Best Polyphenols for Skin and Why You Need Them

When it comes to skincare, there are definitely a few skin transforming ingredients that come to mind. Retinol, Vitamin C, SPF, and the all encompassing label “antioxidants” stick out, and for good reason! An important and common class of antioxidants called polyphenols is probably already in your routine. You may not realize it because they go by many names in your inci list! Let’s discuss what they are, where they come from, and how they improve the skin health.

What exactly are Polyphenols?

Polyphenols are essentially a group of antioxidants. They are naturally occurring in many fruits, vegetables, spices, red wine and other compounds found in our diet! Ingesting polyphenols has been shown to protect the body against oxidative stress from UV rays. Obviously, our diet directly affects our overall health and wellness. And, it is important to remember that skin is the body’s largest organ, so we need to treat our skin the same way we do our overall body.

Polyphenols can be divided into categories including flavonoids, phenolic acids, and more (source). Flavonoids are one of the most popular categories of polyphenols that we seen in skincare formuations to protect us from free radicals. This brings me to my next topic…

Why use them in Skincare?

So, polyphenols are a part of a very large category of antioxidants that are used to protect against photodamage. Using a skincare product rich in polyphenols provides antioxidant protection, and they are also anti-inflammatory (source). Let’s do a quick refresher on what antioxidants are and why they’re essential to a skincare routine.

Antioxidants and Polyphenols

UVA + UVB damage from the sun constitutes the most visible signs of premature aging our skin sees over time (source). That is why we must wear a sunscreen to protect from not only dark spots, fine lines and wrinkles but also skin cancer and sun burn. Along with broad spectrum sunscreen, we can (and should) include antioxidants to shield us from these harmful free radicals. Free radicals essentially attack the skin, so we need antioxidants to fight against them! We can find antioxidant power in so many skincare ingredients and formulas. You don’t necessarily need a separate “antioxidant serum”, but that can be an easy way to choose one.

Polyphenol Skincare

As I said before, you won’t typically see the term “polyphenol” on your skincare label, but they are in so many popular products! Here are some popular ingredients found in so many skincare and also body care products. There are truly too many to list, so I recommend checking out some of the cited sources for more info.

Green Tea

Obviously you get amazing antioxidant benefits from drinking green tea, but it also provides benefits to the skin by using them in your skincare products. Recently, I talked about green tea when highlighting my top esthetician recommended ingredients. Green tea contaings EGCG, a polyphenol compound that works as a powerful antioxidant for the skin (source). Along with anti-aging, it soothes the skin, helps with redness, and is even recommended for acne conditions.

Green tea skincare products:

Grape Seed Extract

Grapes are pretty well known for their antioxidant power. We have all heard that a glass of red wine does the body good, right? Well, this is because grapes contain polyphenol compounds called proanthocyanidins that harness antioxidant power 20 times greater than that of Vitamin E, and 50 times greater than Vitamin C (source)! That is reason enough to start using it in your skincare routine. Don’t start slathering on grapeseed oil from the kitchen, though, check out some of my recommendations instead.

Grape seed extract skincare products:

Honey

Honey contains flavonoids, phenolic acids, and phenolic acid derivatives which are all polyphenol compounds (source). This ingredients was also featured in my skincare ingredients highlight blog because I have truly fallen in love with honey skincare products. Honey not only provides the antioxidant power for the skin but also soothes, moisturizes, and provides antibacterial benefits! It can work for all skin types depending on the formulation.

Honey skincare products:

Coffee Bean Extract

Along with green tea, coffee is known to be one of the most polyphenol rich beverages you can consume (source). Coffee beans contain chlorogenic acid, a polyphenol compound that can improve health through drinking it. Studies have shown it to decrease transepidermal water loss, increase hydration and blood flow to the skin, and improve fatty acid content through simply ingesting coffee. But, applying coffee extract topically boosts collagen production, firms skin, improves circulation and more! So, drink your cup a day and also use it in your skincare products!

Coffee extract skincare products:

Sea Buckthorn

Sea buckthorn berries, rich in phenolics, vitamin C and E, provide a great antioxidant power for the skin (source). This is definitely a popular ingredient seen in many compositions: cleansers, oils, and creams. It contains fatty acids known to help repair the skin barrier making it perfect for irritated skin (source). It also helps with elasticity, cell regeneration, and is anti inflammatory.

Sea buckthorn skincare products:

Polyphenol Skincare Wrap-up

I hope this helped answer a question you most likely didn’t even know you had! See, I’m clever like that! Overall, the best polyphenols for skin are the ones that come in a formula you enjoy applying and can do it every single day. I like incorporating them into my AM routine to work along side my sunscreen for extra protection. Which options are you most interested in trying? Let me know in the comments!