We all want soft, supple, bright and younger-looking skin, don’t we? But sometimes it’s our bad habits that mess up with our skin and prevent it from looking its best. Here are 5 things to avoid to achieve the beautiful complexion we crave for.
1. Exfoliating too much
You know how the old saying goes: “too much of a good thing can be a bad thing.” That’s true for exfoliation too. Exfoliation is an essential step in any skincare routine because it removes the dead cells on the surface of the skin. This prevents them from clogging up the pores and cause breakouts, and restores a brighter and youthful appearance to your complexion. But if you exfoliate too often, you will remove too many layers, which will only damage the skin’s protective barrier, causing dryness, flaking, irritation and even inflammation.
2. Using body products for the face
While I have no problems in using a face moisturizer on my body, I wouldn’t recommend doing the opposite. Body products are designed for the thicker body skin and so usually contain a higher concentration of emollients, emulsifiers, fragrance and other ingredients that could cause havoc on your face and, even worsen skin conditions such as acne or rosacea.
3. Not using a product with retinoids
After sunscreen, creams and lotions with retinoids are the most effective anti-aging products. Retinoids, such as Retinol, Retinyl Palmitate, Tretinoin and Retinaldehyde to name a few, are all forms of Vitamin A that have been proven to slowly reduce wrinkles and prevent new ones from forming, as well as helping treat acne and hyperpigmentation. Your early 20s is a good time to start using a retinoid cream at night. I’d avoid using retinoids during the day though as they can make skin more sensitive to the sun.
4. Getting too much unprotected sun exposure
While getting 30 minutes of unprotected sun exposure once a week may be useful to get the Vitamin D fix our bodies need, if you don’t wear sunscreen regularly you will just damage your skin (and increase your chances of getting skin cancer). Your skin may look fine now, but years of unprotected sun exposure will soon catch up with you, causing fine lines and wrinkles to form prematurely, and brown spots to appear. And avoid tanning beds too. They, too, cause cancer and can make you age faster.
5. Touching your face
It is impossible to keep our hands entirely germ-free all day, so keep them away from your face. Easier said than done, I know, but when you touch your face you may transfer some of these germs on it, which will increase the risk of breakouts and irritations. Oh, and don’t pop pimples or blackheads either as that can result in infections and scarring.
Are you making these skincare mistakes? And do you know of anything else we should avoid for our skin’s sake?
{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
I’ve broken rules 2,3,5. I never over exfoliated and I don’t even use an exfoliator at the moment though I’m planning on getting one. I have gotten way too much sun too many times without sunscreen a few years back. I only used body products for the face for a week and it was moisturizer.
Right now, I’m breaking rule 3 by not using a retinoid product.
Janessa, I think we have all broken most of these rules every now and then, especially number 4. I wish we had known earlier how important wearing sunscreen daily is. And you should really consider getting a retinoid product. You will see a bit difference in how your skin looks and feels and it may even help repair some of the damage caused by unprotected sun exposure.
Yeah, I’m guilty of touching my face: especially when it’s feeling particularly soft and awesome. I just can’t stop touching it when it’s so nice. But then I ruin it that way.
I’ve been on a quest to stop.
Trisha´s last [type] ..A Glimpse at the Pixi Summer Collection
Trisha, that’s a habit hard to break, isn’t it? I like to touch my face too when it is all soft and smooth as it just feels so nice, but I’m slowly learning not to do that as it’s not really good for skin. I hope you’ll soon be able to stop doing that too.
very good list…i touch my face too much, oye vey. that’s my sin
Socialite Dreams´s last [type] ..She’s a Big Girl Now! Big Girl Cosmetics Launches in Macys
Vonnie, it’s hard to keep your hands away from your face, especially when it feels really soft, isn’t it? Unfortunately it’s not really good for skin so it’s best to keep that to a minimum.
guilty as charged….especially for #5! i can’t stop myself from popping those blackheads ><
xin´s last [type] ..Create Spongebob Squarepants Nail Art in 15 Minutes!
Xin, you shouldn’t, that’s really bad! But I know it’s hard to resist. When you get a blackhead, all you wanna do is get rid of it as soon as possible.
Great post and I raise my hands up to No5. But what I have learnt to do over the years is use the back of my hand to rub my face if needed, I suppose it does help to some extends. Thanks for sharing
Grace´s last [type] ..Sisley Radiant Glow Express Mask,Glow In Just A Few Minutes
Grace, I had never thought of doing that. Thanks for sharing.
I definitely exfoliate way to much! and yes Im a big victim of face touching! Not so big on the picking of blackheads.. and now I never will be
Lynda, exfoliating too much is never good. You can really risk to damage skin. But it’s good that you don’t pick blackheads, that’s another big skincare no-no.