The largest organ in our body is the skin having numerous vital functions but mostly to protect the body against external influences and excessive water loss. It’s also a crucial factor in regulating body temperature, insulation, sensation and vitamin D production.
However, it also accumulates various toxins that come from water, food, dirt around us, makeup and house cleaning products. It’s also affected by hormonal disorders and an unhealthy diet. If you never detox your skin, it will appear inflamed, with blemishes and uneven color.
A regular skincare routine that incorporates regular skin cleansing and detox can reverse and minimize these effects, brighten your skin and reduce the signs of skin damage and aging.
Establish a Double Cleanse Routine
Double cleansing means you’ll be cleaning your skin twice in the morning and again in the evening. This is an effective way to remove all impurities and pollutants from the skin, including 30,000 to 40,000 dead skin cells that we shed every day. Without an appropriate cleansing routine, you will contribute to pore congestion, breakouts and dullness.
As your choice for the first cleanse, opt for balms and cleansing oils that dissolve grime and go deep into the skin. Gels and micellar waters are an excellent choice for second cleansing. You could also consider using products with three essential ceramides that will continue nourishing your skin during the cleansing process.
Rethink Your Products
Skin takes a lot of beating every day so it makes sense to adopt the aforementioned cleansing routine as your starting point. However, you also need to know what you’re doing with other skincare products once the cleansing is complete. For instance, excessive amounts of acids and actives lead to sensitivity, irritation and weakened skin’s barrier function. In that case, you should change products and find a gentler and more supportive skincare routine that will get your skin back on track.
Reconsider your skincare by choosing reliable probiotic skincare products that contain potent ingredients such as collagen, probiotics, and antioxidants, that can boost overall skin health from within. Go back to a gentle cleanser and moisturizer, and add in a brightening antioxidant such as vitamin C to stimulate collagen, brighten up your skin and reverse oxidation caused by inflammatory free radicals. Also, add these to your nightly regime accompanied with retinol and retinoids which have been proven to stimulate collagen synthesis, reduce inflammation and even out skin tone.
Stay Hydrated
Excess amounts of sugar, alcohol and junk food, followed by elevated stress will impact the skin in many ways, most of all they’ll contribute to chronic dehydration. This causes the skin to appear dull, dry and uneven, with more fine lines you’d like, and even some itchiness and flakiness.
If you recognize the symptoms, you need to rehydrate and address the issue inside and out. Drink plenty of water to stay hydrated from the inside, but to restore balance to your skin, look for hydrating products with hyaluronic acid, which restores skin’s hydration, and helps repair the skin damage caused by too much festive behavior.
Eat Well
A healthy diet is important for your overall health but a healthy gut and its microbiome also mean your skin will be healthy. However, it’s not just about healthy food, it’s everything you ingest, most of all alcohol. It causes an inflammatory reaction in the gut that may result in digestive discomfort, bloating and stomach pains, and it inhibits the production of digestive enzymes so it’s much more difficult for your body to digest and absorb nutrients from food. This means your skin won’t get the nutrition it needs.
Get Plenty of Sleep
It’s certainly very tempting to indulge in late-night binge-watching on Netflix and partying late during the festive period, but not getting enough sleep is harmful to the skin. During sleep, the skin moves into regeneration mode, replaces all dead cells with new ones, and repairs any environmental damage. Also, blood flow to the skin increases, improving its structural work by rebuilding crucial collagen and elastin.
Skipping your precious sleep hours hinders this general maintenance work, and instead creates a favorable ground for inflammation, acne, eczema, psoriasis and allergies. Sleep has always been nature’s best medicine and the same goes for your skin – make an effort to get at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep every night so your body can rest and recharge.
Skin detoxification has many benefits, but most of all, it helps you feel good and healthy from the inside out. Eliminating harmful toxins from your body will give you fantastic results, plus you’ll have your skin looking, healthy, fresh, radiant and smooth!
Diana Smith is a full time mom of two beautiful girls interested in health and beauty related topics and alternative medicine. In her free time she enjoys long walks in the woods, hard exercising and preparing healthy meals for her family.
