You don’t always need a full face of makeup to achieve a flawless and glowing complexion. It’s not to say that highlighting your nose and brows, or contouring for a slimmer face doesn’t give an (almost) endless boost in confidence. But wouldn’t you rather get that boost without the time and effort?
Also, there are other positive side-effects when you’re not wearing pore-clogging primers, foundations, and concealers. Wearing less makeup can result in fewer zits as well as less irritation. Wearing lots of makeup can expose your skin to a slew of chemicals – some could cause serious problems.
Wearing makeup less often can help your skin function properly. It can better regulate its oil production and hydration levels. There you have the first hack for glowy skin: Just skipping out on makeup regularly and wearing less makeup can brighten your skin. This can even allow skin care such as essence and cream to better absorb into your skin.
Wearing less makeup has another boon: your skin will stay young longer. Many people think wearing makeup makes them look younger. It’s rather the opposite and you might be really ageing your skin prematurely.
As a case in point, the skin around your eyes is very delicate. So, rubbing and pulling the thin and sensitive skin around your eyes will make your eyelids lose their elasticity. And then you get droopy and wrinkled eyes.
Beauty sleep is real
Having a good night’s rest isn’t only for your body and mind to recharge. Sleep is essential to stave off diseases and for your mental wellness.
Getting your beauty sleep isn’t a fairy tale. Sleep has real and visible benefits for your skin. Only one poor night’s sleep can wreak havoc on your complexion and your reflection in the morning will show you anything from
- Dark under-eye circles
- Hanging eyelids
- Swollen eyes
- Pale and dull skin
- Puffy skin
- More wrinkles
- Droopy corners of the mouth
- Rougher skin texture
During the night with no UV rays and when your facial muscles are relaxed, it’s the best time of day for your skin. Your skin can rest from what you put it through. This can be the aforementioned UV exposure, pollution, and of course facial expressions (dynamic muscles contraction).
It’s during sleep that the skin goes into repair mode. It repairs cells and DNA damage caused by UV exposure and the environment, regenerates new cells to replace ageing ones, and removes toxins.
It’s also during the night that collagen production and cell turnover increase so that after a good night’s rest, your skin is firmer.
Beauty comes from the inside
Whatever you do or apply on the outside of your body, if your diet is poor, you won’t see the miracles that all the wonder products have promised. It’s clearcut and no-nonsense to link the quality of your skin with the quality of your diet.
To get that glow, eat the rainbow. Well, it’s more that the food you eat is full of brightly-coloured fruits and vegetables. Also, don’t forget the fatty salmon and nuts. Together, they not only supply your body with beauty-boosting vitamins and minerals but also the right nutrients to strengthen your gut health.
Know your skin type
Knowing your skin type and then using suitable products is key to get that glow. If you don’t know your skin, you might be using the wrong products so that you might be aggravating its conditions.
Your skin changes with the weather, seasons, your geographic location, and age. Everyone’s skin constantly adapts to its environment. So, if see changes in your skin — even if you’ve been following the same skincare routine for decades, it’s time to change.
Steam your skin
Who can say that after the sauna they don’t feel relaxed? After a visit to the sauna, people even get the healthy glow. Adding a weekly steaming session to your skin care regimen is an easy and effective way to hydrate and improve the overall health of your skin.
A quick way to incorporate a steam session is to give yourself a facial steam massage when you’re taking a shower.
Don’t forget your neck
The neck and hands are the biggest giveaways of someone’s age. Include your neck and also your decollete as part of your face and continue your entire skin care down your neck to your chest.
And as hands are also a telltale sign of someone’s age, apply the same care you use on your face to them.
Keep your hands off your face
Especially when you want to pop a zit. But in general, refrain from touching your face frequently. The reason is that your hands can transfer microbe to your face and that can lead to breakouts or worse rashes and irritations.
Avoid the sun or sunscreen is everything
If you follow a skin care routine that helps you address your concerns and then don’t apply SPF daily, it can reverse all the progress you made with the help of your routine.
90% of ageing can be attributed directly to sun exposure and so is within your control. This means, apply SPF religiously and daily. Even if you don’t see immediate results, it can do wonders for your skin’s health in the long run.
Use cold water
Cold water is really often overlooked: When you finish your shower, turn your water to cold and rinse your body and hair for a few minutes. You’ll see shinier hair and literally radiant skin.
That’s because cold water has a number of health benefits which then translates into healthy skin. It boosts circulation (for the glow) and reduces the appearance of pores.
What’s not to like? Ok, ok, ending a shower with cold water sounds more like a test of mettle, but it increases endorphins, helps improve metabolism, and of course gives you radiance.
It’s never too late to start taking care of your skin
Establishing healthy skin care habits helps you at any age. Dedicating time and effort to maintaining your skin health is well worth the occasional inconvenience. The more you take care of your skin now, the better it will look later in life.
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