Avoid a Skin-Scare with Proper Skin-Care!

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Disclaimer: this post is purely for fun, informational purposes, and the fact that I needed to write an article this month. You are all beautiful, wonderful people! Never forget it!

Since Halloween has passed, it’s basically time for Christmas.

Kidding, but we’ve still got a BIG holiday coming up in November, and most importantly…it’s National Healthy Skin Month! November is National Healthy Skin Month and we, here at the Mountaineer, LOVE us some skin care. So, I decided to write this article in case you want to know more about healthy skin and learn of any skin-care tips. This way, we can all feel amazing and great (not that you all aren’t already amazing and great)!

The dictionary definition of healthy skin says that your face needs to be “smooth” and “acne-free” but that’s just not realistic. As a high-schooler, you get acne and that is just a fact. That said, if you take great care of your skin, you can decrease the chances of getting acne!

Healthy skin doesn’t mean having a perfect, flawless face without any acne; it means being comfortable with your skin, while also making sure that your skin is moisturized and hydrated and FEELING GOOD.

So what are some general, recommended tips?

WEAR SUNSCREEN: Now, I know what you are thinking: “It’s the middle of winter–I don’t need to put sunscreen on.” But, in the winter, you are surprisingly MORE likely to get skin damage from the sun. This is due to the fact that the snow reflects the sunshine and the radiation from the UVA rays. Whenever you wear sunscreen, you can protect your skin from “patchiness” and you can protect your skin from skin cancer. The sun is damaging all year round, so wear sunscreen!
WASH YOUR FACE: Washing your face rids your skin any oil or dirt. That dirt and oil can lead to pimples and other nasty stuff. Plus, your face goes through a lot–like when you get your history test back and you put your head down on your dirty desk, or when you get home after a long day and your dog runs up to you to lick your face.
BE CAREFUL WITH YOUR SKIN: What does this mean? It means you need to make sure to use warm water in the shower to open up your pores, but DO NOT use scalding hot water because this can damage your skin. Trust me, I know how tempting it is to just sit in the hot shower for an hour when it’s so cold outside and you can avoid all your responsibilities in the shower….BUT, next time, think about the wonderful skin that you are trying to keep healthy and smooth. And taking shorter showers helps the planet, so do your part to help the planet AND your skin!
EAT HEALTHY: I know this is a well-known tip but eating healthy can help your body AND your skin. Research shows that the vitamins in fruits and veggies can help your body to create new, revitalized skin cells and replace the old, dead ones. Those dead skin cells can block oil glands and pores or lead to the growth of P. acnes, which become the nutrients needed by acne to grow.
DRINK WATER: Now, there is no official research about whether drinking water can decrease acne (for this, I blame capitalist America; pharmaceutical companies can’t market water, so they don’t want to do research on it), BUT dermatologists say that water definitely makes a noticeable difference in skin health. They theorize that water decreases the oil on your skin, which is important to maintain the natural balance of oil and water on your skin. It’s not proven that water can fix every single problem, but if you regularly have about 8 cups of water a day, then your skin and digestive process will definitely benefit!
MANAGE STRESS: Even while writing this article, I AM SO STRESSED–I’m sure that everyone reading this article can relate. But, listen here. Stress ain’t so good. It can lead to your skin becoming more sensitive and it can lead to your skin frequently breaking out in acne. But, how do we get rid of stress? I’M GLAD YOU ASKED. First, you can sit down one day of the weekend (or whenever you are free) and just assess any potential damage lying ahead: see what you have going on that week, like what tests you may have. Once you know this, start to schedule things. And I mean, like, make a list of the order that you want to do things, from the second you get home to the second you fall asleep that night. Keeping a list of when you are doing things, instead of just what you have to do, can really help. Also, download a meditation app (not sponsored) and drink some tea!

Now, I’m sure you are wondering, “Hmmmmm, what do people my age REALLY do for their skin care?” Well I’m glad you asked. I asked some people with great skin to drop their skin care routines. (My friends have AMAZING skin, so they are very qualified to give you insight.)

A bunch of my friends have oily skin or a combo of oily and dry skin (including me). If your current cleanser isn’t working for you, then it might be better to use either the Cetaphil Daily Cleanser (which is my personal recommendation). Alternatively, if you are feeling fancy, my friend Maimoonah recommends Lush Ultrabland Facial Cleanser.

If you have oily skin or acne-prone skin–or maybe if you want an extra step to cleanse your face after wearing all that heavy-duty sunscreen–you might want to invest in toner. “What is toner?”, you might be asking yourself (and I am here asking it for you because I didn’t know what it was either). Well, toner is used to unclog your pores and remove oil and dirt. It can also shrink your pores and refresh your skin. There are thousands of toners out there, like the Clinique Clarifying Lotion, which is part of a 3-step routine, or the Yes To Tomatoes toner. My friend Chloe also recommended the use of rose water as a toner, so if you want to try that out, I found one with thousands of reviews.

My friends and I also LOVE to treat our skin because a) we love to treat ourselves and b) who doesn’t love a good face mask? I personally love a good Lush face mask, particularly the Mask of Magnaminty because it smells really, really good. I also try to make my own, homemade face masks. I use a lot of oil-based ones because different oils have different effects on your skin. For example, almond oil can deep-cleanse your skin and help with any under-eye circles. Also, tea tree oil can be used to decrease swelling and reduce acne scars. My friend Lina uses the Indian Healing Clay Mask and the Tonymoly face masks. Lina also uses a homemade lip scrub for her lips (and I found some great recipes if you wanna try some out for yourself).

There you are! Hopefully you learned some tips about skin care so we can all be happy with our skin and feel great! Also, thank you to my friends, who answered my annoying and prying questions!