Natural Moisturizing Factor (NMF): The Importance of Balancing Hydration in Our Skin

Moisturizers and emollients have a common feature: influencing the water balance of the skin.  Even though equilibrium is accomplished in different ways through each one, they complement each other wonderfully. Let’s look together at the microcosm of the water in the skin in order to understand the way it works:

·      Water content of the skin cells determines turgor, i.e. the internal pressure of the cells. As we age the turgor is reduced, causing the skin to be less plump. Firmness is lost. The water transport in our cells is controlled by particular proteins located in the cell membrane.

·      Main components of the extracellular matrix are collagen and hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronic acid retains large amounts of water and is a vital component for the pressure resistance of the connective tissue.

·      The skin barrier near the surface consists of layered ceramides, fatty acids, and cholesterol, as well as sebum, which is composed of lipids such as triglycerides, squalene, fatty acids, and wax and cholesterol esters. All of these components together determine the TEWL of the skin, the amount of water that evaporates from the skin. A high TEWL causes dehydration of our skin and it also allows harmful lipophilic substances to penetrate the skin.

·      The NMF composition of the skin barrier has two functions: binding moisture in the skin and neutralizing the environmental radicals.

Before diving into hydrating elements below, let’s take a look at the influence of osmotic sensitivity on major vascular problems, rosacea and couperose. This will help highlight the healing power of balancing water in the skin. Osmotic pressure can be thought of as the pressure that would be required to stop water from diffusing through a barrier by osmosis. In other words, it refers to how hard the water would push to get through the barrier in order to diffuse to the other side. Rosacea and couperose both cause vasodilation, unstable capillaries, and weakness of the connective tissue. Where they differ is that Rosacea is an inflamed open disease with high osmotic sensitivity and couperose is not inflamed and has a low osmotic sensitivity. When the balance of water is meticulously maintained, the skin barrier can then heal and the ultimate goal, homeostasis, is attained.

Below are the invaluable factors that play a part in bringing balance back to the skin barrier:

Sebum is a natural emollient. Examples for natural variants in the fauna are the wool wax (lanolin) of sheep and the preen was from the uropygial glands of birds. Both of these are used in skin care, however, they are less popular today because of their animal origin. Single components such as squalene, cholesterol, triglycerides and fatty acid esters serve as a model for similar substances from herbal sources or for chemically synthesized substances.

Emollients have a broad range: native oils, vegetable and animal mono-, di and triglycerides, long-chained and partly branched fatty acid esters, fatty acid alkanolamides, hydrocarbons such as squalene, vegetable and montan waxes, paraffins, and long-chained silicones. According to the penetrability and biodegradability, emollients will show different effects after their application. For instance, vegetable triglycerides are largely degraded and metabolized due to their high bioavailability. The inert paraffins, by contrast, more or less, remain on the skin surface and will reduce the TEWL over a longer period of time.

Barrier active substances: These either occur in the skin barrier or have the same features as ceramides, cholesterol, phytosterols, and long-chained fatty acids. Sometimes, they also are counted among the emollients. It should also be noted that they perform in a different way insofar as they integrate into the skin barrier structure and develop a natural physiological TEWL. The skin is protected, but still able to breathe. Barrier active substances found in our dermaviduals® DMS creams are what make the need for emulsifiers obsolete.

Moisturizers: the multi-faceted substances class excels by a strong interaction between elements and water molecules. Typical moisturizing substances are allantoin, alkanolamines, amino acids, alginic acid hydrolysates, diglyceryl phosphate, D-panthenol, ectoin, glycerin, glyceryl glycoside, glycols in general, glycolic acid, lactic acid, and other AHA acids, mineral salts, mono saccharides including sugar substitutes such as sorbitol, phospholipids including glycerophosphocholine (GPC), and phosphatidylcholine (PC), protein hydrolysates and urea. *

The efficacy of moisturizers decreases with reduced air humidity and atmospheric pressure as well as increasing temperature. In conditions of temperature and air pressure, any moisturizer will lose its efficacy at a certain degree of low humidity and dissipate the water into the surrounding air.

Film-forming Actives remain on the skin surface after application and are an additional barrier that impedes water from evaporating out of the skin. The film-forming actives are CM Glucan, Hyaluronic Acid, Xanthan Gum, Alginates, Carbomers, Aloe Vera Extract, Algae Extracts, etc. The addition of liposomal and nano-dispersion active agents to lamellar creams (DMS) cause a decrease of consistency, similar to the fluidization of the skin barrier. Additives rich in polyphenols such as green tea or hamamelis extract increase the consistency. Film-forming components decrease the TEWL, increase skin hydration and smooth the skin without occlusive activity. These actives also reduce wrinkles by hydrogen bonds with the keratin of the skin. 

Growth factors and the modulation of aquaporins are further options to influence the water balance of skin. Of course, not only does the condition of the individual skin, but also the environmental conditions have to be considered in order to achieve the desired effect of the applied or combined active agents.

The goal of osmotic balance is to smooth out and increase the skin’s elasticity. NMFs accomplish this through providing a hydrophilic barrier against harmful lipophilic material penetrating the skin and correcting imbalance in the osmotic pressure of the skin. Again, NMF’s two main functions are to bind moisture in the skin and neutralize the radicals in the environment.

Selecting the adequate preparations in order to find the appropriate balance and avoid occlusive conditions requires some experience. You can gain this expertise at our outstanding training events. Email us at office2@progressive-esthetics.com for more information.

Estheticians who make it their goal to gain knowledge of the dermaviduals® active agent concentrates can use the amazing customizable treatments, which are practically limitless in scope, to effectively treat all kinds of skin types and conditions. You can optimize the skin of those who face difficult challenges and become their skin’s hero. Balancing NMFs are one of the keys to success.

References: The water balance in our skin: moisturizers and co. by Dr. Hans Lautenschlaeger: https://www.dermaviduals.com/english/publications/special-actives/the-water-balance-in-our-skin-moisturizers-co..html

*Details on the particular substances and their chemical features have been discussed in: Moisturizers for the skin care: https://www.dermaviduals.com/english/publications/special-actives/moisturizer-for-the-skin-care.html