Wrinkles are visible earlier on city girls, and the extent of urban ageing was extensively investigated by YSL Beauty Scientific Advisory Board.
The major research programme included studies in China that examined the impact of the environment, pollution, sun exposure, stress and fatigue, while those in Japan looked at the effects of a fast-paced lifestyle. Likewise, studies in Europe on a Caucasian population focused on the same urban aggressors whereas research in the United States additionally covered other ethnicities.
"Overall, in all the countries we investigated, we have consistently seen a significant acceleration in skin ageing brought on by all kinds of urban environments," said Frédéric Flament, a member of YSL Beauty's multidisciplinary team of scientists and co-author of L'Oreal's Skin Ageing Atlases.
By the end of the day, the urban lifestyle takes a toll on the skin. Day by day, the accumulated damage becomes more noticeable, as the hectic urban life overworks and unbalances the skin, accelerating skin ageing by 30%.
Pure Shots Perfect Plumper Cream and Hydra Bounce Essence-in-Lotion enriched with orange blossom extract.
"Even young women, between 20 and 30 years old, see a clear change in their skin quality in terms of dullness, fatigue and an uneven skin tone at the end of a busy day in the city," noted Flament.
"At 30, volunteers exposed to higher pollution levels seem two years older; at 40, they seem five years older. In addition, at 40 years old, urban women will have more severe and 35% more abundant wrinkles than those not exposed to a fast-paced urban lifestyle."
French dermatologist Dr Thierry Michaud now sees more younger women whereas his clientele previously comprised women around 35 years of age and older.
"They are increasingly younger -- between 25 and 35, and very active," he said. "They have a fast-paced lifestyle: they work hard, they are subject to constant stress and they sleep poorly. This leads to early ageing and a poor complexion, which prompts them to consult me."
Repercussions on the body include impaired repair mechanisms, build-up of toxic elements, acceleration of ageing, and overworked skin.
"To regenerate, skin cells rely on a series of syntheses requiring vitamins, peptides and hyaluronic acid, but urban aggressors make them less effective -- as a result, skin cell renewal is disrupted, and oxidative stress together with toxic waste build-up are increased," he explained.
"Overworked skin is brought on by the weakened skin cell repair and regeneration mechanisms. The skin appears tired and lacks radiance; it becomes thinner, pores and dark spots are more visible, and it shows more sagging than normal skin."
Nathalie Deshayes is the "overworked skin" expert in the scientific advisory board.
From her perspective, the urban lifestyle is out of tune with the body clock, which sets a strict schedule for cell functions and activities.
"For example, in the morning, upon waking, our cells will activate all the processes required to protect us against UV radiation; in the evening, they will perform DNA repair and cell proliferation mechanisms, along with detoxification functions to handle oxidative stress," she explained. "When your lifestyle disrupts your circadian rhythm, your cells no longer know at what time they are meant to perform their activities."
A number of molecules are affected by the deregulated biological rhythms, in particular the key hormone melatonin, associated with sleep onset and secreted when daylight fades.
"The critical time for re-establishing the skin's metabolism is between 11.30pm and 3am. If a woman's life is not in sync with the secretion of her hormones, her cells won't be able to do their job at the time they are supposed to do it. This leads to early ageing and poor cell regeneration," said Deshayes.
In conclusion, the urban lifestyle slows down the skin's natural regeneration process and depletes essential elements such as hyaluronic acid, proteins, peptides, amino acids and vitamins.
These research findings led YSL Beauty to beef up its skincare regime, by combining the essential elements with botanical ingredients in formulating Pure Shots serums.
Night Reboot contains glycolic acid and melatonin-mimicking Moonlight Cactus extract while Y Shape features peptide plus Barbary fig extract.
The cacti are grown on YSL Beauty Ourika Gardens, close to the Atlas Mountains, Morocco. Against a harsh climate, the Moonlight Cactus bears flowers that bloom for only six hours, once a year during the night, while Barbary Fig blooms for only one day during the year, producing 50 to 100 flowers per cactus.
The other two serums, Lines Away and Light Up feature hyaluronic acid with iris root extract, and vitamin Cg with marshmallow flower extract. The new Pure Shots range also includes Hydra Bounce Essence-in-Lotion and Perfect Plumper Cream enriched with orange blossom extract.
The clean formulas are free from controversial ingredients such as parabens, mineral oil and Sodium Lauryl Sulfate.
Product development was inspired by Precision Medicine, which takes into account individual variability in genes, environment, and lifestyle to provide customised prevention and treatment.
Pure Shots Night Reboot, Y Shape, Lines Away and Light Up serums features extracts from plants grown on YSL Beauty Ourika Gardens, Morocco.
Pure Shots Night Reboot, Y Shape, Lines Away and Light Up serums features extracts from plants grown on YSL Beauty Ourika Gardens, Morocco.
Clockwise from left Pure Shots Y Shape, Light Up, Night Reboot and Lines Away serums feature extracts from plants grown on YSL Beauty Ourika Gardens, Morocco.
Clockwise from left Pure Shots Y Shape, Light Up, Night Reboot and Lines Away serums feature extracts from plants grown on YSL Beauty Ourika Gardens, Morocco.
Clockwise from left Pure Shots Y Shape, Light Up, Night Reboot and Lines Away serums feature extracts from plants grown on YSL Beauty Ourika Gardens, Morocco.
Pure Shots Perfect Plumper Cream and Hydra Bounce Essence-in-Lotion enriched with orange blossom extract.
