Pine bark extract is a potent supplement that's rich in polyphenols like procyanidins, catechins, and phenolic acids. It's a powerhouse extract, proven to improve your immune system, increase blood flow, and help with a whole range of health concerns. It’s also doing great things for your skin! Whether in a topical cream or taken orally, pine bark extract will give you younger, healthier skin.
Pine Bark Extract – What Is It?
Pine bark is an herbal extract, rich in antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties. It’s perfect for a wide range of health conditions including:
- Hypertension
- Cognitive development and brain aging
- Asthma
- Poor blood circulation
- Hay fever and common colds
...and so much more! With powerful antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties, it can also be used to protect your skin from breakouts, aging, and more.
Pine Bark And Your Skin
Boosts Antioxidant Status
Pine bark extract has been shown to boost your antioxidants. This helps your skin fight off free radicals, which are cells that increase the risk of cancer and other health issues. The boost to your immune system can also protect against bacterial skin issues, colds, and hay fever. Additionally, it allows your skin to create healthy cells faster and helps protect against bacteria that can cause breakouts.
Reduce Inflammation
Since Pine Bark extract is full of anti-inflammatory ingredients, it keeps you skin looking it's best. Puffiness, redness and dryness are all signs of inflammation that we can all do without! Discoloration and puffiness ages you prematurely, but pine bark can help reduce the signs of aging.
Protects Skin From Sun Damage
Pine bark extract's powerful boost of antioxidants also protects against UV rays. Hyperpigmentation is a common condition resulting from sun damage that leaves your skin with discolored blotches. By using pine bark extract regularly, it can actually reduce hyperpigmentation and age spots. This, again, can be traced back to its antioxidants helping the skin turn over healthy new cells quickly.
Improves Blood Flow
Pine bark extract is extremely useful for increased blood flow, which is good news for your skin. This increased blood flow helps to clear away waste products, including free radicals. Blood circulation also impacts collagen production in your skin. Collagen is a vital protein that highly contributes to your skins elasticity. Your skin can go from dull and lifeless to young and firm.
Improves Hydration and Skin Elasticity
You've likely heard of the invaluable benefits of hyaluronic acid, and it's no surprise. This natural substance can hold 1,000 it’s weight in water, which means happy, hydrated skin for you! Keeping skin hydrated is key to reducing fine lines and wrinkles, especially it dry conditions. It also increases skin elasticity and keeps your skin youthful and glowing.
When it comes to supplements that can effectively improve and even reverse skin damage and signs of aging, it doesn't get better than pine bark extract. In fact, a 12-week study was conducted by researchers at the Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, on the benefits of the extract. The women who used the extract, reported a significant improvement in skin elasticity and skin hydration, reducing the appearance of fine lines and other skin conditions!
How to Use Pine Bark Extract
Pine bark extract can be found in liquid, tablet or capsule form. You can also add a few drops of pine bark extract to your favorite facial creams, or look for oils and creams with pine bark extract listed in the ingredients. You should start with the smallest dose if you’re taking it orally. If you’re using pine bark extract in skin creams, test on a small patch of skin and wait 24 hours before proceeding. If you don’t see any redness or flaking, you can use it as normal in your topical creams. You should begin to see the effects of regular use within two weeks.
Side Effects
Pine bark extract, typically has no serious side effects, but it does tend to lower blood sugar levels and improve blood circulation. You should check with your doctor if you have a bleeding condition, suffer from diabetes, or have liver issues. Testing skin creams can protect you from adverse allergic reactions, but otherwise, you shouldn’t see any serious side effects when using pine bark extract.