Estrogen and moisture, the beauty of the skin

Estrogen has an important effect in preventing skin aging. This reproductive hormone prevents the loss of skin collagen in postmenopausal women, so topical and systemic estrogen therapy can increase collagen content and maintain skin thickness.

Estrogen is a C-18 steroid synthesized from cholesterol in the premenopausal ovaries and in peripheral tissues in postmenopausal women. The primary source of estrogen biosynthesis in women of reproductive age is the ovaries. Two estrogen receptors, α and β, have been cloned and found in different types of tissues. Studies of postmenopausal women indicate that estrogen deficiency is associated with dryness, skin atrophy, fine lines, poor wound healing, and hot flashes. Epidermal thinning, decreased collagen content in the skin, decreased skin moisture, decreased laxity, and impaired wound healing have been reported in postmenopausal women. Estrogen has additional and important functions in a wide variety of tissues in both sexes, including bone, brain, skeletal muscle, adipose tissue, colon, vascular system and skin. The loss of estrogen with aging has detrimental effects on these tissues, leading to osteoporosis and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.
Menopause as a result of the transition from adequate ovarian function to complete lack of ovarian estrogen biosynthesis occurs in women around 50 years of age.
Wrinkled skin is synonymous with aging, but it can also be the result of environmental and hormonal factors or your failure to take care of your skin. Wrinkles are skin's loss of elasticity due to elastic degeneration and loss of connective tissue. In women in the early postmenopausal period, skin elasticity can decrease by 1.5% per year, whereas in women taking topical estrogens thickens elastic fibers, increases fiber count, and improves viability. their orientation in the papillary dermis.
Postmenopausal women who had taken estrogen for at least 5 years continuously when compared to women who had never taken estrogen replacement had significantly lower mean wrinkles scores for estrogen - the control group. treat.

Skin aging has been linked to a decline in levels of several hormones, including estrogen, and a lack of skin care. Although researchers have yet to fully understand the effects of estrogen on the skin, it is known that, in women entering menopause, a decrease in estrogen levels is associated with a variety of problems. Changes in the skin such as appearance of wrinkles, pigmentation, age spots, etc. among these effects can be reversed by replacing estrogen which increases epidermal hydration, skin elasticity and thickness of the skin. skin as well as reducing skin wrinkles.

Many of the effects of estrogen on aging human skin are derived from comparing postmenopausal women who are taking estrogen replacement therapy with women who are not. An increase in epidermal thickness in women after 6 months of oral estrogen use has been reported with an increase in keratinocyte volume and more pronounced wrinkles than in women who did not.
Estrogen maintains skin moisture by increasing mucopolysaccharides and hyaluronic acid in the skin and maintaining the barrier function of the stratum corneum. Sebum levels are higher in postmenopausal women using hormone replacement therapy. Skin wrinkles can also benefit from estrogen due to the effect of this hormone on elastic fibers and collagen.
Besides the effect of estrogen on skin aging, it has been suggested that estrogen accelerates wound healing in the skin by regulating the levels of cytokines. In fact, topical estrogen has been shown to accelerate and improve wound healing in elderly men and women. The role of estrogen in scarring is unclear, but recent studies indicate that estrogen deficiency or tamoxifen supplementation can improve scar quality.
In general, women entering menopause will experience a decrease in oxygenation, which accelerates the rate of skin deterioration due to age. The use of estrogen has positive effects on human skin by delaying or preventing the manifestations of skin aging. However, the use of estrogen replacement is a risk factor for breast and uterine cancer.

Estrogen has important antioxidant properties, but estrogen signaling is complex, and estrogen can modulate a wide variety of signaling pathways that are often cell or tissue specific. In addition, an increasing number of synthetic compounds (SERMs) or naturally occurring compounds (phyto estrogens) exhibit agonist or antagonistic estrogenic properties, depending on the tissue.
These may be beneficial factors for combating skin aging and other adverse effects of oxidative stress, such as osteoporosis. If possible exploit the positive effects of estrogen on human health and avoid the negative aspects of estrogen signaling in tissues such as breast and uterus. Therefore, a better understanding of estrogen's mechanism of action in relation to structure will be needed to find methods that can delay the aging process.
The above is considered important information about estrogen for women's skin and health. Understanding the use and how it works will help you know how to use it and have a suitable skin care plan.

References: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov - pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov - jaad.org