Wake Up and Protect Your Skin with Caffeine

A nice cup of coffee in the morning is one of the best ways to perk up and get ready for the day. The caffeine in a cup of joe is what gives that extra boost most of us need to get up and get going, and now caffeine is also being touted as a great way to perk up your skin.

While drinking coffee and other caffeinated beverages gives us an internal wake-up call, the antioxidants and blood vessel constricting properties in caffeine can work equally as well to wake up tired skin. This is perhaps why more and more beauty products that are currently being sold on the market are adding caffeine to their list of ingredients.

Caffeine naturally has the ability to constrict blood vessels. When used topically, caffeine can help calm irritated, reddened skin such as can result from sun damage and rosacea. As well as being able to constrict blood vessels, topical caffeine also works as a diuretic, aids in circulation and is a very powerful antioxidant. These benefits of using caffeine topically can make for an instant mini-lift, as the circulatory and diuretic effects will reduce excess puffiness and tighten the skin, and the antioxidants aid in the protection of the skin from damaging free radicals. These benefits are perhaps why caffeine has been used for a while in cellulite creams. Now our buns and thighs get to share the positive results of caffeine with our faces so that we not only feel less tired, but look less tired as well.

There is also plenty of research currently being done that is showing positive results for caffeine having the ability to reduce sun damage as well as prevent damage when used topically in conjunction with sunscreen. In lab tests, caffeine has been shown to interrupt a key protein that cancerous cells need in order to multiply, thus weakening them and often times causing them to eradicate themselves. Tests on lab mice are also showing that when treated with lotion containing caffeine, sun damage is reversed. Caffeine just may be the best thing for your skin!

From bodyscrubs to face creams, and eye treatments to cosmetics, caffeine is popping up as one of the hottest and most effective ingredients. Price ranges of these caffeinated products go from the higher ranges, like Revale Skin's facial moisturizer which uses coffee beans and coffee berries and retails for approximately $110 per bottle, and Purity Cosmetics 100% Pure Facial Cream which uses organic coffee beans and sells for under $30. Alba Organics also has an amazing line of very affordable caffeine infused products made from Hawaiian Kona coffee that smell amazing and are very effective. Sunscreens containing caffeine are also becoming more and more popular such as Blue Lizard Australian SunCream which is easily found on-line.

A cup of coffee can give your body a nice energy buzz, and now your skin can feel the benefits of caffeine's antioxidant goodness. Caffeine is an amazing stimulant for tired, stressed, puffy skin and now is being shown to aid in keeping the damaging effects of the sun at bay. There is no more reason to feel guilty about sneaking in that extra cup of coffee into your day...just make sure to share it with your face!