CARING FOR THE SKIN
So you know know how the skin works and it's functions and that's great when everything is in balance. However skin is a very sensitive organ but as far as the body is concerned it is a lesser important organ that the heart, lungs, liver etc, so priority is given to important organs at times of stress, whether that is emotional stress i.e. worry etc. or physical stress such as extremes of temperature and its very cold.
What we put on the skin can throw it off balance, many people use soap and water, well that's fine for your body, but our face has more sebaceous glands, is more exposed to the elements and more open to micro-organisms. Why not soap and water? well soap is alkaline and remember the acid mantle is slightly acidic, this maintains an environment where micro-organisms are less likely to multiply and if you use an alkaline product you will strip away this protective layer, making the skin more susceptible to infection. Because our sebaceous glands tend to be more active on the face, and this increase of sebum in nature's moisturiser, there may be more of a tendency for them to become blocked, if infection enters the blocked pores the result it a spot. There are a number of cleansing bars on the market and water activated cleansers around for those of you who like the feel of water on your face.
The trouble and risk of blocked pores is magnified if there is also a build up of dead skin cells. Now it takes roughly 28 days for new cells in the basal layer of the epidermis to form and be shed, this time span increases with age, as we get older our skin becomes more sluggish, if we don't cleanse our skin adequately enough a layer of dead cells sit on the surface making our complexion dull, combined with sebum these dead cells can block pores causing blackheads. Inncidently blackheads are not dirt but sebum and dead cells form a plug and oxidise causing this this discolouration. In order to keep our complexions fresh and depending on the type of skin you have exfoliation should be carried out once to twice a week, with oily skin generally twice. There are various products on the market but avoid those exfoliators that are made from ground up nutshells and husks as these can be quite scratchy and can damage the surface of the skin leading to possible infection. Rather choose a product with fine micro beads. Some exfoliators work by dissolving dead skin cells and are often fruit based containing fruit acids or enzymes, these may irritate sensitive skin so its a good idea to patch test an area before proceeding.
But before choosing what cleanser to use on your skin, you need to know what type of skin you have. Firstly normal skin is a rarity, normal skin is like the skin children have, its neither dry or oily, theres no visible pores nor shine, it has a good texture and colour, no spots, blackheads and is plump and has good elasticity. Now how many of us can say we have normal skin? Oily skin often has visible pores particularly down the 'T zone' of our faces, it becomes shiny very quickly, it is prone to blackheads and spots, its doesn't have dry, flaky patches and often has a sallow colour about it and make up slides of the face quite quickly. Dry skin, has no obvious pores, doesn't have a tendency to blackheads or spots, can have flaky itchy areas, often feels tight after cleansing and a tendency to line and can often be more highly coloured. Combination skin is by far the most common type of skin, it often has an oil 'T zone' with normal, if your lucky outer areas or dry cheeks. It is a combination of either of the aforementioned types. So you have 4 skin types. Now if only it was that simple but the skin has different conditions that affect it. Firstly moisture, it may surprise you to know that even oily skin can become dehydrated as this is down to moisture content in the skin and not oil. Central heating, changes in temperatures, windy weather and not drinking enough water, too much coffee, tea and cola drinks and alcohol all affect our skin and can lead to dehydration. Oily skin favours better than most as sebum can trap some moisture but not enough to prevent moisture loss. So its important you keep yourself hydrated and drink plenty of water to start with and use the correct moisturiser for your skin type. Moisturiser does what it says, its job is to trap moisture in the skin, with dry skin moisturisers, they generally are more oil based than one designed for oily skin and so on.
Cleansing is a matter of preference but your skin type will guide you as I mentioned early, some people prefer the feel of water on their skin so a rinse off type of cleanser will suit them. But whatever way you cleanse your skin, cleanse it twice once to remove make up and the grime from the day and second to deep cleanse the skin. Which leads me on to eye make up remover. The skin around the eyes is very delicate and is the thinest skin thickness on our bodies so treat it with care. Do not treat it roughly or rub cleanser harshly around the eyes as this will stretch this delicate skin. Eye make up is designed for this sensitive area and not all facial cleansers suitable, check the packaging. Which leads on to all in one cleansers and wipes, these are fine short term but not ideal in the long term. Many of the wipes contain alcohol and irritate sensitive eye tissue and certainly the same wipe should not be used for both eyes due to the risk of cross infection, the same goes for cotton wool pads and tissues.
Toners do we need them? well if you use a water based rinse of cleanser no you don't as the water is suffice to tone and freshen the skin, but if you use a tissue off cleanser yes you do to remove any residue of cleanser and grime. These vary from hydrasols (i.e. rose water) to witch hazel, avoid alcohol on the face as it will remove the acid mantle.
It may surprise you to know that skin after the age of 25 is considered mature but after the age of 25 ageing signs start becoming apparent. Prevention is better than cure and a lot easier. We know from Part 1 how UV light contributes to ageing so be sure your moisturiser contains a sun protection level of at least 15 thats the first thing to be aware of. Drink plenty of water to maintain moisture levels and avoid caffeinated drinks as they are diuretics as encourage the kidneys to excrete more urine and can lead to dehydration. A good balanced diet with plenty of fruit and vegetables to give the cells the right nutrients. Avoid smoking I explained in an earlier article how this ages the skin and does so by ten years. And there is stress, now that is difficult to avoid but there are things you can do, you can lessen its affects by relaxation and I will be giving tips to avoid the damaging effects due to stress later.
Anti-wrinkle cremes, well if you read the earlier article in Part 1 no cosmetic can penetrate the epidermis, so I have to say ladies expensive skin cremes are a total waste of money. The only thing I would say is that avoid products with mineral oil as this oil sits on the surface of the skin, yes it traps the evaporation of moisture but it can block the pores but its fine to use on the body, instead use a vegetable oil based product and by that I don't mean 'Crisp and Dry' some examples are Almond oil, Jojoba oil, Olive oil. With expensive cremes you are paying for the packaging and nice jar. There are temporary anti-wrinkle fixers that work by temporarily tightening up the skin or have fillers and light reflective powders that soften the appearance of lines. Simple things like avoiding squinting in the sun or getting your eyes checked if you have difficulty in reading will prevent many a line forming around the eyes
Aromatherapy cremes and face masks I will cover in a later article
MPB ©
What we put on the skin can throw it off balance, many people use soap and water, well that's fine for your body, but our face has more sebaceous glands, is more exposed to the elements and more open to micro-organisms. Why not soap and water? well soap is alkaline and remember the acid mantle is slightly acidic, this maintains an environment where micro-organisms are less likely to multiply and if you use an alkaline product you will strip away this protective layer, making the skin more susceptible to infection. Because our sebaceous glands tend to be more active on the face, and this increase of sebum in nature's moisturiser, there may be more of a tendency for them to become blocked, if infection enters the blocked pores the result it a spot. There are a number of cleansing bars on the market and water activated cleansers around for those of you who like the feel of water on your face.
The trouble and risk of blocked pores is magnified if there is also a build up of dead skin cells. Now it takes roughly 28 days for new cells in the basal layer of the epidermis to form and be shed, this time span increases with age, as we get older our skin becomes more sluggish, if we don't cleanse our skin adequately enough a layer of dead cells sit on the surface making our complexion dull, combined with sebum these dead cells can block pores causing blackheads. Inncidently blackheads are not dirt but sebum and dead cells form a plug and oxidise causing this this discolouration. In order to keep our complexions fresh and depending on the type of skin you have exfoliation should be carried out once to twice a week, with oily skin generally twice. There are various products on the market but avoid those exfoliators that are made from ground up nutshells and husks as these can be quite scratchy and can damage the surface of the skin leading to possible infection. Rather choose a product with fine micro beads. Some exfoliators work by dissolving dead skin cells and are often fruit based containing fruit acids or enzymes, these may irritate sensitive skin so its a good idea to patch test an area before proceeding.
But before choosing what cleanser to use on your skin, you need to know what type of skin you have. Firstly normal skin is a rarity, normal skin is like the skin children have, its neither dry or oily, theres no visible pores nor shine, it has a good texture and colour, no spots, blackheads and is plump and has good elasticity. Now how many of us can say we have normal skin? Oily skin often has visible pores particularly down the 'T zone' of our faces, it becomes shiny very quickly, it is prone to blackheads and spots, its doesn't have dry, flaky patches and often has a sallow colour about it and make up slides of the face quite quickly. Dry skin, has no obvious pores, doesn't have a tendency to blackheads or spots, can have flaky itchy areas, often feels tight after cleansing and a tendency to line and can often be more highly coloured. Combination skin is by far the most common type of skin, it often has an oil 'T zone' with normal, if your lucky outer areas or dry cheeks. It is a combination of either of the aforementioned types. So you have 4 skin types. Now if only it was that simple but the skin has different conditions that affect it. Firstly moisture, it may surprise you to know that even oily skin can become dehydrated as this is down to moisture content in the skin and not oil. Central heating, changes in temperatures, windy weather and not drinking enough water, too much coffee, tea and cola drinks and alcohol all affect our skin and can lead to dehydration. Oily skin favours better than most as sebum can trap some moisture but not enough to prevent moisture loss. So its important you keep yourself hydrated and drink plenty of water to start with and use the correct moisturiser for your skin type. Moisturiser does what it says, its job is to trap moisture in the skin, with dry skin moisturisers, they generally are more oil based than one designed for oily skin and so on.
Cleansing is a matter of preference but your skin type will guide you as I mentioned early, some people prefer the feel of water on their skin so a rinse off type of cleanser will suit them. But whatever way you cleanse your skin, cleanse it twice once to remove make up and the grime from the day and second to deep cleanse the skin. Which leads me on to eye make up remover. The skin around the eyes is very delicate and is the thinest skin thickness on our bodies so treat it with care. Do not treat it roughly or rub cleanser harshly around the eyes as this will stretch this delicate skin. Eye make up is designed for this sensitive area and not all facial cleansers suitable, check the packaging. Which leads on to all in one cleansers and wipes, these are fine short term but not ideal in the long term. Many of the wipes contain alcohol and irritate sensitive eye tissue and certainly the same wipe should not be used for both eyes due to the risk of cross infection, the same goes for cotton wool pads and tissues.
Toners do we need them? well if you use a water based rinse of cleanser no you don't as the water is suffice to tone and freshen the skin, but if you use a tissue off cleanser yes you do to remove any residue of cleanser and grime. These vary from hydrasols (i.e. rose water) to witch hazel, avoid alcohol on the face as it will remove the acid mantle.
It may surprise you to know that skin after the age of 25 is considered mature but after the age of 25 ageing signs start becoming apparent. Prevention is better than cure and a lot easier. We know from Part 1 how UV light contributes to ageing so be sure your moisturiser contains a sun protection level of at least 15 thats the first thing to be aware of. Drink plenty of water to maintain moisture levels and avoid caffeinated drinks as they are diuretics as encourage the kidneys to excrete more urine and can lead to dehydration. A good balanced diet with plenty of fruit and vegetables to give the cells the right nutrients. Avoid smoking I explained in an earlier article how this ages the skin and does so by ten years. And there is stress, now that is difficult to avoid but there are things you can do, you can lessen its affects by relaxation and I will be giving tips to avoid the damaging effects due to stress later.
Anti-wrinkle cremes, well if you read the earlier article in Part 1 no cosmetic can penetrate the epidermis, so I have to say ladies expensive skin cremes are a total waste of money. The only thing I would say is that avoid products with mineral oil as this oil sits on the surface of the skin, yes it traps the evaporation of moisture but it can block the pores but its fine to use on the body, instead use a vegetable oil based product and by that I don't mean 'Crisp and Dry' some examples are Almond oil, Jojoba oil, Olive oil. With expensive cremes you are paying for the packaging and nice jar. There are temporary anti-wrinkle fixers that work by temporarily tightening up the skin or have fillers and light reflective powders that soften the appearance of lines. Simple things like avoiding squinting in the sun or getting your eyes checked if you have difficulty in reading will prevent many a line forming around the eyes
Aromatherapy cremes and face masks I will cover in a later article
MPB ©
Maggie Brown (Author)
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