Do you like the sound of plumper, smoother, softer skin with the added bonus of less fine lines? Hyaluronic acid is a skin care ingredient that we’ve been hearing a lot about lately along with claims that it can give all of the above and more. We’ve spoken to skincare experts to give us the lowdown on hyaluronic acid and their recommendations on the best products to use.

Hyaluronic acid

So, what exactly is hyaluronic acid?

Lisa de-la-Plain Co-Founder of Beauty Flash and Professional Beauty Therapist describes it as:

“It may be difficult to pronounce and sound scary, but it’s a skin perfecting ingredient you should definitely get to know because it aids tissue repair and boosts overall skin health.”

Believe it or not hyaluronic acid is actually au naturelle, the skin produces it naturally. So why is it added into skin products?

Andrea, a cosmetic nurse from Derma Care Direct explains: “Hyaluronic acid is the key molecule responsible for maintaining the skins hydration. As we age our levels of HA depletes losing the ability to retain moisture, which results in fine lines, wrinkles and increasingly dry and dull skin.”

“As we age our levels of hyaluronic acid depletes losing the ability to retain moisture, which results in fine lines, wrinkles and increasingly dry and dull skin.”

So, although we all naturally produce HA, as we age, we produce less.

Laura Rudoe, founder of Evolve Organic Beauty and S5 Anti Stress Skincare was able to explain why this happens: “After 35 your skin cells don’t regenerate as often as they used to (every 28-30 days compared to every 14 on younger skin) – so your skin looks more dull (due to more visible skin cells).”

Does all of this apply to people with darker skin tones? Dr Sophie Shotter an award winning skin and hormone doctor, says yes: “People of colour have more collagen to begin with, but that doesn’t mean the level of collagen isn’t declining. Hyaluronic acid is an excellent and gentle way of keeping the collagen level topped up from a younger age in all skins.”

“As a topical ingredient hyaluronic acid is a collagen stimulator. It can also help your skin to look and feel dewier and ‘bouncier’.”

“Skins of colour have more collagen to begin with, but that doesn’t mean the level of collagen isn’t declining. Hyaluronic acid is an excellent and gentle way of keeping the collagen level topped up from a younger age in all skins.”

Sounds like HA should be a key ingredient in our beauty regime. Laura explain more about the benefits of HA in skin care products:

“Hyaluronic Acid is able to hold up to 1000 times its weight in water, making sure your skin stays hydrated. It acts like a water reservoir, helping to plump up fine lines and wrinkles.”

I’m sure you get the picture now, adding HA to your skin care routine can be a game changer. But how do you go about doing that? Thankfully the beauty industry has woken up to the benefits of HA a long time ago and it is added to a lot of skin care products from moisturisers to serums and even sheet masks.

Lisa recommends looking for moisturisers that contain HA paired with aloe vera water for long-lasting hydration.

She also suggests that over 40s use serums that combine HA and antioxidants to provide all day hydration. And when it comes to sheet masks, she says to use masks with HA acids and detoxifying minerals for a supple and dewy complexion.

Now that you know what hyaluronic acid is, shop our top eight products that contain the must-have skincare ingredient:


 

Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 by The Ordinary

Hyaluronic acid

 

This is by far one of the most affordable products on the market, but don’t worry you still get all the benefits. It contains the winning combinations of B5 and hyaluronic acid to give you long lasting hydration, plumper and smoother skin. That’s a win, win if you ask us!

Boots, £5.90

 

Rainforest Dew Hydration by Tropic

Hyaluronic acid

This product will help you bring the rejuvenating properties of the rainforest to your skin care routine. It’s a lightweight serum loaded with plant extracts and hyaluronic acid to give you perfectly hydrated and dewy skin.

Tropic Skincare, £42

 

Evolve Beauty Hyaluronic Serum

Hyaluronic acid

Laura Rudoe, the founder of Evolve Organic Beauty says this is their best seller. It’s not surprising as each bottle contains 200mg of hyaluronic acid with added organic pomegranate extracts.

John Lewis & Partners £30

 

Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Hydrogel 30ml mask

Hyaluronic acid

Sheet masks are very much all the rave at the moment and Neutrogena provides you with an affordable product. This beauty item is loaded with hyaluronic acid to give you intense hydration that results in amazing skin, at a very reasonable price.

Boots, £2.33

 

Kate Somerville DermalQuench Liquid Lift

Hyaluronic acid

If you feel like indulging then we recommend you treat yourself to this, it’s a favourite with the A-List. This spray could also be a good option if you don’t fancy using a serum or a sheet mask. It combines hyaluronic acid with oxygen to give an instant glow and long-lasting hydration.

Cult Beauty, £80

 

La Roche-Posay Hyalu B5 Hyaluronic Acid Serum

This product really sets itself apart by containing two different sized molecules of hyaluronic acid to ensure reach on the surface of the skin and deeper.

Look Fantastic, £28.50

 

Medik8 Ultimate Recovery Bio Cellulose Mask

Hyaluronic acid

Finally, we have the Medik8 Ultimate Recovery Bio Cellulose Mask. It’s enriched with hyaluronic acid and minerals to give you a supple, dewy and refreshed complexion. Lisa de-la-Plain, Co-founder of Beauty Flash says: “Don’t forget to massage any excess serum into the skin after removing your mask- you don’t want to let any of those miracle ingredients go to waste.”

BeautyFlash £51

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