How Stress Affects Your Skin

If you are like many of us, you are probably experiencing excessive amounts of stress these days. Considering the pandemic and its severe effects on our social pursuits and impacting both our mental and physical health, it is no wonder that stress levels have been rising considerably for many of us over the past couple of years. 

Recent research has shown that your skin can perceive stress and respond to it. Stressful times can impact your psychological health and your skin, which is the largest organ in the human body. 

When your body is under significant stress, it can affect your skin in various ways.  Severe stress can cause a deterioration of your health, and your skin is on the front lines, meaning it is quite susceptible to chemical changes that lead to noticeable changes in your complexion. 

Dry skin, wrinkles, and acne are just some of the manifestations of stress on the skin. The more stressed you are, the more likely you will experience skin problems. When your body is under constant stress, the chemical reactions that stress causes will inevitably lead to various external skin conditions. 

Consequences of Stress on Your Skin 

Worsens Existing Skin Conditions

Inflammatory conditions like eczema and those that are related to immune system problems such as psoriasis, are two examples of immense stress exacerbating skin conditions. How does this happen?  The chemicals produced during a stress response are capable of worsening inflammation. 

Acne 

When you undergo stress, your body produces more of the hormone cortisol.  Cortisol causes a section of your brain known as the hypothalamus to generate a hormone called corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH).  CRH is believed to stimulate oil release from sebaceous glands surrounding your follicles. Unusual amounts of oil production by these glands can clog your pores and bring about acne. 

Bags Under Your Eyes 

The visual features of bags under your eyes include swelling or puffiness beneath your eyelids. This becomes more predominant as we get older as the muscles around your eyes weaken. Sagging skin that is caused by loss of elasticity can also lead to eye bags, as well. 

Medical research tells us that when we experience sleep deprivation due to stress, that can lead to increased signs of aging, such as reduced elasticity, uneven pigmentation, and fine lines. It is possible that elasticity loss contributes to the formation of bags under your eyes. 

Dry Skin 

The outer layer of your skin is known as the stratum corneum. This layer of skin holds proteins and lipids that are vital to keeping your skin cells hydrated. It also serves as a barrier that protects the skin underneath. 

When your stratum corneum is not functioning correctly, your skin can turn dry and itchy. Two studies published in Inflammation & Allergy Drug Targets found that stress weakens the barrier role of your stratum corneum, which could negatively impact the retention of water in your skin. 

Additionally, the stress hormone cortisol interferes with hyaluronic acid’s ability to store water and prevent the skin from drying excessively. This prompts the sweat glands to activate, and then the body loses water through the skin. 

Wrinkles 

Because stress causes changes to the skin’s proteins and decreases elasticity, this can lead to the formation of wrinkles. What’s more, stress that brings about repeated furrowing of your brow may lead to wrinkles, as well. 

Rashes 

When you experience excessive stress, it can weaken your immune system. An immune system that is not at full strength leaves your skin susceptible to an imbalance of bacteria in your gut and skin known as dysbiosis. This imbalance on your skin can cause redness or a rash. 

Hinders Healing 

When your skin is under the assault of high levels of stress, it can also interfere with the natural ways the body heals itself. This healing process would normally decrease symptoms of skin conditions like psoriasis and eczema. But a lot of stress typically causes people to touch their skin more often, including scratching itches, peeling scabs and so forth. This all contributes to more inflammation and slows healing. 

Inhibits Wound Healing 

It is possible that you could experience post-traumatic stress if you are stressed about the healing of a wound. When you have a high level of stress, this causes the release of cortisol and catecholamine, which also slows the healing of wounds. 

Stress & Your Skin

There is no way to eliminate stress from your life.  But chronic or excessive stress can lead to these aforementioned negative skin conditions. By taking steps to reduce your stress level, you will be contributing to healthier skin and avoiding the signs of premature aging. 

Agora — The Future of Skincare 

Agora has a vision to provide its customers with a quality alternative to skin-care products available on the market today. We set out to deliver high quality skin-care products that provide excellent results while utilizing outstanding customer service. 

Our products utilize unique and potent ingredients that make a revolutionary difference in the quality of skin that our customers enjoy. Our expert Cosmetic Formulation Chemist provides Agora with superior ingredients from around the world to produce the best skin-care products in the industry!  At Agora, we deliver the most effective and results-oriented skin-care treatments to our customers.