The Skin-Care Ingredient The Beauty Industry Can’t Stop Talking About

Even we beauty editors have to admit that our industry has a tendency to get swept up in fads. Whether it's hype about a makeup technique or headlines about a new skin-care ingredient, beauty news is like a game of telephone that gets more inflated with each updated post. (Seriously, guys, strobing is basically highlighting on steroids.) But there's a buzzy term we've been hearing a lot about lately, and we're here to set the record straight that this is more than just a passing trend. Enter hyaluronic acid. Once you get beyond the seemingly scary name, know that hyaluronic acid is actually a molecule our bodies naturally produce, and it helps our skin cells attract and retain water. This, in turn, keeps skin looking plumper and more youthful. According to the experts at L'Oréal Paris RevitaLift, hyaluronic acid is such a powerful ingredient that it can hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water — no wonder it's been a trendy term in the biz lately. But as we get older, our own levels of the molecule start to dip. Cue the wrinkles. Thankfully, preventative measures are pretty easy. Head on over here to learn more about what happens to skin as we age and how you can actually replenish some of what gets lost. This is one beauty fad worth holding on to.