath of UV damage is to give the skin a healthy post-summer detox at a cellular level to help regenerate depleted resources.

Byonik PTL Laser

The best form of detox for facial skin (and the rest of the body), the Byonik laser stimulates lymphatic flow and circulation while re-energising skin cells to work at their optimum capacity. Cell damage is reversed by strengthening cell structures and stimulating healthy homeostasis. Bioengineered gels with potent antioxidants are introduced in the treatment to help with replenishing lost resources such as antioxidants and hyaluronic acid. This helps with breaking down pigmentation, improving skin tone and stimulating collagen production.

My top tip for tackling post-holiday skin is to stay away from excessive exfoliation and acid peels. You might think melting off the top layer of the skin will reveal baby skin underneath but sadly the skin underneath is also made up of your unique genetic code and it won’t behave any differently in the long run. Aggressive exfoliation will only leave the skin with a compromised barrier and more work to do.

 Gentle maintenance treatments that help with nudging the skin shedding process, clean pores, and boost hydration are Hydrafacial and DermaFrac. Both treatments offer a safe yet gentle exfoliation with a nutrient infusion to wake the skin. Coolift Cryotherapy is a great add-on treatment to boost skin hydration levels while offering carboxytherapy benefits that improve microcirculation and oxygen levels in the skin.

Targeting Pigmentation

The ‘healthy’ post-holiday tan is actually the skin’s protective response to UV rays as sun exposure stimulates pigment-producing cells to go into overdrive to prevent UV rays from causing DNA damage and skin cancer. Despite our best efforts with sun hats, SPF application and sunglasses we are all familiar with darkened sunspots, freckles, uneven skin tone and new patches of discoloured skin.

Pigmentation is best tackled all-year round with continuous use of at-home products and soothing skincare ingredients such as mushroom extract, arbutin, Kojic acid and antioxidants like vitamin C. More potent prescription-based ingredients include hydroquinone - all of which can be complemented with skin needling as a long-term in-clinic treatment with added anti-ageing benefits.