The struggle for skin balance

October 22, 2017 – Martin Engervik

Balance in the skin

"The Only Thing That Is Constant Is Change" - Heraclitus

We talk a lot about skin care routines, we humans need routines. We need fixed intervals and set patterns to use our minds and energy on other things. Routines and patterns mean that you don't have to plan your route to work, the time you plan to be there, or whether or not you're going to eat lunch every day.

What is the challenge of always having the same skincare routine?

The needs of the skin are changing. Yesterday I was out in the cold autumn air here in Oslo which is starting to feel more and more like winter and I can feel my skin tightening a bit. I wouldn't experience the same on a nice summer day. I use Herbal Face Oil in the summer, but it is not unnatural that in the autumn and winter I use Amaranth Face Oil to keep the oil and moisture in the skin in balance.

If you try too many different things with your skin or use the wrong products, you can quickly create an imbalance, but your skin can also handle this on its own, so shouldn't you make an adjustment or continue with your routine as before? A bit like someone balancing on a tightrope, you have to compensate to keep your balance. The skin is a finely tuned organ that can be as challenging to understand as a screaming infant, you have to know it and its history well to know what it needs. The skin is affected by what you eat, what you drink, medications, wind, pollution, temperature, exercise, sweating, products, etc. If you have long hair, the products in your hair will also affect your skin.

Make the balance available

The microorganisms that we have in the skin layers are difficult to keep track of because we can't exactly see them. If you wash your face with the wrong PH, these microorganisms can be damaged. It is not that the skin always needs a refill of probiotics (good bacteria for the skin) to counteract this, but we have it in our Sweet & Creamy Cleanser to make it available to the skin. Normal skin in the summer can become dry in the winter and need a moisturizing mask . Our body tends to absorb what it needs, if you make it available, and discard the rest, and when the moisturizing mask absorbs quickly, perhaps that was a need your skin had. We don't all need supplements of vitamin C or B in the body every day, but if this is available in the food we eat, the body will absorb it when it needs it. If it is not available, you will eventually get an imbalance.

It takes some effort from you to get your skin in balance.

Skin balance is complicated, there are many factors, but it starts with listening to it, understanding it and compensating and adjusting when it needs to. It can be a battle and you will need good tools to win this battle. As an infant, your skin is individual and as a mother you are the one who can best understand why it is screaming. If you see an imbalance in your skin, think back to what changes may have caused this, think about the food you eat and the products you use, think about the weather that has changed. Routine is important, but the goal of the routine is to have good balance and therefore the routine must change when the balance changes.

Written by Marina Engervik