Published: September 30, 2025
Many people assume that when they go to sleep each night, their skin does the same. In reality, however, the opposite occurs…
While you’re drifting off into dreamland, your skin cells are hard at work, and this continues throughout the night. The better you sleep each night, the better your skin will look, and vice versa. There’s a direct connection between the two, which is why focusing on improving your beauty sleep is important if you’re trying to achieve a healthy, vibrant, and youthful complexion.
Want to know more? Read on as CBGärdN explains the link between sleep and your skin, along with what you can do to give both a boost!
The Science Behind Beauty Sleep
So, what actually goes on with your skin while you’re asleep?
This is when your skin switches from defense mode to repair mode, after which a number of processes start to occur. The production of growth hormones, for instance, significantly increases while you’re sleeping. This encourages the skin to really hone in on repair and rebuilding, which is why this is when the production of collagen and elastin, two of the skin’s main structural proteins responsible for firmness and elasticity, rises as well.
The fact that cortisol (the stress hormone) production is at its lowest while you’re sleeping helps with this. Cortisol triggers inflammation, damaging the skin in a number of ways. With cortisol falling overnight, existing collagen fibers are better protected, and the skin barrier is more supported. Cell growth flourishes as well.
The cell turnover process is also enhanced at night. This is when your skin sheds its dead skin cells to reveal those fresh and new cells that it has grown beneath. It’s essentially your skin’s natural way of exfoliating. Like exfoliation, it keeps your skin looking bright and radiant.
Of course, that’s all a very simplified version of what happens in your skin as you sleep. However, there’s no denying the intricate connection between the two, and the fact that if you aren’t getting enough quality sleep, those processes won’t be able to occur properly.
Signs That Your Skin Isn’t Getting Enough Sleep
You probably already know if you aren’t getting enough sleep. You’ll often feel tired, with trouble concentrating. You’ll also be prone to mood swings, depression, headaches, and anxiety.
If that weren’t bad enough, a lack of sleep quickly shows itself in the skin too, with some of the most common visible signs being:
- Inflammation will rapidly rise, meaning that inflammatory skin conditions, such as acne, eczema, and psoriasis, will worsen.
- It can make you look older very quickly. Studies show that poor quality sleepers experience increased signs of intrinsic skin aging, meaning fine lines, wrinkles, and discoloration.
- Dehydration increases. Your skin barrier is responsible for maintaining your skin’s moisture levels. Poor sleep means reduced barrier function, resulting in an increase in moisture loss.
- Reduced barrier function not only leads to dehydration, but other issues too. Sensitivities, redness, dullness, and an uneven skin tone will likely become problems that you regularly face.
- Dark circles and puffy under-eyes are commonly associated with a lack of sleep. A decrease in blood flow and an increase in fluid retention, both of which happen when you aren’t sleeping well, cause the dark shadows and eye bags.
Building Healthy Sleep Habits
If a lack of quality sleep has started to take a toll on your skin, it’s time to make some changes. Here’s what you need to do to start building some healthy sleep habits:
Create a Regular Sleep Schedule
If sleep is something that you struggle with, a regular sleep schedule is a must. Sometimes, you need to help train your body’s internal clock, meaning consistency is a must. This means going to bed and waking up at the same time each and every day, both on weekdays and on weekends.
To start with, set reminders on your phone, as well as alarms for the mornings. As the weeks progress, you’ll naturally start to adhere to these timings. Not only will falling asleep become easier, but your sleep quality will improve as well.
Turn Your Bedroom Into a Sleep-Inducing Haven
The right atmosphere makes it so much easier to sleep well at night. The optimal environment for sleep is dark, quiet, comfortable, and cool – between 60°F and 68°F is considered to be best, as this lowers body temperature slightly, which signals to the body that it’s time for sleep.
Know When and How to Wind Down in the Evenings
If you find it difficult to fall asleep at night, a relaxing evening routine could be exactly what you need to help prepare your body for sleep. Start by avoiding the use of all electronic devices an hour or so before bed. The blue light that they emit stimulates the body into staying awake. Relaxing activities, such as taking a bath or reading a book, can also help to calm the body down and get it into a good state for sleep.
Using Skincare to Boost Your Beauty Sleep
In addition to ensuring that you’re getting enough quality sleep each night, you can also turn to skincare to boost your beauty sleep so that your skin looks even better each morning. Here’s how:
Always Start Your Evening Skincare Routine With a Cleanse
Cleansing your skin every evening is essential. Even if it may not look dirty, it will be covered in a layer of impurities consisting of everything from sebum and dead skin cells to dust and pollutants. Allowing these to stick around overnight will hinder the processes that take place in your skin while you sleep, while also preventing any other skincare products you apply from being absorbed properly.
When carrying out your evening cleanse, make sure that you’re using a cleanser that’s suitable for your skin type. If your skin type is oily or combination, a foaming cleanser, like the CB Silk Facial Foaming Purifier, will give you a powerful cleanse that removes the extra sebum your skin produces. On the other hand, dry and sensitive skin types will need a gentler, more moisturizing touch, like that provided by the CB Facial Cleanser.
Know Which Actives to Use in the Evening
Certain active ingredients are known for leaving skin cells feeling better supported as they go about their nightly tasks. Apply some of these ingredients to your skin every evening, and this will go a long way in giving you a smoother, softer, and brighter complexion.
Vitamin C is one of those ingredients. It’s best used in the form of a serum, which is why our CB Illuminating Vita C Serum is so popular!
Retinol is another active that’s highly recommended for evening use. However, if you find that this vitamin A derivative is too potent for your skin, opt for a gentler version of the ingredient to start with. The retinyl palmitate found in the CB Gold Vitamin C Antioxidant Elixir would be a great choice.
Ensure That Your Skin is Well Hydrated
In order for your skin cells to carry out all of those nighttime processes that we discussed earlier, they’ll need access to plenty of moisture. If they don’t have enough of this, they won’t be able to function optimally. This is why it’s crucial to ensure that your evening skincare routine provides sufficient hydration.
Unfortunately, simply swiping on a face cream after cleansing your face is unlikely to do this. Hydration is best applied in layers, meaning that a hydrating serum underneath that face cream will bring you much better results. If you don’t yet have a go-to hydrating serum, check out the CB Replenishing Serum. It’s packed with moisture-binding humectants, including sodium hyaluronate, peptides, and glycerin.
Save Exfoliation for the Evenings
As we mentioned earlier, the natural cell turnover process that occurs overnight is somewhat similar to exfoliation. This is why many people choose to exfoliate in the evenings – the cells responsible for cell turnover feel a boost because of it. This leaves the skin looking even more rejuvenated the next morning.
Of course, you shouldn’t be exfoliating every night. Between one to three times a week is recommended, depending on your skin type. Make sure that you use an exfoliator that doesn’t damage your skin barrier, such as the CB Microexfoliant Peel.
Invest in Nighttime Skincare Products
Some skincare products are specifically designed for evening use. They often contain the actives we mentioned above, along with other ingredients that keep your skin cells feeling supported while you sleep.
The CB Night Renewing Creme is a great example. It’s a lush nighttime moisturizer that contains ingredients that address many of the complexion issues that can occur overnight. It boosts hydration, provides an array of barrier-loving ingredients, and gives the skin access to plenty of antioxidants.
The CB Midnight Melting Mask is another nighttime favorite. This leave-on mask is packed with a long list of antioxidant-rich superfood extracts. It’s filled with hydrating ingredients too, making it a very useful formula to apply before bed.
Keep Your Pillowcases Clean
One final tip if you really want to make the most of your beauty sleep: keep your pillowcases clean. There’s no point in going through all of that trouble of cleansing your face before bed if it’s then going to spend the next eight hours pressed up against a pillowcase saturated with oil, dirt, dead skin, bacteria, and more.
Make an effort to wash your pillowcases every few days, or more frequently if you have oily, acne-prone skin. It will make a big difference to your complexion each morning!
Summary
As you can see, the link between sleep and skin is undeniable, making it important to consider sleep as a factor when it comes to maintaining a healthy complexion. Start prioritizing beauty sleep, and it won’t be long before your skin starts to look better as a result!
Click here to add more CBGärdN bestsellers to your nighttime skincare routine.