We can all agree that we’ve all said the phase ‘I could do with a cup of coffee’. On those long commutes or days that feel slow, we all find the benefits of caffeine to be an energy booster that helps get your day going. Caffeine clearly has its own energising boost but what happens when you use it in your skincare? What are the benefits to using coffee in more of your daily routine? And what brands are leading the way in caffeine infused skincare?
What Are The Benefits of Caffeine Skincare?
Caffeine is an antioxidant
You may have heard of the term ‘free radicals’ before, especially in the skincare scene. Free radicals are best described as atoms travelling around your body, that have the potential to cause damage to cells. These are what causes certain illnesses. Luckily, caffeine is a very powerful antioxidant, acting to remove these from your body. Antioxidants help to keep skin looking healthier, for longer. This can help delay signs of ageing.
Caffeine is anti-inflammatory
Caffeine is a kind of molecule known as a vasoconstrictor; simply put, it makes blood vessels smaller. This reduces puffiness and improves circulation in skin, reducing red blemishes and brightening the skin. While this is true everywhere, it works particularly well on the face and under the eyes, where darker patches are generally more visible and likely to appear.
However, it’s important to note that the results are not long-lasting, so topical products that contain caffeine will need to be used daily for best results.
Caffeine helps with cellulite
When used as a cosmetic ingredient, especially for cellulite, it has the ability to dissolve fat below the skin by converting it to fatty acids that can then be removed by the blood circulation and metabolised to energy and carbon dioxide.
Whilst caffeine cannot target deep rooted cellulite, it can target sub-dermal cellulite.
Caffeine works as a great after-sun care
Although summer is still far away from us, studies have shown that applying caffeine to sunburns can help reduce the risk of certain kinds of cancer. We certainly don’t recommend you replace your sun cream with a coffee-based product, but as an after-sun solution, caffeine has been proven to have significant benefits.
What To Look For in Caffeine Skincare
Not all skincare is made equally, caffeine type products need time to be absorbed into the skin rather then washed away like shower gels. Caffeine scrubs, serums and oils are the most effective to gain the benefits of what caffeine can do for your skin.
Body Scrubs – Coffee scrubs tend to have the benefit of removing layers of dead skin which helps the caffeine to go directly to healthy layers quickly and effectively. Despite face scrubs being available, we wouldn’t recommend them. As coffee scrubs are a type of physical exfoliation, they can cause damage to delicate skin on your face and damage the barrier.
Eye Creams – With caffeine skincare being known for brightening the face and lightening dark circles, coffee oils tend to be used in eye creams.
Face Serums – Coffee-based face serums help keep the skin firm and bright which helps boost collagen within the skin for an overall better appearance.
Is It Good For All Skin Types?
Caffeine is an all-natural ingredient so is perfect for all skin types including, but not limited to, dry skin, acne-prone skin, or sensitive skin. Your skin will reap all the benefits caffeine can give by smoothing and healing.
Make sure when buying these products to check other ingredients.