A Facialist's Notes On Inflammation & The Skin

Inflammation is one of those things that people tend to think of as something you can see on the skin, such as redness or irritation. This isn’t always the case though, and in reality, inflammation is often already happening long before you can actually see it.

I would say that a lot of the skin concerns I see in clinic start underneath the skin rather than on the surface.

Inflammation is a bit of a buzzword at the moment, but in simple terms, it’s the body’s natural response to some kind of threat. It’s not always a bad thing, as it’s there to protect and help repair the skin and body, but when it becomes constant, that’s when problems can start.

There are two main types of inflammation to be aware of…

ACUTE INFLAMMATION: This is short-term inflammation, often as a response to something like an advanced skin treatment. This is not a bad thing.

CHRONIC INFLAMMATION: This is longer-term, ongoing inflammation within the skin. This is something we want to avoid ideally.

A small amount of inflammation can actually be beneficial. Think about the healing response from treatments like microneedling or even when you’re taking supplements for example. It’s helping the body repair itself and it’s when that inflammation becomes ongoing that it starts to become a problem.

Inflammation can be visible, yes, such as redness or breakouts, but it can also show up as dullness, dehydration or a constant state of sensitivity where the skin seems to react to everything.

It’s usually caused by the usual culprits, things like UV exposure, harsh skincare, over-exfoliation, aggressive treatments and pollution, alongside internal factors like stress, lack of sleep, poor diet and hormone fluctuations. Essentially, many of the same things that damage the skin barrier.

What I often see is people trying to treat this themselves by reaching for very active ingredients or harsh treatments to try and “fix” it quickly. Think of things like dermaplaning or overly aggressive “glass skin” treatments. The skin looks super glowy afterwards, but that’s often because it’s been stripped back to raw skin!

What’s actually happening is that they’re trying to calm a fire by throwing more fuel on it. The skin might look fresh for a day or two, but long term, this isn’t how I would recommend treating it. The tricky part is that people don’t realise they’re damaging their skin, so they end up stuck in a cycle.

Inflammation also plays a big role in ageing. A weakened barrier combined with chronic inflammation will contribute to the breakdown of collagen and elastin, which in turn accelerates ageing over time.

Some of the most common skin concerns are linked to inflammation as well. Acne, rosacea, sensitivity and even pigmentation are all inflammatory in nature. Pigmentation in particular is often triggered by inflammation, hence the term post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation, or PIH.

So instead of only treating what we see on the surface, we need to understand what’s happening underneath and address the inflammation as well.

If you feel like your skin is inflamed, from a skincare perspective I would always recommend simplifying things first. Focus on repairing the skin barrier using products like Nimue Pre & Post Serum or the Nimue TDS serums, and pull back on active ingredients until your skin is more stable.

Protect the skin daily with antioxidants and SPF. I love the Advanced Nutrition Programme Skin Antioxidant and Nimue Sun-C SPF 40 for this. And of course, look at the bigger picture too such as managing stress, improving sleep and supporting your diet.

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Also, don’t expect this to resolve overnight. The skin needs time to recover, so patience is key.

Realistically, we can’t avoid inflammation completely. Life happens, and with it comes stress, environmental exposure and everything else. The difference comes down to how well you support your skin and body overall.

Consistency is always key. Focus on doing the best you can, rather than trying to do everything perfectly.

Thank you so much for reading,

Emmaline