We all know that occasional breakouts or sunburns mean that our skin needs a little more love, but those aren’t the only signs that your skin may be craving some Treatment, Love and Care. This doesn’t just apply to products though— a healthier lifestyle will almost always lead to healthier looking skin. Treating your inside right will create a more vibrant, radiant outside.
Here are a few things to watch out for and how to treat them.
1. Uneven Skin Tone
Uneven skin may appear a bit sallow and discolored. Yellow, blotchy skin can look tired, and can be caused by a couple of leading factors. It tends to occur mostly in the face, so if your facial skin looks different than the rest of your body, it may by worth treating. The most common causes of uneven, sallow skin are diet and smoking.
Vitamins are crucial to your body. We need all sorts of enzymes and nutrients to function properly, and most of us aren’t getting the proper amounts. Eating healthier and incorporating more vegetables (particularly leafy greens) can help create more radiant skin. On top of that, try to limit your consumption of dairy, alcohol, and caffeine, as all of these can create dehydrated, inflamed looking skin.
Smoking greatly disrupts the amount of oxygen that runs to your skin. Nicotine in particular can cease blood flow so heavily that skin starts to appear yellowish gray.
2. Tight Skin
Even though we tend to use the term “squeaky clean” as a positive, skin that actually feels squeaky after washing may be stretched too tight. This is typically due to dehydrated skin. Harsh cleansers can actually strip too much moisture from your skin, harming the outer layer of your facial skin, known as the acid mantle. The acid mantle is the silky texture that forms on the outer layer of our skin, and it helps act as a barrier against environmental damage. Using gentle cleansers help keep this layer in tact, making for softer, more hydrated skin.
Dehydration can also be fought with moisturizers and water consumption. Keeping our bodies hydrated, both inside and out, helps prevent overly taut skin, which is far more susceptible to the formation of fine lines and wrinkles.
3. Thin Skin
Thin skin forms as a result of a loss of collagen. As collagen depletes over time, skin becomes more crepey and less resilient. Certain lifestyle choices, like excessive drinking and smoking, can quickly deplete collagen levels, but so can environmental factors like sun damage and pollution. Free radicals attack healthy collagen cells more frequently as we age, but using antioxidants can drastically reduce their harmful effects and maintain healthy collagen levels. This helps to greatly prevent the formation of fine lines and wrinkles.
On top of that, using products that are specifically formulated to boost collagen levels will boost collagen production, thus drastically reducing the visibility of any fine lines and wrinkles that you already have. As collagen production increases, skin plumps out to be fuller, brighter, and healthier.
4. Dull Skin
We all want the radiant glow. Has yours disappeared over time? It’s most likely your skin telling you that you should take some action. Exfoliation is a miraculously effective way to combat dull skin. By buffing away dead skin cells and debris, exfoliants make way for the healthy, fresh skin below to rise to the surface. Be sure to only use gentle, microdermabrasion exfoliants 2-3 times per week, as other products can contain large particles that can actually tear tiny holes in your skin.
On top of that, using antioxidants can also produce stunning results for dull skin. If you live in a city, you’re most likely exposed to large amounts of pollution— even if you live somewhere without smog. As we discussed earlier, antioxidants fight the pollutants and free radicals they bring, ensuring that your skin is full, healthy, and vibrant!
