Sleep slows down the anti-aging process Whilst you're snoozing away, your skin is busy making new collagen. This is a protein which keeps the cells in your body (especially on your face!) strong, and maximises the skin's elasticity. It's also in the deepest stage of sleep where your body produces the growth hormone.
Step 1 in your new beauty routine: hit the sack earlier the night before! Research has proven that a good night's sleep makes you look healthier, happier, and–yes–more attractive. “Beauty Sleep” isn't just a silly cliché–it is backed up by solid evidence.
Results show that the faces of sleep-deprived individuals were perceived as having more hanging eyelids, redder eyes, more swollen eyes and darker circles under the eyes. Sleep deprivation also was associated with paler skin, more wrinkles or fine lines, and more droopy corners of the mouth.
Overall, sleep can help improve our appearance, and may potentially help us look younger by enabling our skin cells to grow and repair and producing proteins that are responsible for cell growth and repair, such as collagen.
“The skin regenerates and rebuilds itself during sleep,” says Tess Mauricio, MD, dermatologist and CEO of M Beauty Clinic in Beverly Hills. “Studies show that peak cell division happens at night, so your skin cells get rebuilt while you are sleeping.”
The truth is, beauty sleep is real! The more sleep you have, the healthier and younger you tend to look. People who get at least 8 hours per night feel more attractive within themselves; resulting in a better mood and a healthier lifestyle.
While almost everyone knows that around seven to eight hours of sleep is essential for healthy skin, the time of sleep also matters. The best time to sleep for healthy skin is between 9 PM to 11 PM. If you wake up early, hit the bed by around 9-9.30 PM.
Sleeping well can lower blood pressure, relax blood vessels and improve blood flow, bringing nutrients—and a healthy color—to the skin. Sleep also slows the aging of the heart and blood vessels. Poor circulation and arterial aging are major contributors to the appearance of aging on the skin and hair.
How many hours is beauty sleep? Seven to nine quality hours of sleep per night is ideal for “beauty sleep.” If you regularly get less than six hours of sleep, you may start to see some side effects on your skin.
You Wake Up With Healthier-Looking Skin
It also allows your body to recuperate and helps your cells regenerate. Your body can also increase collagen synthesis to help repair skin damage. You're also less likely to have dark circles and puffy eyes in the morning when you follow an early bedtime.
Sleeping on your back
According to Dr. Vasyukevic, the supine position is the best position all around for prolonging youthful skin. Not only does it prevent wrinkles due to the lack of wrinkle-inducing friction, it also stops the skin from feeling the pressure of your face "folding" into the pillow.
“Sleep wrinkles form in response to distortion created when the face is pressed against any sleep surface. They tend to worsen over time due to repetition combined with thinning of the skin and decreased elasticity as we age,” says ASAPS member and lead author, Goesel Anson, MD, FACS, in a release.
The more sleep you get – the less likely you are to find wrinkles, Dr. Newman-Beinart says, as when you sleep your body will start to produce growth hormones, one of these is collagen which is a super important cell-repairing hormone.
Glowing complexion
Blood flow to the skin is boosted during our sleep. This is important if we want to wake up with a healthy glow without our complexion looking dull and dehydrated. Tip: Regular exercise can improve blood circulation as it helps to deliver oxygen and nutrients to the skin.
Skincare tips: Here's how healthy sleep schedule is important for healthy, glowing skin. According to Dr Chytra, 7 to 9 hours of sleep is important to keep your body and skin healthy.
Beauty sleep is very real and it refers to how our skin and body begins to heal itself from the day. When we enter deep sleep, our body enters recovery mode and produces growth hormones. These growth hormones create new cells that help heal our skin from any damage done during the day.
The younger a person is, the more sleep they need. Newborns sleep 14-17 hours per day, infants 12-15 hours, teens 8-10 hours, adults 7-9 hours, and seniors 7-8 hours.
Lack of sleep can cause darker under eye circles, paler skin, hanging eyelids, more wrinkles and fine lines. It will also cause skin to age faster, and lower how well skin can recover from environmental stressors such as strong wind or sun exposure.
“There is no such thing as a “fixed or ideal time” to go to bed which will suit all individuals. It is generally advisable to fall asleep between 10 pm to midnight as for most people this is when the circadian rhythm is at a point that favours falling asleep.”
The key is to get enough shut-eye -- 7 to 9 quality hours each night. If you're getting fewer than 6 hours, it's likely affecting your appearance, says Michael Breus, PhD, a board-certified sleep specialist. Start getting 1 to 3 more hours of Zzz's, and you could see some improvement in as little as a day.
Without regular, quality sleep, many people begin to notice an increase in fine lines, uneven pigmentation and reduced elasticity in their skin. Simply put, they look older than their actual years would indicate because lack of sleep weakens the skin's ability to repair and rejuvenate itself.
As we age, our circadian rhythms — the internal “clock” that coordinates the timing of our bodily functions, including sleep — change. That's why older adults tend to become sleepier in the early evening and wake earlier in the morning compared to younger adults.
Wrinkles. Studies have shown that pillows can compress the skin during sleep, particularly in people who sleep on their stomach or their side. Over time, this can lead to sleep wrinkles and contribute to the visible signs of aging. Sleeping without a pillow can stop the face from scrunching up during the night.
While you nap there's a release of growth hormone which stimulates collagen production. And more collagen means your skin is firmer, smoother and less likely to develop fine lines and wrinkles. And as you sleep your body increases blood flow to the skin too.