The term “beauty sleep” is often used jokingly in casual conversation. But is there something more serious about it? Research suggests that sleep-deprived people are perceived as both less healthy and less attractive (1). This means that in addition to the impaired functioning people suffer from when over-tired, they also experience a degree of social impairment. In this post we’ll explore the cosmetic effects of sleep deprivation in detail and reflect on how to keep your skin looking its best. 

Effects Of Sleep Deprivation

Your body is a work in progress. And like the expression goes “the work is never done”. Without constant maintenance, our bodies start to break down, affecting both our ability to function and our appearance. During sleep, blood flow to the skin increases, collagen is rebuilt, and skin damage that occurs during the day is healed. Since sleep is one of the most important times for these maintenance works, sleep deprivation can have a big impact. Here are a few facial cues that reflect sleep deprivation, according to a clinical study (2):

Sagging Eyelids

The muscles around your eyes are hard at work all day, helping your eyes to stay open and blink, which keeps them from drying out. When you sleep, these muscles finally get a break, which allows them to recharge for the next day. If you don’t get enough sleep, these muscles become fatigued and don’t work to their full potential, causing your eyelids to sag (3). 

Dark Circles & Eye Bags

Dark circles and eye bags are often concurrent. When people are tired, blood pools in the capillaries under their eyes and can cause blood vessels to stretch or leak. This causes both the darkness and swelling beneath the eyes that people refer to as dark circles or eye bags. People with lighter skin tend to have more pronounced dark circles because the skin is more transparent. 

Paler & Drier Skin

A healthy face has some degree of color to it from the blood beneath its surface. During sleep, there is increased blood flow to the skin, which delivers nutrients and hormones in order for it to heal. However, when a person doesn’t sleep enough, the  blood flow to the skin is reduced and therefore facial complexion appears more pale (4) and dry.

Wrinkles Or Fine Lines

During the day, skin is exposed to UV radiation from sunlight, which damages collagen. UV light causes the structure of collagen to become less stable and break down. Free radicals from pollution or cigarette smoke also do daily damage to the collagen in your skin. When you sleep, your body works on repairing collagen to reinforce the structure of your skin. Therefore, if you don’t sleep enough, your body doesn’t have enough time to rebuild before the next day comes and skin begins to sag and wrinkle. Collagen loss may also cause drooping at the corners of the mouth, making a tired person appear sad. 

How To Look Less Sleep Deprived

At the end of the day, sleep deprivation makes you look older and sadder. Your #1 solution to prevent looking sleep deprived: Sleep. Try to get 8 hours of sleep a night. For most people, setting aside enough time for sleep is a real struggle. Even if you can’t make any big adjustments to your time schedule yet, any extra sleep that you can squeeze in will help your skin. 

There are some additional ways that you can help your facial skin heal overnight to maximize whatever amount of sleep you do get. Face creams are your best friend when you’re trying to vanquish the signs of sleep deprivation and fight the effects of aging. Applying a night cream, such as Agelyss Anti-Aging Night Cream, can help nourish, hydrate, and revitalize skin as well as boost collagen production to prevent wrinkles, sagging, and drooping. Our Anti-Aging Night Cream contains 6 patented ingredients for improving the natural repair process, boosting collagen production, and improving skin tone. 

Since the skin around the eyes is thinner and more delicate than the rest of the face, a cream that’s specifically tailored for eye care is necessary for helping reduce eye bags or sagging eyelids. Agelyss Eye Bag Remover is specially formulated for depuffing and tightening the skin around the eyes. With 5 clinically-proven active ingredients, Eye Bag Remover rapidly tightens skin, aids skin renewal, and improves eye contour.