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Skin Cell Turnover: The Secret To Youthful Clear Skin

Rapid skin cell turnover can keep your skin looking fresh, clear, and youthful. Learn how to increase skin cell turnover here.

Read on

Did you know, over the course of your lifetime, your skin cells are replaced a thousand times over?

This natural skin renewal process is called skin cell turnover. Through this process, old skin cells shed and younger skin cells take their place. The speed of this process is called skin cell turnover rate.

Like so many other biological processes, this skin cell turnover slows down with age. This slow down can be the culprit for age spots, wrinkles, and sagging skin.

To combat signs of aging, the secret is to increase your skin rejuvenation rate. Let’s dive into how skin cell turnover works and how you can increase your skin cell turnover rate.

Also Read: Are Stress Wrinkles a Real Thing? What Stress Does to Your Skin

How does skin cell turnover work?

Simply put, skin cell turnover is the natural process of skin cell creation. These new cells are created so they can replace old cells at the surface of the skin.

New skin cells are “born” in the deepest part of the epidermis (the stratum germinativum). Then, they travel through the skin until they reach the outermost layer (the stratum corneum).

The skin cells at the surface are subject to normal wear and tear of environmental stress and sun damage. In time, these old skin cells eventually harden and die. When this happens, the skin sheds the old, and the new (skin cells) report for duty.

Approximately every 28 days your skin rejuvenates itself with new skin cells. But, this can take anywhere from 20 to 40 days depending on your turnover rate.

Why skin cell turnover is so important for anti-aging

The secret to keeping your skin glowing and youthful is rapid skin cell turnover.

As we age, many biological processes slow down. This includes the rate of skin cell turnover. When you’re a kid your skin cell turnover rate is lightning fast. Not to mention, collagen and ceramides are plentiful too. (This is why children have such perfect, glowing skin.)

With age, the epidermis loses strength and structure. This is due to age-related collagen depletion, and a significant slow down of skin cell turnover.

The weakening of skin structure may cause skin sagging and the deepening of wrinkles.

Here are a few things that may happen when your skin cell turnover is sluggish:

  • Skin sagging
  • Skin thinning
  • Deepening of wrinkles
  • Dry and dull-looking skin
  • Pore enlargement
  • Higher risk of blemishes
  • Higher risk of bacterial acne
  • Discoloration such as age spots
  • Hyperpigmentation

In short, sluggish skin cell turnover is a significant cause of visible signs of skin aging.

How you can harness the power of skin cell turnover

Just because skin cell turnover slows down naturally, doesn't mean you need to take a laissez-faire outlook. In fact, many products can help increase skin cell turnover rate, and boost collagen production.

Prescription retinoids, like tretinoin, are proven to be effective at increasing skin cell turnover rate. Tretinoin is a mainstay in anti-aging skincare for good reason. It can help increase skin cell turnover and encourage collagen production. Retinoids can help decrease fine lines, wrinkles, hyperpigmentation, and blemishes.

While retinoids are great options for anti-aging, nothing is an overnight solution. Results from tretinoin use can take a few months to become visible.

Many people start on low doses of tretinoin and work their way up in strength. Anti-aging products like tretinoin can be a long-term “forever” product if your skin can tolerate them, and you are not pregnant or breastfeeding.

Read Related: 7 Ways To Avoid Premature Skin Aging

Skin Cell Turnover: The Bottom Line

  • Skin cell turnover is the process of old skin cells shedding and being replaced by new skin cells. The rate at which this happens is the “skin cell turnover rate”.
  • As you age this process slows down considerably.
  • Sluggish skin cell turnover rate is a significant contributor to visible signs of skin aging.
  • Effectively increase your skin cell turnover rate with anti-aging retinoids like tretinoin. 

Strut Health prescribes tretinoin for increased skin cell turnover online

Want to try tretinoin? Skip the trip to the dermatologist’s office -- that’s the old-fashioned way.

Strut Health offers prescription tretinoin online. If you’re starting an anti-aging skincare routine try the gold standard of anti-aging products: tretinoin.

If you want to try our tretinoin anti-aging formula, complete a questionnaire-based online doctor's consultation to see if our treatments are right for you.

If our doctors find this formula is a good fit for you, we’ll ship your prescription to your doorstep with free shipping.

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