5 Ingredients to Add to Your Self-Care Routine in 2020

Now that you’ve had a few weeks to settle into this new year — and decade — let’s talk about the self-care ingredients that should be on your radar over the coming months.

Like so many of the best things in self-care lately, nothing on this list is new, but they’re all poised to come into their star power in 2020. Get on them now and have the privilege of saying, “Oh, I used that before it was cool.”

 

Pomegranate

Pomegranate certainly isn’t a new ingredient in the self-care space (anyone else remember the pomegranate juice craze of the early aughts?), but you may be surprised to learn just how effective it can be when it comes to skincare. Its benefits are threefold: First, it houses a seriously tremendous amount of antioxidants — three times as much as standard-antioxidant barometer green tea, meaning pomegranate seed oil is basically a free radical-trained assassin. Second, it’s packed with skin-softening and -brightening vitamin C, one of the buzziest standalone ingredients of 2019. Third, the main polyphenol (micronutrients we get through plant-based ingredients) in the oil is ellagic acid, which works to hydrate and plump skin, minimizing wrinkles and inflammation.

Try it: APTO Skincare Antioxidant Pomegranate Mask

Electrolytes

I know you’re used to associating electrolytes solely with sports recovery drinks but hear me out! The whole point of those drinks is to replenish your body with necessary things it has lost through sweat and dehydration and if they can refill your body’s hydration tank after a workout, imagine what they can do when used topically. Like minerals with an electric charge, electrolytes literally conduct electricity when mixed with water. If your skin is particularly parched, electrolytes like calcium, magnesium and potassium can hydrate above and below the skin’s surface by dissolving into the body’s fluid and creating an electric charge that helps bring hydrating ingredients deep into the skin.

Try it: REN Wake Up Wonderful Night-Time Facial

Murumuru

Another native of the amazon, murumuru is a palm whose seeds can be turned into an incredibly moisturizing butter that lends itself beautifully to repairing and nourishing damaged hair. How? I’ll tell ya! Murumuru butter is an emollient, meaning it has the ability to soften. Soft hair equals elastic hair equals hair less prone to breakage equals healthier hair! Thanks, fatty acids!

Try it: Sisters Nourishing Conditioner

Niacinamide

Niacinamide, or vitamin B3, was on the rise last year but it’s poised to be a breakout star of 2020, and for good reason. Similar — but better! — than antioxidant powerhouse vitamin C, niacinamide works to firm and smooth skin, minimize pores, stimulate collagen production, even skin tone, calm irritation and redness, and solve world peace. I’m kidding about the last one, but it may as well be true given the very long list of accomplishments on its skincare resume.

Try it: Joanna Vargas Forever Glow Mask

Castanha

Also known as the Brazil nut, castanha is native to the Amazon where it’s been used for centuries as a food and self-care ingredient. The nut — which isn’t actually a nut; it’s a seed from the Brazil Nut tree…confusing, I know — is super rich in fatty acids like Omega-6 and -9, which makes for an intensely hydrating oil. And because it’s an overachiever, castanha oil also strengthens the skin’s natural moisture barrier while moisturizing. Not to mention brazil nuts are also some of the world’s richest sources of selenium, making their oil a potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory.

Try it: Soon! We don’t carry castanha products YET but, given that it’s about to be everywhere in 2020, it’s only a matter of time.

 

 

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Never heard of these, but I’ll be on the lookout for them from now! Great post! ❤️✨

Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com

4 years ago

really helpful for myself.
I will definitely try it.
xoxo
franzi powder brows

4 years ago

Great tips! I love using purified seawater electrolytes for rehydration <3