Cleanse, Nourish, Moisturize Your Skin

Cleansing Skin

If you suffer from any type of facial malady, most experts will agree, the first rule of skin care is:  cleanse, nourish, and moisturize. No matter what type of skin you have, this three-step routine for the care of your skin is essential to counteract the daily effects of environment, stress, and the skin’s natural process of cell degeneration. It is the very minimum you must do to maintain a normal, healthy, youthful complexion. Even if you do nothing else for an existing skin problem, keeping this regimen every day can help to improve your condition, sometimes in a short amount of time.

The basic requirements for good skin include daily cleansing, nourishing, and moisturizing that is right for your complexion type. A total facial beauty program should feature daily skincare: cleansing, toning, moisturizing, weekly facial masks, healthy eating, rejuvenating body baths, exfoliation, and of course, exercise.

Following a seasonal skin care regimen is ideal for everyone, no matter what your skin condition, as our skin fluctuates with the seasons. In winter, cold temperatures and lack of humidity make moisturizing a must. In the heat of the summer months, the humidity is higher and you are more prone to exercise and sweat, so a moisturizer may not be necessary, but a sunscreen will – then you may notice more breakouts and need a detoxifying clay mask for example.

Age Spots

The most common skincare complaints include acne, eczema, psoriasis, premature wrinkles, sagging and age spots. Not all of these skin maladies will occur at the same time and not all skincare products will be necessary at all times. If you have combination skin, you may even need to ‘spot-treat’ – a moisturizer on your cheeks and a detoxifying mask on your forehead and nose, for example.

If you are a resourceful natural skincare advocate, you may already make some of your best skincare products at home. If you prefer to buy your skin care products rather than make them, it will benefit you greatly to be a knowledgeable consumer. Learn to distinguish the true natural products from the many pretenders on the market today.

Typically most skincare treatments are external. While they are vital to achieving a flawless complexion and an all-over healthy appearance, they alone are not sufficient to eliminate all skin problems completely. A topical product will alleviate only the surface issues of disease and aging, not the cause itself. For that you must also cleanse and nourish the body and mind internally – where all disorders begin. Internal skincare is equally if not more important that any external cream, especially when it comes to diet and key stress-reducing techniques like exercise, meditation and massage.

You can take years off your appearance by rejuvenating your skin if you are willing to follow a “whole-health” regimen. Make a routine of your daily skincare with proper cleansing, nourishing / toning and moisturizing as well as feeding your body nourishing, healthy foods and exercising. You will see the results for yourself through your improved complexion and an overall feeling of well-being.

Your Face Reflects Your Diet

Healthy Skin Habits

You may have heard the old saying, “You are what you eat.” Never does it ring more true when we consider the quality of our skin. It’s not a fallacy to say we feel better when we eat pure, healthy foods that support and nourish our bodies as compared to a diet of over-processed, chemical-laden foods. Without proper nutrients, the body just can’t function optimally. It will be sluggish, lack vitality, and lack muscle mass. On the surface, the skin may show wrinkles, sagging, acne, age spots and appear overall to be dull. Free radicals can take the blame for some of this skin degeneration, but if you want beautiful, healthy, glowing skin – you have to feed it right.

Antioxidant-rich foods that contain vitamin C and E have been found to defend against free radicals by giving them their own electrons and forming a barrier that protects skin cells. You may already know certain behaviors and habits will either help or harm your skin, such as proper diet, exercise, smoking and sun exposure. One of the most significant sources of skin-damaging free radicals is cigarette smoke.

The modern Western diet is filled with carbohydrates, unnecessary sugars and salts, fats and caffeine. Most would be shocked to learn just how many of these detrimental elements they consume in a day. According to current research, it is the sugars and carbohydrates that have the worst effects on your complexion. They rob your skin of the oxygen it needs to stay youthful and can also cause inflammation.

In opposition to the processed foods, a diet that is pure and natural to its original essence as possible will provide your skin with vital nutrients and oxygen. Fruits and vegetables are on the top of this list of course, but other vital fats like walnuts, olive oil and fresh fish oils will also contribute greatly to beautiful, glowing skin. You cannot improve your skin without first improving your daily diet. Take the time to research various natural foods and their beneficial qualities. Try to incorporate these foods as much as possible into your lifestyle. Also beneficial is to replace those sugar-laden sodas with fresh water and teas. Proper hydration will help flush residual toxins from your system while you are optimizing your diet.

Organic Foods

Once you consider what foods you are ingesting, you may also need to consider your smoking and drinking habits. We all know how harmful excessive smoking or drinking can be for our health, but our skin will be the first to show the signs of damage–long before our bodies give any indication of disease or imbalance. Smoking creates a toxic metabolism in your whole body. Many know the lungs are damaged by smoking–which is bad enough in itself–but the lack of oxygen will show on your face first. You will see more wrinkles around the eyes and mouth and smokers also have skin that is slower to heal. Blood is actually directed away from the skin by the destructive effects of nicotine, resulting in a sallow, grayish skin tone. On a scientific level, the nicotine blocks the oxygen supply to your skin, causing the subdermal capillaries to go into spasms, eventually increasing the rate at which your skin ages.

If you are hoping a cosmetic procedure will “erase” all the damage you have done – be aware that many doctors today will not perform any invasive procedures on a smoker due to the slower healing rate and lack of it results it can cause.
Once you have incorporated healthier foods into your life and reduced or eliminated smoking and excessive drinking, it is guaranteed you will see noticeable positive results in your skin’s appearance and in your overall health.

Organic Skin Products

Your Organic Skin

Skin is the armor of the body. It is the outside waterproofing, element-fighting surface that protects our internal organs and skeletal structure from the harsh outside elements. Yet skin, overall is ignored most of the time. Healthy skin is important for a glowing completion of course, but if your body is unhealthy – your skin will be also.

The toxic world of industrialization has finally caught up with us. Producing toxic waste disasters, disease and tons of garbage buried so deep it can never breakdown. All these “modern advancements” have left our food supply as little more than a chemical compound in itself. If you can do ONE thing to give your skin and your body a fighting chance, you would be wise to choose as organic a diet as possible. To maintain a healthy skin, organically grown food is must.

In light of recent organic trends in our food, organic skin care products are also gaining popularity. For healthy lifestyle and healthy skin, limiting the amount of toxins and chemicals you put in your body is a must. If the environment or living “green” is important to you, you should also be aware of companies that produce the products you buy and their manufacturing practices.

Organic Skin Care is the most rapidly developing field in the beauty industry. Now what does Organic mean? Organic refers to anything grown or raised naturally. But more specifically, it means plants are grown on certified natural land without the use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, genetic modification or irradiation. In many cases, these organic farms are highly regulated by the Federal Food Safety Commission. Organic skin care means protecting your skin from harmful chemicals and using organic products whenever possible.

There are many organic products available on the market today. Most can be found at a local organic specialty stores, food suppliers or a national health food chain like Whole Foods. As organic products become more and more popular, many standard food stores, Like Safeway or Albertsons’ are also providing these products on their shelves. There are also plenty of websites offering organic skin or beauty care products online.

An organic product is preferable for natural skin care balance as it will generally contain far fewer chemical properties then it’s drugstore counterparts and thus have less possibility to cause inflammation or irritation. Of course, even an herbal product can have side effects as they are “chemicals” in their own right, so always be aware of the list if ingredients in the products you buy and the reactions your skin personally has to allergens.