Many of us don’t really think about our skin too much unless something is going wrong with it. The skin is the body’s largest organ, and it can be as complex and complicated as any of our organs. Neglect towards your skin can manifest itself in many ways that you might not expect. By learning more about how the skin works, you can learn some simple, often free routines and techniques that will get you on your way towards having healthy skin. When you set a good skincare routine, you can be sure that you’ll see noticeable improvements in your skin in many ways.
Conversely, if you don’t take care of your skin, you open yourself up to a realm of possible troubles. If you’re not keeping your skin properly hydrated, it could become rough or chapped which weakens your skin against pathogens or infections. If you’re not protecting your skin from the elements, you’re allowing the possibility of lasting damage or even cancers. Healthy skin is about more than aesthetics, it’s an important part of living a healthy lifestyle.
Simple Tips for Healthier Skin
Make Yourself Sweat
Some people who are looking to improve the health of their skin will avoid sweating too much because of the idea of a sweaty, pimply teenager has been planted in their mind. The truth is that sweating actually eliminates toxic buildup under the skin, leaving it healthier. In addition to that, when you exercise you’ll be getting your blood circulation up. As we established before, good blood flow is essential for the delivery of nutrients and oxygen which are essential for healthy skin. Combat the negative effects of getting exercise by having a shower shortly after your exercise session and by protecting yourself from the sun while you’re exercising.
Don’t Touch Your Face
If you’re having problems with acne on your face, the first thing you’ve got to do is stop touching your face during the day. It’s hard to do. Touching the face subconsciously will often become a nervous tic of those who suffer from problem skin. It can be hard to resist the urge to pick at something on your face, but it is never worth it. This is especially true for when you are outside and are exposed to the elements and likely have dirty hands. Train yourself to avoid touching your face at all costs. Once you are at home, you can completely wash your face and hands, at which time you can feel free to touch your face as necessary. Touching your face without a clean face or clean hands will only add to whatever skin problems you’re already experiencing.
Protect Yourself from Extreme Temperatures
If you live somewhere that gets very cold in the winter like I do, your skin is going is going to take a little bit of a beating. Both very cold and very hot temperatures can dry out the skin for different reasons, so you need to do what you can to combat the harsh temperatures. If you live somewhere very cold, cover up your skin as much as you can when you go out, and focus on moisturizing whenever you can. If you live somewhere hot, it’s important to protect yourself from the sun’s rays. The importance of not letting the sun damage your skin has been well publicized in recent years, and for good reason. If you’re going to be in strong sunlight, get a sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15, and apply it often and in big quantities. Try to schedule your days so that you’re not in the sun from 10am until 2pm, when the sun’s rays are strongest.
Avoid Obvious Skin Destroyers
There are some things that are obviously very bad for the skin that people continue to do anyway. If you’re aware of what smoking or hitting the tanning salon do to your skin and continue to do them anyway, you probably just don’t really care about healthy skin. If you do them but are not aware, here we go. Smoking makes your skin look bad. This is because it messes with the elasticity levels of the skin, because it damages the collagen and elastin. That contributes to wrinkles and a sagging facial look. It also decreases blood flow to the face, limiting the blood and nutrients that make it to your face. This means your skin won’t just look less healthy, it will be less healthy too. While going to a tanning salon will give you the glow that generally accompanies healthy skin in the short term, that kind of exposure to UV rays will make your skin look old and unhealthy in the long term.
Treat It Gently
Everyone knows that they should treat their skin gently, but there are ways that we unknowingly damage our skin while trying to help it. While it’s good to shower often to remove dirt and impuraties from your skin, limit both the length and temperature of your showers. A brief, warm shower is a lot better for the skin than a long, scalding shower. A long, hot shower will strip your skin of its natural oils which will leave your skin dry and possibly irritated. When you’re using skin cleaning products, apply them gently even if you’re using an exfoliant. There’s a notion among some people that really applying beauty products aggressively will yield better results but this is never true; it only causes irritation. It’s also important to remember to be gentle with areas other than just your face. Both your neck and your chest have as sensitive of skin as your face, so you should aim to treat them as extensions of your face. When you’re drying your skin, never do the classic rub-dry with your towel, always do a gentle pat instead.
Keep It Simple
When it comes to buying beauty products for your skin, try to gravitate towards products with ingredients that you can understand. You don’t want perfumes, colours, or a bunch of antibacterial stuff in what you’re using. In addition to some good simple skin cleaners, there are other natural things you can use to achieve healthy skin. Herbs like sage and peppermint can be applied to the face for soothing purposes. Using the juice from citrus fruits like a grapefruit on tough areas of your skin like on your elbows can work to smooth your skin. If your skin is irritated or burnt, use aloe vera to sooth it. At places where your skin rubs together and becomes sweaty, use unscented baby powder to prevent any problems.
Eat Better
It turns out that a lot of the things we heard about the correlation between diet and skin when we were younger haven’t been proven. There isn’t a guaranteed link between, for example, sugar or chocolate and acne like people used to think. The relation between what we eat and the health of our skin still isn’t fully understood. With that said, eating an unprocessed, vegetable-heavy diet will have an overall positive effect on the look and health of your skin. Get lots of vitamin C, avoid bad fats, avoid refined carbohydrates, and keep yourself very hydrated. Your healthy skin will thank you.
Because the skin is such a complex organ, the amount of other ways to improve its health are innumerable. Generally people don’t moisturize their skin enough. A test you can take to see if your skin is moisturized enough is to drag a fingernail across it. If a while line is left behind, you should be moisturizing your skin more. Another thing that many people find impacts the look of their skin is the amount of stress in your life. Many of us have suffered breakouts or rashes during periods of stress of the physical or mental variety. Making sure that you’re getting enough sleep, avoiding unnecessary stress, and setting some time aside every day to meditate. These small steps might have a bigger impact on your skin’s health than you’d expect.
If you’ve tried the above steps and are still having problems with your skin, don’t be afraid to make an appointment with a dermatologist. Having a professional examine your skin and give you personalized advice can be profoundly helpful. Some skin problems are hormonal in nature and can’t be taken care of on your own.