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Maintaining Flawless Skin: A Regimen or a Lifestyle?

Make It Easy on Yourself

Having flawless skin doesn’t require dozens of products and a tedious nightly regimen. It’s all about maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Practicing certain habits and kicking others will improve your complexion much faster than you think. All the experts agree that smoking and tanning are the greatest obstacles to youthful, radiant skin. Stop smoking, and wear sun protection. Following the additional tips below will revitalize your skin and boost your confidence.

Get Enough Sleep

After a long, stressful day, your skin is just as tired as the rest of you. Sleep goes a long way to repair the damage. While you sleep, blood flow increases to give your cheeks a rosy glow. New collagen is produced to fill in sags and fine lines. When you’re tired, your brow furrows. Your mouth turns down. Get seven to nine hours of sleep each night, and put on a happy face.

Stay Hydrated

Keeping your skin tissue hydrated is crucial. The simplest, least expensive way to do that is to drink plenty of water. A quality moisturizer will help prevent water loss through superficial skin layers. Ceramides, collagen and retinol are some of the most beneficial ingredients. A teardrop of olive oil will also keep skin moist and supple. Don’t neglect your lips. They’re covered by the thinnest skin on your body, so they’re more susceptible to damage. Whatever moisturizer you use on your face should do for your lips as well.

Eat Right

What’s good for one aspect of your health is invariably good for others. A clean diet not only benefits your waistline, but it contributes to heart, brain and skin health. The antioxidants in fruits, vegetables and whole grains prevent wrinkles. The healthy fats in foods like fish and avocados have built-in moisturizers. Foods in Mediterranean cuisine, like tomatoes, olives and garlic, add radiance to the skin and may reduce the risk of melanoma. Red wine has advantages, but drinking too much can backfire; alcohol is terribly dehydrating. Limit yourself to one drink per day.

Exercise

An ongoing Canadian study is providing indisputable evidence that exercise improves skin quality. Subjects who exercise even moderately for at least three hours a week have thicker, healthier skin layers than those who don’t. There even appears to be a reverse-aging effect. Subjects with poor skin who started exercising later in life eventually had skin quality that was comparable to people in their 20s.

Be Gentle

Having clean skin and pores is important, but don’t overdo it. Long, hot showers can deplete natural oils. You can damage skin tissue by using harsh soaps and exfoliating too frequently. Remember that good health habits are the foundation of a flawless complexion. Washing with a mild product and applying a good moisturizer before bed should be all that you need to round out your regimen.