Written By Mira Aguirre
Article Summary
- What happens during inflammation
- Inflammation and skin disorders
- How to calm inflamed skin
Inflammation isn't a dirty word. It acts as your skin’s alarm when there’s injury and serves as the next line of defense when something foreign invades our body. Inflammation is not just a vital component of the immune response but essential for wound healing and overall repair. But what happens when the delicate balance is disrupted? When inflammation becomes chronic, it stops being helpful and starts causing damage - weakening your skin barrier, accelerating aging, and contributing to conditions like acne. In this evidence-based deep dive, we’ll break down how inflammation works and how to calm skin that’s in overdrive.
What Happens During Inflammation?
Inflammation is your body’s natural response to injury, stress, or infection. When the skin is breached, it signals the immune system to activate, recruiting cells to repair and defend. Without inflammation, the skin couldn’t respond to damage or invasion.
What Triggers Inflammation?
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Damaged cells or foreign invaders (like pathogens, allergens, or irritants) release molecular patterns that act as a danger signal.
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Pattern recognition receptors, such as toll-like receptors, detect these patterns and respond.
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This activates pathways that lead to the release of inflammatory mediators.
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Types of Inflammatory Mediators |
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Cytokines: These signaling proteins activate the immune system to tackle threats and later help resolve inflammation. |
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Vasoactive Amines (like histamines): Released by mast cells, they dilate blood vessels, allowing immune cells to reach the site of injury or infection faster. |
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Lipid-Derived Mediators (like prostaglandins): These molecules can heighten inflammation, causing pain, fever, and swelling. |
An inflammatory response occurs once receptors detect something is wrong. If there’s injury to the skin rather than just infection, wound healing will also occur. This repair process is called the wound healing cascade but inflammation is one of its steps. We’ll be focusing on just the inflammation piece.
The Inflammatory Response
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Ring the Alarm: Pattern recognition receptors detect patterns from damaged cells or antigens, signaling danger.
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Deploy the Soldiers: Pro-inflammatory cytokines activate immune cells to tackle the threat, including chemokines which direct these cells exactly where they need to go.
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Defend and Repair: Histamines dilate blood vessels and increase their permeability while prostaglandins cause swelling, pain, and fever. This brings immune cells to the site faster as well as make the environment inhospitable to pathogens.
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Send the All Clear: Anti-inflammatory cytokines calm down inflammation once the threat is eliminated, allowing repair to begin.
Once inflammation occurs, it acts as a driver of many of the important events involved in protecting and repairing our skin. Inflammation is like having a personal trainer, motivating you to get out of bed and do your workout even when you’re tired. Without it, important repair processes wouldn’t occur.
Inflammation and Skin disorders
While inflammation is necessary for skin health, what happens when this delicate balance is disrupted? Too much of it or prolonged inflammation can contribute to several skin concerns. When the balance shifts, the skin’s protector becomes an enemy within.
Acute Inflammation: inflammation is occurring at the right time but in high levels
Chronic Inflammation: low grade inflammation that remains in the skin
Inflammation is a powerful tool when used in the right amount, at the right time. But when it’s present when it isn’t needed, it throws a wrench into the normal functioning of the skin. Skin cells can’t divide and grow normally which impacts the skin barrier especially. Skin repair - which usually occurs after inflammation subsides - is also delayed. The skin becomes thinner as the amount of new collagen being produced can’t match collagen breakdown.
But the list of detrimental effects doesn’t end there. The role of inflammation and various skin concerns has also been explored.
Inflammatory Skin Disorders
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Acne Vulgaris: Inflammation can contribute to blocked pores, allowing them to be colonized by Cutibacterium acnes and resulting in a cycle of inflammation.
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Rosacea: An overactive immune response causes persistent inflammation, leading to redness, visible blood vessels, and flare-ups triggered by environmental factors.
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Atopic Dermatitis (Eczema): Inflammation resulting from a compromised skin barrier causes dryness, itching, and irritation.
Skin Sensitivity
Not all inflammation is visible. Low-grade, chronic inflammation can lead to skin sensitivity, even in the absence of noticeable conditions like acne. While more research is needed on sensitive skin, it’s often linked to a disrupted skin barrier - allowing irritants and allergens to penetrate more easily.
Tip: People with deeper skin tones are more prone to chronic inflammation. Alongside the protective response of pigment producing cells called melanocytes, these skin types are more prone to hyper-pigmentation and delayed wound healing. It’s important to select the right skincare and in-office treatments.
Inflammaging
As we age, a low level of chronic inflammation, known as “inflammaging” becomes more common. This condition impairs skin repair, leads to thinning skin, and accelerates the breakdown of collagen, contributing to fine lines and wrinkles.
You can learn more about inflammaging and the role of both senescent cells and glycation in our blog post on the science of aging.
Key Contributors to Inflammaging:
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Aging immune system
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Decline in antioxidant defenses
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UV exposure
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Smoking
How to Calm Inflamed Skin
If you’ve made it this far, you know that inflammation is a complex process. And combating it with skincare may sound like putting out a fire with a teaspoon of water. But managing inflammation through your daily routine is key to protecting your skin and restoring balance.
Inflamed skin is barrier impaired skin. Irritation and delayed healing are also concerns. As a result, the skin is more likely to be dry and prone to damage. Skincare should focus on both inflammation and its effects on the skin.
Steps to Calming Your Skin:
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Support the Skin Barrier: Use a gentle cleanser and a moisturizer with ingredients like ceramides, cholesterol, and fatty acids to replenish the skin barrier
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Reduce Inflammation: Look for soothing ingredients like oat and beta glucan, allantoin, panthenol, aloe vera, bisabolol, and centella asiatica. Low percentage niacinamide can also calm skin.
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Aid in Skin Repair: Hydrate the skin with gentle, hydrating products and lock it in with an occlusive agent like petrolatum that will support healing.
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Protect the Skin: Use antioxidants and be diligent with your sun protection, especially with compromised skin.
If you’re dealing with an inflammatory skin disorder, you’ll still want to see a healthcare provider. Appropriate skin care can work together with your prescribed treatment plan.
Stratia Skin Picks for Calming Skin:
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Velvet Cleansing Milk. Mild cleansing agents, low pH, and soothing ingredients to cleanse without disruption.
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Aqua Factory. A humectant blend for hydration with beta glucan and panthenol to calm and repair.
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Interface Peptide Cream. Copper peptides and growth factors to aid in regeneration and repair.
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Rewind Serum. Combines anti-inflammatory niacinamide, panthenol, and centella asiatica to combat signs of aging and soothe irritation.
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Lipid Gold Eye Serum. This richer cousin to the original Lipid Gold bumps up the ceramide concentration, removes niacinamide for anyone sensitive, and adds petrolatum to protect skin.
Key Takeaways
Inflammation plays a critical role in skin health, but when it’s out of balance, it starts to work against the skin instead. Whether you’re dealing with acne, rosacea, or the effects of aging, understanding the triggers and processes of inflammation is critical to supporting your skin.
For those with deeper skin tones or sensitive skin, remember that your skincare routine should be adapted to reduce inflammation and support healing. These skin types may also need to approach in-office treatments and selecting a provider with care. And if you’re struggling with chronic inflammation or an inflammatory skin disorder, it may be time to consult with a dermatologist.
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