Good
skin care — including sun protection and gentle cleansing — can keep your skin
healthy and glowing for years to come.
Don't
have time for intensive skin care? You can still pamper yourself by acing the
basics. Good skin care and healthy lifestyle choices can help delay the natural
aging process and prevent various skin problems. Get started with these five
no-nonsense tips.
1.
Protect yourself from the sun:
One of
the most important ways to take care of your skin is to protect it from the
sun. A lifetime of sun exposure can cause wrinkles, age spots and other skin
problems — as well as increase the risk of skin cancer.
For the
most complete sun protection:
Use
sunscreen. Use a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15. Apply
sunscreen generously, and reapply every two hours — or more often if you're
swimming or perspiring.
Seek
shade. Avoid the sun between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., when the sun's rays are
strongest.
Wear
protective clothing. Cover your skin with tightly woven long-sleeved shirts,
long pants and wide-brimmed hats. Also consider laundry additives, which give
clothing an additional layer of ultraviolet protection for a certain number of
washings, or special sun-protective clothing — which is specifically designed
to block ultraviolet rays.
2. Don't
smoke:
Smoking
makes your skin look older and contributes to wrinkles. Smoking narrows the
tiny blood vessels in the outermost layers of skin, which decreases blood flow.
This depletes the skin of oxygen and nutrients that are important to skin
health.
Smoking
also damages collagen and elastin — the fibers that 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 — can contribute to wrinkles.
If you
smoke, the best way to protect your skin is to quit. Ask your doctor for tips
or treatments to help you stop smoking.
3. Treat
your skin gently:
Daily
cleansing and shaving can take a toll on your skin. To keep it gentle:
Limit
bath time. Hot water and long showers or baths remove oils from your skin.
Limit your bath or shower time, and use warm — rather than hot — water.
Avoid
strong soaps. Strong soaps and detergents can strip oil from your skin.
Instead, choose mild cleansers.
Shave
carefully. To protect and lubricate your skin, apply shaving cream, lotion or
gel before shaving. For the closest shave, use a clean, sharp razor. Shave in
the direction the hair grows, not against it.
Pat dry.
After washing or bathing, gently pat or blot your skin dry with a towel so that
some moisture remains on your skin.
Moisturize
dry skin. If your skin is dry, use a moisturizer that fits your skin type. For
daily use, consider a moisturizer that contains SPF.
4. Eat a
healthy diet:
A
healthy diet can help you look and feel your best. Eat plenty of fruits,
vegetables, whole grains and lean proteins. The association between diet and
acne isn't clear — but some research suggests that a diet rich in vitamin C and
low in unhealthy fats and processed or refined carbohydrates might promote
younger looking skin.
5.
Manage stress:
Uncontrolled
stress can make your skin more sensitive and trigger acne breakouts and other
skin problems. To encourage healthy skin — and a healthy state of mind — take
steps to manage your stress. Set reasonable limits, scale back your to-do list
and make time to do the things you enjoy. The results might be more dramatic
than you expect.
