Healthy Skin Guide Part 1: Impaired Skin Barrier and Inflammation are Involved in All Skin Conditions

Healthy Skin Guide Part 1 - Impaired Skin Barrier and Inflammation: The 2 Processes All Skin Conditions Have in Common

Published: March 16, 2022

Welcome to Part 1 of The Healthy Skin Guide. In this 4-part series we’ll cover everything you need for healthy, happy skin (body and mind, too). You’ll learn about the 2 underlying causes of skin conditions, how these processes impact your skin and how to repair your skin naturally and holistically. Here’s what each of the 4 parts will cover:

Part 1: Impaired Skin Barrier and Inflammation: What All Skin Conditions Have in Common

Part 2: Skin Barrier 101: Skin barrier function and what does it mean if your skin barrier is impaired or compromised?

Part 3: Inflammation and Your Skin: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Part 4: Natural Holistic Tips for Healthy Skin: How to Repair Your Skin Barrier and Reduce Inflammation

Ready to dive in and take control of your skin health naturally? Let’s get started!

Repairing skin barrier and calming inflammation are essential for healing all skin conditions

In middle school I began using my hair as an outlet for self-expression. By the age of 16, my hair had been every color under the sun and my bathroom was becoming a hair salon of sorts for my friends.

I decided to put my love of cutting and coloring hair to use and began apprenticing to get my cosmetology license.

In an apprenticeship, you receive all of your training on the job and start out shampooing clients. This means you spend your day with your hands constantly immersed in shampoo and chemicals from hair color and perm solution. Let’s just say my poor sensitive skin didn’t like that very much!

Heal my Cracked and Bleeding Hands

That first winter I would come home and cry because my hands hurt so bad – they were a dry, red, swollen, stinging mess and my knuckles were cracked open and bleeding.

I knew that I needed to find something to support my poor compromised barrier but everything I applied stung my hands so bad it felt like I was sticking them into a red ant hill.

What I didn’t realize at the time was that my skin was stuck in a vicious cycle of destruction. As my skin barrier became more and more damaged it was also becoming more permeable -  things that normally weren’t irritants were able to penetrate my skin and cause major inflammation. This inflammation in turn led to further skin barrier break down.

In essence, my skin barrier was unable perform its basic job of keeping moisture in and irritants out.

That first winter in the hair salon was the worst. It eventually improved (though it was never great) as I started doing more haircuts and color and fewer shampoos.

Vicious Cycle: Inflammation and Skin Barrier Break Down

I’m actually quite the geek and have spent countless hours over the last decade combing through scientific literature to learn more about how skin functions, why skin conditions occur and how to heal them. I’ve studied everything I could find on eczema, rosacea, acne, post-radiation burns and so many other skin conditions.

Here’s what I found in a nutshell…

Your skin basically has two jobs: keep moisture in and keep irritants out.

When your skin barrier becomes compromised it also becomes more permeable. An impaired skin barrier allows water from the deeper skin layers to be lost.

An impaired barrier also allows the absorption or penetration of toxins and irritants, which causes inflammation. When your barrier is intact, there is minimal absorption of things your skin comes into contact with on a daily basis. However an impaired skin barrier opens the door and says “Come on in!”

Things that normally aren’t irritants can now penetrate your skin barrier and cause major inflammation.

This inflammation in turn causes further skin barrier break down. It’s a vicious cycle – skin barrier break down leads to inflammation which leads to further barrier break down and so on…and voila you’re left with dry, sensitized skin and a variety of skin conditions.

So, what do you do? Tamp down that inflammation and support your skin barrier so your skin can heal itself.

Here’s what we need to do to stop the cycle of inflammation and skin barrier dysfunction so our skin can heal itself:

• remove irritants
• calm inflammation
• support barrier repair

In this series, I’m going to help you do just that!

I’ve been talking about the dastardly duo of inflammation and skin barrier dysfunction for years, but I thought it was finally time to put together a series where we can take a deeper dive into this vicious cycle and how we can fix it!

Here’s what we’re going to learn:

Part 2: Skin Barrier 101: What is your skin barrier and what does it mean if your skin barrier is impaired or compromised?

Part 3: Inflammation and Your Skin: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Part 4: Natural Holistic Tips for Healthy Skin: How to Repair Your Skin Barrier and Reduce Inflammation

I’m excited to support you on your skin care journey. I would love if you would share this guide with others who might find it helpful!

Have you experienced this cycle? Maybe, like me, you’ve developed sensitivities to topical products or even foods? What have you found helpful and what are you most excited to learn?

Much love,

Rachel

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