Is your skin-care routine back-firing?

Along the road to clear skin, there are often many bumps in the road. While you would never intentionally do something to your skin that was harmful, many times the thing that people think is good for their skin, is actually bad. are many things that people attempt in the hopes of looking better? that brutally backfire. Fortunately, some simple tweaks can right the wrongs and help you on the journey to Clear Skin Street.

?Sun: the old wives tale about sun clearing up Acne is completely false.

Even though your skin might initially look better after sun exposure as the sun can help dry out some breakouts? a few days later your skin is more prone to suffer through unnecessary breakouts because of the sun.

In reaction to sun exposure, the skin becomes inflamed. This inflammation at the surface of the skin closes off the entrance way to the pore, making it impossible for the skin to exfoliate itself properly. Due to this, any debris trapped inside is now physically blocked from expressing itself.

Also, regular sun exposure increases your chance of post-inflammation hyperpigmentation (or in simpler English, your skin is more likely to have spots of discoloration where pimples used to be, long after the pimples have cleared).

The solution is easy: sunscreen needs to be worn daily. A lot of people (especially those that suffer from Acne) complain about using sunscreen because they feel it leaves their skin oily and congested, however these days there is a sunscreen made for every skin and personality type. For those with sensitive, acne-prone skin, look for physical sunscreens that are non-comedogenic and meant for acne/oily skin types. SkinCeuticals has several great varieties of these, and both Neutrogena and Banana Boat both offer a wide assortment of sunscreens that are readily available at any local drug-store.

?Makeup: Without your knowing it, heavy makeup formulas can clog your pores. ?

It happens all the ?time? cosmetic products you are purposely applying to your face in order to make it look better, unknowingly are making it look worse. Oil-based/heavy foundations are used to smooth over the skin and camouflage any imperfections, while ironically clogging pores and causing more pimples to occur that will need to be covered. (Other heavy cosmetic products, such as skin ?oils? and ?butters? do the same thing.)

If you think that your makeup is the cause behind your recent breakouts, try switching to water-based formulas. Check the labels to make sure that they are oil-free and noncomedogenic. (If it applies, most makeup products will absolutely list this as they are very desirable attributes.)

Mineral based makeup is another great option, as some of the natural mineral ingredients? such as zinc and magnesium? are actually beneficial for the skin, as they help provide sun damage, and have anti-inflammatory benefits.

Also, make sure to ALWAYS wash your face before bed!

Skin products that are too strong:?

?This is a prime example of trying to do the right thing for your skin thing, to no avail: ?some skincare products that are used with the intent of doing good to the skin, can be too strong or irritating to the skin.

Skin care products such as Retinols, acids, or Vitamin C? can potentially be too harsh for your skin. If they are too strong, these products can over-dry and irritate the skin, which starts the horrible cycle of your skin producing more oil to compensate for the over-dryness, leaving you with extra-oily, irritated skin, that is ripe for infections.

The solution is hopefully an obvious one; figure out which products are ingredients are irritating to your skin, and then scale back appropriately.

Depending on your level of concern, visiting a professional skin care expert could also be beneficial, as they could put you on the right track to the best products for your specific skin.

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