The skin does not function the same way day and night. Its needs, its biological mechanisms, as well as its exposure to the environment evolve over the 24 hours. This is why day and night creams do not pursue the same objective, nor the same texture, nor the same active ingredients.
To offer you precise insight, we interviewed Lara Brossard and Marylise Tripoli, Research and Development project managers, who answer all the essential questions here.
1. Why are day creams often lighter? Do the textures differ and does it matter?
Day creams generally have a lighter texture because peak sebum production occurs in the middle of the day. It is therefore not necessary to provide the skin with too large a quantity of fatty acids. However, it is recommended to protect the skin from external aggressions during the day, in particular UV radiation and pollution. Night creams often have a richer texture to compensate for the reduced barrier function of the skin during sleep. By increasing the amount of fatty acids present in the cream, we help maintain skin hydration until the morning.
2. Are there active ingredients that are only found in night care?
Certain active ingredients are considered photosensitizing, which means that they can cause unwanted skin reactions when subjected to UV rays emitted by the sun. This is particularly the case for Retinol, AHAs or essential oils. It is therefore preferable to apply them in the evening.
3. What are the skin's main needs during the day and what is the role of the day cream?
During the day, transient water loss is minimal and sebum production is maximum to limit dehydration. However, it is also during the day that the skin is exposed to many environmental factors such as UV radiation or pollution. Day cream therefore has the role of helping the skin protect itself against these attacks, in particular by providing antioxidants, vitamins and possibly sun protection.
4. Same questions for night care? How is the skin more receptive?
It is during the night that skin microcirculation reaches its maximum, between 11 p.m. and 4 a.m. This increase in blood flow allows for better elimination of toxins as well as an increased supply of nutrients, which strongly stimulates cell renewal. It is therefore during the night that the skin repairs itself from damage caused during the day. The skin is also more vulnerable at night, because its insensible water loss is greatest. This means that its barrier function is altered, becoming more permeable to external agents. Night cream therefore plays a vital role in protecting the skin during this period.
5. Is it possible to have universal care?
It is possible to adopt a universal treatment but it will undoubtedly be a rather basic formula. This product may contain moisturizing, nourishing or antioxidant agents but it will be more difficult to offer targeted action on a given problem such as the reduction of wrinkles or the reduction of sebum production. What to do when you want a minimalist routine? It is possible to use the same cream for day and night, but it is essential to choose it carefully. Indeed, it will be necessary to ensure that it does not contain photosensitizing substances to avoid any risk of adverse reactions during the day. Furthermore, you should avoid using a cream that offers sun protection because it will not be suitable for use at night.
6. Is there a real difference between day cream and night cream in terms of function on the skin?
The main function of day cream is hydration. Hydration is essential to ensure good health and suppleness of the skin. Designed to last all day and in some cases, serve as a makeup base, so it will be lighter than a night cream. The night cream provides a regenerating and detoxifying action to boost the natural process to wake up to refreshed, regenerated and radiant skin.
7. Can you explain how skin needs are different during the day and night?
During the day, the skin certainly needs to be hydrated but also to be protected from external aggressions. Because of its attacks, the skin loses firmness sooner, wrinkles set in, pigment spots appear. Free radicals damage skin cells and therefore skin aging accelerates. This is why it is important to protect your skin with adequate day care based on your skin type and needs. At night the skin regenerates. The repair process of the hydrolipidic film is accentuated and the production of collagen and elastin increases. This is why active ingredients that promote these processes are important because they further increase these phenomena. We will therefore favor creams rich in fatty acids and polyphenols.
8. How do variations in natural mechanisms influence the formulation of care?
In the field of cosmetics, this translates into the development of products and formulations designed to reproduce natural biological processes and substances present in the skin. Biomimetic treatments reproduce this intelligence by integrating ingredients that the skin recognizes, such as squalane close to sebum or hyaluronic acid, to strengthen its natural functions. The goal is to create products that work in harmony with the skin's inherent biology.
9. Does the skin barrier also behave differently at night?
At night, the skin enters a regeneration phase, it activates its repair, detoxification and cell renewal processes. Thus microcirculation intensifies, the permeability of the skin increases, which promotes the penetration of the active ingredients contained in a cream. Fibroblasts, cells of the dermis, are particularly active during sleep. They produce more collagen and elastin, proteins essential for maintaining the firmness and suppleness of the skin. Microcirculation becomes denser, the skin evacuates metabolic waste accumulated during the day. This toxin elimination mechanism contributes to a clearer and fresher complexion when you wake up.
10. What is the general difference in the composition of a day cream vs. night cream?
The composition of a night cream will generally be richer than a day cream. We will find fatty substances such as vegetable oils or butters in larger quantities while a day cream will have a less fatty phase in order to be able to apply over other products such as makeup for example. A day cream may include a sun protection index to protect against UV rays, it may include more targeted active ingredients for exposure to an exterior or interior environment, such as pollution, stress, climate change, exposure to blue light. Anti-pollution, anti-redness and moisturizing active ingredients will then be highlighted. In night creams, we will rather find regenerating, repairing active ingredients. They often contain photosensitive active ingredients which should be avoided in daily care such as retinol, AHAs, essential oils.
Day and night care have different but perfectly complementary functions: protect, defend and preserve the skin during the day; repair, nourish and regenerate at night. As our R&D team's insights show, these biological variations directly influence product formulation and explain the need to adapt your routine to the skin's natural cycles.
Whether you choose a minimalist or targeted routine, the main thing remains to select treatments in line with the skin's current needs: hydration and protection on the one hand, nutrition and repair on the other. By respecting these rhythms, the skin benefits fully from the potential of each treatment, day after day and night after night.
