Honey line and benefits of honey in skincare

The beneficial properties of honey have been known to everyone since childhood: it is added to warming drinks, used to treat colds, andmany others. lHonesy has various amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and enzymes. Due to this composition, scientists believe that honey, as a cosmetic ingredient, has a softening, moisturizing, and calming effect, preserves the youthfulness of the skin, slows down the formation of wrinkles, and regulates pH. The beneficial properties for the skin include: Moisturizing Effect Since the sugars in honey are much higher than the water content, honey has a viscous texture. One of its properties is hygroscopicity, meaning it can absorb and retain moisture from the surrounding environment. Exfoliating Effect Honey contains organic acids, particularly gluconic acid, which belongs to the group of polyhydroxy acids (PHA), unlike the well-known AHA and BHA. This acid also has an exfoliating effect, but it works much more gently compared to AHA due to the larger size of the molecules. Thus, honey improves skin texture, smoothing and giving it a more even appearance. Anti-Aging Effect Honey contains flavonoids, phenolic acids, ascorbic acid, tocopherols, catalase, superoxide dismutase, reduced glutathione, Maillard reaction products, and peptides. Most of these compounds work together to provide a synergistic antioxidant effect. This allows honey to effectively combat oxidative stress, protecting the skin from premature aging. Anti-Inflammatory Effect Honey’s antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties are related to its high sugar concentration, low pH level, presence of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), methylglyoxal, antimicrobial peptide defensin-1, and other polyphenolic compounds. These antiseptic properties were well known to our ancestors, who used honey for treating skin diseases and healing bruises, burns, and wounds. Source: PubMed September 8, 2022