Beauty Sleep Is Real: Overnight Skin Repair Secrets Revealed

Courtesy of Augustinus Bader

Everyone knows sleep plays a major role in our wellness and health, but what many might not know is that it’s also important for our skin.

According to the sleep experts on the panel, sleep is the number one factor for ensuring longevity for our skin. For them, the area of longevity—something that’s been trending in the beauty market recently—should consist of 90% sleep. During good quality sleep and deep rest, our skin repairs itself and releases growth hormones. Cells regenerate, collagen production speeds up, and blood circulation increases. 

Our skin goes through a transformation while we sleep. There’s an increase in cell turnover, meaning old skin cells are shed, and new cells come up to the surface to replace them. This regeneration at night makes it easier for those new cells to absorb products.

That means the best time for our skin to absorb products with powerful formulas is overnight. Technically, any product can be “overnight,” given that most of us do our skincare routine right before bed. Still, there are products that are specifically formulated for nighttime, that keep the transformation our skin goes through during sleep in mind. 

Collagen production peaks during deep sleep. Collagen is the protein in our body that gives elasticity to our tissues. This increase only happens during deep sleep, the third Non-REM sleep stage, where “your heart rate and breathing rate slow down.” This stage is where the body does most of its healing and repairing.

Not getting sufficient sleep affects everything in our bodies, from our minds to our skin. When we don’t get good quality sleep, we can see it on our faces in the morning. Fine lines, wrinkles, dryness, and redness are more noticeable. 

When the deep sleep stage is skipped entirely, there is no optimal increase in cell turnover and collagen production. That means we have a higher volume of dead skin cells on our skin, which leads to it looking drier and with more fine lines. It also means our products aren’t absorbed properly into the skin. 

It’s also important to highlight that, according to the panelists, the quantity of sleep does not equal quality. They made a point to emphasize that “good sleep” looks different for each person. Just because you slept eight hours, it doesn’t mean you slept well for eight hours. 

To ensure a better quality of sleep and deeper rest, it’s important to establish a consistent wind-down routine before going to bed. Your skincare routine should play a role in that, alongside other relaxing activities.

The panel’s experts recommend creating a ritual for yourself to condition your mind and body to get ready for sleep. Among their recommendations, they mention using products with relaxing scents, a cold room, magnesium, a warm bath, and not using your phone for an hour before sleep. 

There is no one perfect sleep routine, though. It depends on the person and what works best for them. They also recommended using products in your skincare routine that are formulated especially for what happens to the skin while we sleep.

They, of course, recommended the new Augustinus Bader Night Cream. And so does this beauty writer; I have noticed a new plumpness, smoothness, and hydration to my skin that I didn’t have before. Even as I don’t sleep that well, my skin doesn’t look as fatigued as it would normally look. 

Still, the experts also emphasized that no single product can change your skin if you don’t get enough good, consistent sleep. 

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Elemis Superfood Overnight Prebiotic Cream

Bubble Over Night Hydrating Sleep Mask

Allies of Skin Retinal 0.05% & Peptides Repair Night Cream

Medicube Wrapping Mask Collagen Overnight Peel Off Facial Mask

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Fresh Lotus Youth Preserve Radiance Renewal Night Cream

LANEIGE Water Sleeping Mask

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