The Four Pillars of Effective Skincare
Our skin provides many important functions for us. The most obvious one is that our skin acts as first barrier to fight against environmental factors, helps regulate internal temperature of our bodies and it is important indicator of our internal health condition. Ideal nutrition should provide adequate amount of nutrients and water to skin for it to function at its best. Skin care products are helpful additions in assisting the skin to perform at it’s peak and to address visible blemishes and signs of aging.
Skin care regimes should cover the four pillars of effective skin care. Those pillar are Cleansing, Moisturizing, Nourishing and Protecting. Selecting a proper skin care is not an easy task. The first rule of thumb is to read all the ingredients and if you need a chemical dictionary or PHD in Chemistry to understand what you are about to put on your skin, then leave that product alone.
The key point here is to look for products using natural, organic or certified organic ingredients as those are in the form your skin cell can recognize and use.
Cleansing is the first step in any skin care routine. Select products with neutral or slight acidic ph as those are gentler on your skin. It is highly recommended to use clay masks bi-weekly to achieve deeper cleansing. Use warm water during the washing to open up pores and allows deeper cleansing. Some people love to use cold water at the end of the cleansing process to close pores down and lock the moisture in, but application of any skin care following cold water wash will reduce penetration ratio of the selected skin care product.
Moisturizing the skin can be achieved by a proper drinking regime during the day as well as having multiple showers. Using products containing popular ingredients like hyaluronic acid or the new star on the moisturizing block… snow mushroom, “captures and locks in the water” your body already has. Hoping that moisturizers will add enough water to your skin is just not right. Moisturizers add very little water to our skin. They just help to lock in existing water in the tissues.
Nourishing your skin comes by two separate avenues. Firstly, you are what you eat and your skin will reflect your dietary choices. Secondly skin care formulations with small, bioavailable, unprocessed natural ingredients can and will affect your skins appearance. Look for products containing Probiotic ingredients, superfood ingredients with GRASS principles and keep in mind that celebrity endorsement or million dollars marketing budgets are not guarantee of quality products.
Once you cleanse, moisturize and nourish your skin you should protect your investment into your skin care. I do not mean only to use sunscreens and limit your exposure to sun rays or environmental pollutants, but to apply products containing oils. Face, hand and body oils had been used for centuries as a main skin care tools. Selecting proper oil serums or just plain oil mixture is simple. Look for oils that are easily penetrable in to second or third level of your skin. Examples of those oils are rose hip, meadowfoam, marula, moringa, argan, jojoba, some cold press olive oils and others. Oils are crucial for proper maintenance of your skin cells walls and are essential for many biological processes.
To conclude, in order to give your skin all the tools it needs, spend some time researching the brands, educate yourself on the ingredients and remember simple routine do not need to include ten or more products. Eat well, drink sufficient amounts of water, use simple product ingredients and get that beauty sleep we all need.
