Can you remember back in middle school science class when you had to learn the periodic table of elements? If you’re like me, you remember it as pleasant background noise as you dreamily (maybe creepily in retrospect) stared at the back of your crush’s head.

Regardless, you probably know the gist: several elements organized into different groups based on an array of factors. What you may not have realized at the time is that some of those elements occur naturally as minerals which are essential to your overall health, and more specifically for our purposes, your skin health.

So, just in case things didn’t work out with your middle school crush (sorry) and you regret slacking off, we’re going to give you a quick refresher on the minerals vital to your skin’s health to make up for lost time.

Zinc

Fully realizing the risk of sounding like a 1950’s educational film, I think it’s safe to say zinc truly is a miracle mineral, at least as far as your skin is concerned. Zinc is what’s known as a trace mineral, which means your body only needs a tiny amount each day to stay healthy. Since it’s found in all of you cells and over 100 different enzymes need it to function properly, that little bit of zinc goes a long way.

When it comes to the healthy function of your skin, zinc acts as an antioxidant to fight the effects of free radicals, actively heals wounds and abrasions by increasing its presence when the enzymes and proteins needed to fight infections start healing area, helps heal rashes and sores by reducing inflammation, aides in the production of new skin cells, helps prevent acne by regulating your skin’s oil production, and even acts as an efficient protection from the harmful rays of the sun.

Based on that list, it honestly would have been easier to name the things zinc can’t do for your skin.

Copper

If you were to free associate with the word “copper”, it’s much more likely the words that would come to mind would be “pennies”, “pots”, and “wiring” rather than “skin care”. A real shame since, with all of the amazing health benefits copper offers, skin care and copper should practically be synonyms.

Copper’s most powerful skin aide is its ability to expedite the skin cell regeneration process so your skin can both heal itself faster, and stay healthy for longer. Copper attracts the fragments of proteins needed to heal damaged skin, binding them together to form copper peptides. In this way, copper is an important catalyst in carrying nourishing proteins to the site of damaged skin. The regeneration of course encompasses the production of collagen and elastin, the building blocks of skin, maintaining your skin’s firm, youthful appearance.

Along with its incredible healing properties, copper also contains anti-inflammatory properties to help diminish redness in troubled areas and reduce scarring.

Magnesium

Magnesium provides a litany of health benefits overall and is an essential mineral for a healthy lifestyle but, when it comes to your skin’s health in particular, magnesium is a true powerhouse of potential advantages.

Magnesium and wrinkles don’t get along. In fact, magnesium is an essential aspect of the enzymes responsible for DNA replication and repair, so it may be safe to say magnesium is the anti-wrinkle. Like zinc, it acts as an antioxidant to fight against free radical attacks, keeping wrinkles from appearing while repairing wrinkles which may have already formed.

Acne isn’t getting a free ride either. Not with magnesium around. Magnesium has made a lot of enemies, you see, and chief among them is unsightly breakouts. Magnesium was found to fight against the presence of certain proteins which only rear their dirty heads when the skin has sustained damage. Damage like the kind which occurs after an acne breakout.

Magnesium is such an amazing mineral that when its gone, the body starts to miss it. It starts to produce histamines which cause your skin to break out into itchy, red blots of eczema. This reduction of moisture and skin elasticity eventually results in further inflammation and its just a complete mess from there. Just another reason why magnesium is so crucial to the homeostasis (at least I remembered something from middle school) of your skin health.

Silver

The anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties of silver make it not only a perfect material to use on all of the sterile equipment in hospitals around the world, but also as a fantastic way to keep your skin clean and bacteria-free. Colloidal silver actively eliminates any virus, fungus, or bacteria it comes into contact with, which makes it an incredible asset when it comes to both healing wounds and fighting acne.

Just like all of the minerals listed thus far, silver has more than just one primary function. While being one of the most effective minerals for keeping skin squeaky clean, it has also been shown to aide in tissue regeneration and cell growth. This makes it ideal both for abrasions, since it will speed the healing process by regenerating cells quicker, and also for anti-aging since it can help regulate cell growth and elastin production.

Gold

Last, but certainly not least, is a mineral we have talked about at length in the past: Gold.

You will probably take it as no surprise that gold has quite a lot in common with silver, most likely due to their similar chemical compositions. For instance, just like silver, gold promotes cell regeneration and growth so it actively aides the replenishment of elastin and collagen to the skin.

Where gold and silver really differ in terms of skin health is, instead of being powerfully antibacterial, gold’s key feature is its ability to blend discolored, sun-damaged skin. When skin takes enough damage from the constant barrage of the sun’s UV rays, it can often lose its color and become splotchy. Gold has been shown to actively reverse that damage and revitalize skin back to its original, flawless state.

For more info on science, nature, and how those two come together to make amazing products, visit LiraClinical.com!