You may not have thought about it much, but you might be surprised at how a face toner can help your skin. This amazing addition to your routine provides hydration, helps balance your acid mantle, and can help keep skin clean when dealing with acne. See why you need a toner for your daily skin care routine and which ingredients to consider when using a toner.
Your skin’s acid mantle
The topmost layer of your skin has a major effect on how your skin care works. Referred to as the acid mantle, this layer is composed of dead skin cells, bacteria, and oils that help give your skin antibacterial protection. It is normal for skin to be slightly acidic, with around 4.5 to 5.5 pH balance. If your pH balance is off, that usually means there isn’t enough oil production, which can force bacteria to migrate down into the follicles of your pores to obtain nutrients. The bacteria on your skin prefer triglycerides from oils and leave behind fatty acids that help keep your pH balance in check for barrier protection.
According to the National Library of Medicine, when bacteria are forced down into your follicles to find nutrients, you may experience redness, dry patches, and breakouts. To help fight off disease and maintain a healthy ecosystem on your face, good bacteria need to stay on the surface of your skin.
How a face toner can help your skin
A good toner is formulated to encourage a proper, healthy bacteria pH balance on your skin. Toners or toning agents penetrate very quickly into your skin to give instant hydration, remove dead skin cells (while picking up excess dirt your cleanser may have missed), and restore proper pH balance. There are generally two types of toner: astringent and hydrating. Astringents tend to have the highest alcohol content and are meant for more oily skin types or acne-prone skin. Hydrators have the lowest alcohol content and won’t dry out your skin.
Natural ingredients for your facial toner
According to the Scientific Journal of Natural Products, Leontopodium alpinum extract or Edelweiss is a plant extract that provides antioxidant and skin soothing benefits to skin. Edelweiss contains lignans, which have a natural skin-calming benefit. Edelweiss contains a compound known as leontopodic acid, which has been shown to strengthen the skin barrier and help reduce signs of sensitivity. Edelweiss helps your skin’s surface become more resistant to environmental stressors, including some types of airborne pollutants.
Hydroxyacetophenone is an antioxidant and skin-conditioning ingredient that helps restore redox balance on your skin. It also helps preserve cosmetics when they’re applied to your skin so they can last longer throughout the day. Hydroxyacephenone has soothing abilities because it helps inhibit COX-2 enzymes on your face, preventing irritation and inflammation.
Maclura cochinchinensis or Leaf Prenyl flavonoid is an extract obtained from the leaves of Maclura plant, which is found along the coasts of the Indian Ocean. The plant uses its flavonoid superpowers to protect itself from pests and diseases, but when used on your skin it produces an impressive anti-inflammatory effect that helps inhibit the development of acne. Closely related to the mulberry plant, it helps reduce blemishes and sebaceous glands in your pores. Sebaceous glands are microscopic exocrine glands that open into your hair follicles to secrete oil or wax called sebum. Maclura leaf extract shrinks your pores and helps reduce inflammation from excess oils in the skin.
Balance that’s healthy, never harsh
RENUAdvanced Balancing Toner refreshes your skin with ingredients that nourish your natural skin microbiome. By soothing the appearance of blemishes and lessening redness and sensitivity, this toner helps maintain your pH balance and skin moisture. RENUAdvanced Toner improves the appearance of healthy-looking skin by supporting your acid mantle and skin barrier function.
Leontopodic acid is a scientifically proven redox compound known to help protect and soothe skin sensitivity. Hydroxyacetophenone helps neutralize external stressors and pollutants. And Maclura leaf helps maintain your skin’s biome and improve the appearance of blemished skin. Plus, RENUAdvanced Balancing Toner is gluten-free, fragrance-free, cruelty-free, and does not contain sulfates or phthalates.
A toner designed around redox technology
Skin health starts at the cellular level, which is why ASEA® has used decades of redox research to design a toner that helps your skin’s cells perform optimally. Its formula is Powered by Redox™ ingredients to support your skin’s natural redox homeostasis, which leaves your skin hydrated, nourished, and looking more youthful. See why RENUAdvanced Skin Care System is a better skin care routine.