If you’ve had a dip in the Blue Lagoon and wondered why your skin felt amazing afterwards, you’re not alone. Unlike boring old regular geothermal water, the composition of the Blue Lagoon is unique—you won’t find it anywhere else in the world. It’s home to a couple of algae plants also not known to exist elsewhere. This combination has been found to have a number of proven beneficial effects on skin. Dermatologist Jenna Huld Eysteinsdóttir explains:
“The Blue Lagoon is manmade, so it’s unique because it’s a combination of seawater and the water pumped in from the power plant. It’s comprised of 55% seawater and 35% fresh water and it’s very high in silica.
“Studies carried out on the Blue Lagoon have shown that the water prevents premature skin aging and improves the skin barrier. Scientists took extracts from the silica and the two dominating algae types—aka bioactive molecules—and created a culture with skin cells. When looking at the gene expression, they found that the algae and silica combination upregulates (increases the response to a stimulus) the genes that prevent skin aging and protect the skin.
“The silica seems to have an antibacterial effect. We have other studies that show it improves psoriasis to a far greater degree than if you treat it solely with light therapy. When you combine UVB treatment with the Blue Lagoon, you’ll see much quicker results, and you won’t need as much light therapy. This means you can avoid exposing your skin to as much UV light which can be harmful.”
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