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Moisturizer
A light moisturizer, with sunscreen, should be applied daily after washing. Do
not confuse oily skin with moisture. Dry or oily skin conditions only describe a
skin's reaction to dehydration, and do not describe if a skin needs a
moisturizer. All faces need moisturizer. Oily skin only means the skin was dry,
and so sebaceous glands compensated by producing sebum-- or oil. To stop the
oily condition, teens must treat the underlying cause: dryness. This is only
accomplished with an appropriate moisturizer.
Diet and Sleep
The busy schedules of teens can make eating healthy difficult. Junk food, soda,
and high amounts of sugar, coupled with a lack of vegetables and fruits high in
vitamins like A, E, D, leave little mystery to why the skin can't repair itself
correctly. Faces are like night clubs. Bouncers keep out lowlifes (bacteria and
germs), let fresh cool people in (creating new skin cells), but need your help
to call the cops on riff-raff hanging outside (cleanser to clean away dead skin
cells and bacteria). Imagine how well the night club will work if the DJ doesn't
show up, or the bar runs out of drinks? When adequate nutrition is lacking, skin
can't perform its functions correctly.
Try to substitute as many junk food items as possible with healthy snacks like
granola bars, baby carrots, avocado dips, and juice or water. Drinking lots of
water will keep skin hydrated, and flush sebaceous glands to prevent build up.
Eight hours of sleep is imperative for skin to fully repair itself from the wear
and tear of everyday life. If the night club's day shift doesn't have enough
time to clean up and do paperwork, the night club won't be successful during
general open hours. It's the same for skin.
Prescription Medication
Not all skin care problems are solved with home remedies. Serious cases of acne,
rosacea, and other skin
diseases must be treated by a licensed dermatologist.
Remain vigilant about any prescription medication given for skin conditions, as
side effects can be deadly. Popular medications for acne treatment, including
birth-control pills for young women, are commonly known for blood clot risks.
This risk is further heightened when a teen is a smoker, something regularly
hidden from parents. If you engage in any behavior you don't wish your parents
to know about, but worry might affect any medications you are on, simply ask to
speak to the dermatologist privately.
It will take time to adjust daily habits for good skin care. Go slowly, and
replace normal habits one at a time. Trying to change everything at once--
sleeping schedule, diet, and hygiene routine --will result in overload. It also
increases the chance of failure, because all of the changes will be overwhelming
without immediate results. It can take weeks to show improvement in skin
condition from cleansers, moisturizers, and diet improvements. But, the payoff
of healthy and unblemished skin is priceless.
Reference: http://www.skincarecompany.net/teen-skin-care.htm
Skin care: Top 5 habits for healthy skin
Proactive skin care, from skin protection to proper shaving
technique, will help you keep your skin youthful and healthy.
Your busy lifestyle leaves little time for pampering skin care. The result:
Your skin isn't the baby-soft body glove you were born with. As you age, your
skin gradually becomes thinner and finely wrinkled. Oil-producing (sebaceous)
glands grow less active, leaving your skin drier. The number of blood vessels in
your skin decreases, your skin becomes more fragile, and you lose your youthful
color and glow.
Good skin care — such as avoiding the sun, washing your skin gently and
applying moisturizer regularly — can help delay the natural aging process and
prevent many skin problems. These simple skin-care habits will help you protect
your skin to keep it healthy and glowing for years to come.
1. Protect yourself from the sun
The most important way to take care of your skin is to protect it from the
sun. Ultraviolet light — the invisible but intense rays from the sun —
damages your skin, causing deep wrinkles, dry, rough skin, liver spots, and more
serious disorders, such as noncancerous (benign) and cancerous (malignant) skin
tumors. In fact, most of the changes seen in aging skin are actually caused by a
lifetime of sun exposure.
For the most complete sun protection, use all three of these methods:
- Avoid the sun during high-intensity hours.
The sun's rays are most damaging from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Reduce the time you
spend outdoors during these hours.
- Wear protective clothing. Cover your
skin with clothing, such as long-sleeved shirts, long pants and wide-brimmed
hats. Also, keep in mind that certain clothing styles and fabrics offer
better protection from the sun than do others. For example, long-sleeved
shirts offer better protection than short-sleeved shirts do. And tightly
woven fabrics such as denim are better than are loosely woven fabrics such
as knits. Several companies now make sun protective clothing (SPF clothing),
which is specifically designed to block out ultraviolet rays while keeping
you cool and comfortable.
- Use sunscreen. Choose a
broad-spectrum sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) greater than 15.
Apply liberally 20 minutes before going outdoors and reapply every two
hours, after heavy sweating or after being in water.
2. Don't smoke
Smoking accelerates aging of your skin and increases wrinkles. Skin changes
from smoking can appear in young adults after 10 years of smoking.
Smoking causes narrowing of the tiny blood vessels in the outermost layers of
skin. This decreases blood flow, depleting the skin of oxygen and nutrients,
such as vitamin A, that are important to skin health. All of these factors
increase damage to the elastic fibers (elastin) and collagen, which give your
skin strength and elasticity.
In addition, the repetitive facial expressions you make when smoking — such
as pursing your lips when inhaling and squinting your eyes to keep out smoke —
may contribute to wrinkles. It's also possible that repeated exposure to the
heat from burning cigarettes may damage your facial skin over time.
3. Wash your skin gently
Cleansing is an essential part of caring for your skin. The key is to treat
your skin gently.
- Use warm water and limit bath time.
Hot water and long showers or baths remove oils from your skin. Limit your
bath or shower time to about 15 minutes or less, and use warm, rather than
hot, water.
- Avoid strong soaps. Strong soaps —
those most capable of stripping oil from your skin — can leave your skin
dry. Instead, choose mild soaps or detergent substitutes with added oils and
fats. Good choices include Dove, Vanicream, Cetaphil and Purpose.
- Avoid irritating additives. If your
skin is sensitive, avoid products containing perfumes or dyes. These can
irritate your skin and may trigger an allergic response.
- Remove eye makeup carefully. Use a
soft sponge, cotton cloth or cotton balls when removing eye makeup to avoid
damaging the delicate tissue around your eyes. If you wear heavy, waterproof
makeup, you may need to use an oil-based product, such as Eucerin, Aquaphor
or petroleum jelly, to remove makeup.
- Pat dry. After washing or bathing,
gently pat or blot your skin dry with a towel so that some moisture remains
on the skin. Immediately moisturize your skin with an oil or cream.
4. Moisturize regularly
Moisturizers help maintain your skin's natural moisture levels. They work by
providing a seal over your skin — to keep water from escaping — or by slowly
releasing water into your skin.
The moisturizer that's best for you and the frequency with which you need to
moisturize depend on many factors, including your skin type, your age and
whether you have specific conditions such as acne. A good way to test if you
need a moisturizer is to wait 20 minutes after bathing. If your skin feels
tight, you should apply a moisturizer.
Select a moisturizer with an SPF of at least 15 to help protect your skin
from damaging ultraviolet rays. If you have sensitive skin, look for products
free of heavy dyes, perfumes or other additives. If your skin is very dry, you
may want to apply an oil, such as baby oil, while your skin is still moist. Oil
has more staying power than moisturizers do and prevents the evaporation of
water from the surface of your skin. If your skin is oily, you may want to skip
moisturizing.
5. Shave carefully
Shaving is a common and inexpensive way to remove unwanted hair. But shaving
can cause skin irritations, especially if your skin is thin, dry or very
sensitive. For a smooth shave:
- Press a warm wash cloth on your skin before shaving to
soften the hair. Or shave after a warm bath or shower.
- Don't shave dry skin, which can cause razor burn.
Apply shaving cream, lotion or gel before shaving to protect and lubricate
your skin.
- Use a clean, sharp razor. If using an electric razor,
don't use the closest setting, which can aggravate the skin.
- Shave in the direction of hair growth, not against it.
- Rinse your skin afterward with warm water.
If irritation does occur, apply a lotion that doesn't contain ethyl or
isopropyl alcohol. Though alcohol and alcohol-based products may feel cooling,
they don't really soothe irritated skin because the alcohol evaporates rapidly
from the skin.
Reference: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/skin-care/SN00003
Important Winter Skin Care Tips
Once the cold days and nights of winter set in many tend to abandon any skin
care routine they developed during the sunny days of summer. Most no long
moisturize their skin and certainly don't bother to apply sunscreen anymore.
However, in order to have the best skin you need to take care of it all year
round whether or not it is going to be hidden under layers of clothing.
Just because summer is over doesn't mean the damage from the sun is. The truth
is that the sun's UV rays are just as harmful in winter as they are in summer.
Since the skin is stripped of its natural oils in the winter due to the harsh
weather outside and the indoor heating then it is even more important to use
winter protection for your skin. This lack of natural oils and moisture makes
the skin more susceptible to any kind of UV damage from the sun.
So during the winter you can take two simple steps to protect your skin from
damage. The first step is to take cooler showers or baths or at least reduce the
amount of time. While this may not seem best during the cold winters it will
actually help prevent the amount of natural acid mantel that is stripped off by
the hot water which leads to dry skin.
After any bath or shower you should always apply a good quality moisturizer to
help keep your body's natural oils sealed inside. You entire body should be
moisturized daily so that it doesn't dry out, even those areas that are covered
during winter can get dried out as a result of the central heating.
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