Menopause marks a significant transition in a woman's life, bringing in a period of physical and emotional changes that can often be challenging to navigate.
As the body’s largest organ, it’s no surprise that the skin can undergo a lot of changes during this time, and understanding these could be key to helping to navigate them with confidence.
What is Menopause?
Generally experienced by women aged between 40 and 60 years old, the menopause marks the end of a woman’s menstrual cycle, characterised by 12 consecutive months without bleeding.
Lasting several years, the body will slowly decrease its estrogen production, resulting in irregular periods and the eventual end of menstruation.
What Does Menopausal Skin Look Like?
During this stage of a woman’s life, the skin can go through various changes, such as:
Compromised Skin Barrier
The menopause may lead to a compromised skin barrier due to fluctuating hormone levels.
This weakening of the skin barrier can contribute to a few other changes that may be experienced during this time, such as dryness and irritation.
Fine Lines and Wrinkles
Collagen, the protein that provides structure to the skin, is reported to drop as much as 30% in the first five years of the menopause due to declining levels of estrogen.
This could lead to the formation of wrinkles and a loss of elasticity – especially around delicate areas like the eyes, mouth and jowls.
Dryness and Increased Sensitivity
As estrogen plays a key role in retaining and restoring skin moisture, decreased levels could lead to dry skin.
In turn, could leave the skin more sensitive and prone to reactions to everyday products, such as washing powder and cosmetics.
Oily Skin
The hormonal fluctuations during menopause can cause some to experience oily skin. In fact, some studies suggest that there’s a connection between increased sebum production and the menopause due to enlarged oil glands in the pores.
Oily skin isn’t a symptom everyone will experience but it is possible that the overproduction of sebum could result in menopausal acne.
How to Deal with Menopausal Skin
To help manage these changes and maintain the healthiest skin possible during menopause, there are a few steps that we recommend implementing into your routine.
Gentle Cleansing
Switch to a gentle, non-drying cleanser that doesn’t strip your skin of its natural oils. Formulas like oils, balms or creams could be more nourishing and may help with dryness.
Ingredients like vitamin C could reinforce your skin barrier, while others like hyaluronic acid may help to maintain moisture levels.
Avoid using hot water when washing your face, as it can further compromise the skin barrier, so we recommend opting for lukewarm water instead.
Hydrate the Skin
Use a rich moisturiser that contains ingredients like hyaluronic acid, glycerin or ceramides, as these may help to hydrate and support the skin barrier.
Cooling Mist
Carrying a cooling mist in your handbag could be useful to help manage certain symptoms like hot flushes.
Although this won’t prevent these hot flushes from occurring, it can make you feel a little more comfortable when they do.
Assess your Diet
It could also be possible to support your skin from the inside out by maintaining a balanced diet rich in nutrients.
In addition to this, it’s advisable to drink plenty of water to keep the skin hydrated especially if your intake is usually on the lower side.
Collagen Supplement
Introducing a collagen supplement into your routine may also be beneficial during menopause.
Although research is limited, it is thought that they may be able to provide support for certain changes, such as loss of elasticity and moisture.
Navigating menopausal skin can take a lot of trial and error for many women, but armed with the right knowledge and tools, it is possible to help manage some of the symptoms more effectively.
Now you know some of the ways in which the menopause may affect you, discover our expert guide on what foods are good for the skin to nourish yourself from the inside out.
