Much like how SPF measures the level of sun protection in your skincare, Environmental Protection Factor (EPF) measures how well an antioxidant protects the skin from free radical damage, including damage from UVrays.
The main culprit in premature skin ageing, free radicals are formed through everyday activities like eating, drinking and breathing. Sun exposure, smoking, stress, pollutants and alcohol worsen it by increasing free radicals in the body. This sets off a cycle of free radical formation in the body.
There are several types of free radicals.
Primary free radicals are unstable molecules that are created as a result of exposure to environmental assaults like UV rays and air pollutants.
Secondary free radicals, formed from exposure to primary free radicals, tend to damage the protective lipids in skin. Free radical activity also occurs within surface skin cells. All these result in visible signs of ageing like lines, wrinkles, uneven pigmentation, sun damage, loss of firmness and elasticity.
Antioxidants like vitamins C and E occur naturally in the body to prevent free radical damage. But when there's a lack of antioxidants, or if the production of free radicals is excessive, cell damage can still occur.
Can You Eat Your Way To Younger Skin?
Consuming antioxidant-rich foods, such as broccoli, berries, spinach and tea, is beneficial to the body. But Dr Jean Ho, consultant dermatologist at Jean Ho Skin and Laser Clinic and visiting consultant dermatologist at KK Women's and Children's Hospital, says that applying antioxidants directly on the skin has a more targeted and concentrated effect. "A good antioxidant serum can increase antioxidant activity in the skin eight-fold, something that can't be achieved by taking an oral antioxidant supplement," she says.
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