Energie de Vie Liquid Care and Sleeping Mask. Bernard jaspar
Caught up in a fast-paced lifestyle, the selfie-obsessed Gen Y keeps up with the latest trends, maintains an active social network presence, and pursues numerous personal and professional projects. Despite all of that the “LOL” generation doesn’t take anything seriously.
Do they ever get exhausted though? And how does “urban fatigue” takes a toll on the skin of those between the ages of 25-35?
These issues were raised by French cosmetic brand Lancôme, who recently released an energising skincare regime specifically for female millennials.
The comprehensive product R&D looked at Gen Y’s behaviour and lifestyle assessed by trend forecasting agency, NellyRodi.
“This is a generation that has reinvented itself as a superheroine, that does not feel tired, that is always supposed to feel in top form. We can see it on social networks, on which 25-to-35-year-olds are always very active,” said the agency’s lifestyle director, Vincent Gregoire.
He considers millennials a genetically modified generation because they were born and grew up in periods of crisis since the 80s. So there are no problems, only solutions, and they know how to adapt.
“The women of this generation also know that they can benefit from major innovations, such as digital, which is a real revolution. Everything is a playground, everything is a pretext for having fun,” he said. “We see, for example, all of these fun digital tutorials. However, it must not be irritating or lecturing. They want results, but within a fun context. They want to age well, to still have energy. If they have wrinkles, they should be “beautiful” wrinkles.”
The intense lifestyle leads to the so-called urban fatigue associated with the constant demands of the modern environment.
“The body is a whole, and everything that we go through has repercussions on all of our organs, including — of course — the skin,” explains Véronique Delvigne, Lancôme’s scientific director.
“Through a pioneering study, we have been able to demonstrate that, in the context of a hectic life, fatigue has long-term consequences by impairing the skin’s self-defence capacities and contributing to its premature ageing.”
Lancôme claims as being the first to apply metabolomics — dubbed as the science of the invisible — to skincare R&D.
A molecular investigation tool, metabolomics has been initially adopted in the fields of nutrition, cancer and metabolic diseases. It is gradually spreading to other areas, including research into skin science of which a two-months metabolomics study on 50 women indicated that the fatigue of an urban life upsets the skin’s metabolites.
“Our metabolomics research proves it: a frantic life oxidises the fundamental components of the skin, impairs its energy resources, and induces a pro-inflammatory condition,” said Delvigne.
On the outside, the fatigue shows on the face, primarily around the eyes, and through a dull complexion with the emergence of redness and sensitivity. Skin becomes dehydrated, with the appearance of imperfections and fine lines as well as the texture losing its fineness.
In your 20s, the skin can quickly recover from these signs of fatigue but in your 30s they gradually turn into the first signs of ageing, requiring greater care of the skin.
Lancôme’s Energie de Vie range is infused with extracts from superfoods concentrated in nutrients and antioxidants to counteract urban fatigue. Key ingredients include goji berry, French lemon balm and gentian extracts.
The skin superfoods should relate well to the Gen Yers’, who are known for eating well as seen by the increasing number of organic food shops and people “Instagramming” the slightest meal.
Short on time, they also prefer effective yet easy-to-use beauty products with fresh and fluid textures as evident from the trend for cosmetic waters and sleeping mask.
Responding to their paradoxical demands, the new skincare range include Pearly Lotion, Liquid Care and Overnight Recovery Sleeping Mask. The all-in-one step Liquid Care is designed to be as fresh as a lotion, as concentrated as a serum and as moisturising as a cream.
Although with a dense texture, the moisturising sleeping mask breaks into water droplets with the drop in temperature when applied making it a refreshing skin energiser.
This source first appeared on Bangkok Post Lifestyle.