The 7 Best Skin Care Tips That Experts Want You to Know
Skin health is an important aspect of your self care routine, but sometimes it can be easy to get lost in the sea of skin care tips and available products out there.
It can be really confusing to figure out what’s the right choice for your skin and what’s just a popular skin care myth.
Because of that, I interviewed a dermatologist and an esthetician to get the low down on all things skin care. And spoiler alert – I got lots of great tips that I can’t wait to share.
These two skin care experts have verified the answers to the burning skin care questions you want to know!
Let’s get to know these skin care experts…
Dr. Cynthia Bailey
Dr. Bailey is a board certified dermatologist with over 35 years in practice and an impressive resume.
She is also a well-versed expert in the online community through her website and blog, Dr. Bailey Skin Care, where she provides great skin care tips and product recommendations.
Click here to check out Dr. Bailey’s blog for more skin care tips!
Samantha Dench
Samantha Dench is a licensed esthetician and owns Skin Deep, a skin care clinic in Illinois. Skin Deep also has a great blog on their site with a bunch of skin care tips!
To get more skin care tips or learn more about her skin care services, click here!
Now let’s talk about the 7 best skin care tips that experts want you to know!
1. Think of skin care as self care – and take it seriously.
When I asked Dr. Bailey if she could pass on one skin care tip to someone, this was her response: “To think of skin care as self care and take it seriously.”
Treat skin care like you would any other aspect of your overall health and wellness. To do this, prevention is critical.
Dr. Bailey says, “Craft your skin care routine to treat skin problems, keep skin well and prevent problems in the future such as sun damage and skin cancer.”
2. Facials are an important part of your skin care routine
Facials are a key aspect to any skin care routine and can provide a lot of benefits. Samantha mentions that “Facials are important to deep clean the skin, rehydrate dry skin and calm skin inflammation.”
So how often should you get a facial? According to Samantha, it’s best to get a monthly facial when you’re first starting out.
But she adds, “As long as you are using the right products at home for your skin type, you can then push your appointments out 6-8 weeks as maintenance.”
3. Diet has a large impact on your skin health
That’s right – eating healthy foods will not just make you feel good, it can help you look good too!
Dr. Bailey says, “Diet absolutely impacts skin health just like it impacts our overall health. Skin is our body’s largest organ and reflects our metabolic wellness.”
Foods like fresh produce are key to skin health, while inflammatory foods like gluten, dairy, and sugar can have a negative impact on your skin, especially with conditions such as acne, rosacea, and eczema.
Skin redness is something that I personally struggle with from time to time so I was particularly interested to learn about why this might be happening.
I learned from Samantha that skin redness can be caused by one of two factors: Diet or incorrect skin care products.
She notes, “Our skin is the largest organ of our bodies and we don’t think of our skin as being connected to our other organs, yet the foods we put into our body impacts the condition of our skin.”
Click here to read about how to incorporate more vegetables into your diet.
In addition to diet, using harsh skin care products or the wrong products for your skin care also be the cause of your skin redness. Samantha says, “if we give (our skin) the right tools that work with our specific skin type, then we won’t have the skin redness or sensitivity.”
And that of course leads to the next tip…
4. Your skin type is not something you can learn from an online quiz!
Another important note from Samantha was that “An online skin quiz is not the answer” when figuring out what your skin type is.
Instead, she suggests finding a licensed esthetician to assess your skin, either in person or virtually.
An esthetician will be able to evaluate your skin, your current skincare routine and then recommend specific products and treatments that will meet the needs of your specific skin type.
Self diagnosis for any health condition can be very tempting – Web MD anyone? But like with an illness, getting an expert opinion is always the best way to go.
Samantha says, “We are guilty of self-diagnosing our skin, but that ends up creating more problems because you never really solve the problem or you create other skin problems because of improper product use.”
I know cost is one of the biggest barriers to self care, but getting a professional opinion can save you time and money in the long run. Samantha adds that having your skin assessed by an expert does this because “the guesswork of buying skincare products has been done for you”.
For example, you might think you have a dry skin type but you might just be using the wrong products that are drying out your skin.
5. Drinking water will not solve all of your skin care problems
Drinking water is often proposed as the solution to everything. From weight loss to skin care I read all the time about the importance of drinking water.
But according to Dr. Bailey, that is one of the biggest skin care myths that she wishes people would stop spreading!
She says, “If it were true then taking a bath would quench your thirst.”
So what’s the best way to hydrate your skin? Through skin care products! And Dr. Bailey notes that our choices can either help or hinder our skin hydration.
She warns against harsh soaps that damage our skin that acts as a protective barrier and recommends applying a moisturizer (that’s right for your skin type) after bathing to help maintain your skin’s hydration.
6. There is such a thing as too many steps in your skin care routine
I feel like a lot of skin care articles have a laundry list of steps you should be adding to your skin care routine.
But that’s not always realistic when you’re a busy, boss babe getting things done. And of course, who has the money to buy a ten-step skin care routine?
So that led me to ask Samantha what steps are actually imporant?
She says, “Too many steps are not good for the skin. We think that the more we do to our skin, the better. It’s the opposite.”
So in fact, a simplified routine is actually the key to balanced, healthy skin.
When building a daily skin care routine, stick to a few basic steps:
- Cleanser
- Toner
- Dailey serum
- Moisturizer
Samantha also recommends using an exfoliant twice a week and a gentle face mask once a week as well. However, using the right products is important.
When selecting an exfoliant, beware of scrubs and chemical ingredients because they can strip your skin and cause dryness or sensitivity.
Samantha also cautions against charcoal and sulfur face masks because they can dry out your skin as well.
7. Anti-aging skin care should start earlier than you might think
According to Dr. Bailey, “Anti-aging skin care needs to start as early as 6 months!” Why you might ask? “Because the best anti-aging product – and only one that can actually claim to be ‘anti-aging’ according to the FDA – is sunscreen.”
Daily sun exposure can lead to premature skin aging, so protecting your skin from the sun is key to keeping your skin looking and feeling young.
But what about the other products you see on the shelf like retinoids?
Dr. Bailey says, “Products that fight skin aging in other ways, such as retinoids, glycolic acid and antioxidants, are best added after skin matures to more adult structure. This would be in the teen years.”
To illustrate how simple anti-aging skin care can be, Dr. Bailey used an example from a patient of hers who said: “You got me on these great products in my early 20’s and I’ve been on them ever since. It was my 38th birthday yesterday and this woman giving me a pedicure thought I was in my 20s. She couldn’t believe it. I credit it to your products, they’re fabulous. I’ve turned so many people on to them too.” – Tracy A
Dr. Bailey says that Tracy was using a good sun screen, clinical grade glycolic acid and green tea products, my daily moisturizer and prescription tretinoin.
To find out more about the anti-aging products Dr. Bailey recommends, click here.
Those are the 7 best skin care tips experts want you to know.
Whether you’re struggling to meet your skin care goals or looking to boost your skin health, use the tips in this post to meet your skin care needs.
The tips in this post came straight from skin care experts, so I don’t know about you but I can’t wait to implement these in my self care routine.
If you are looking to build your own skin care routine and incorporate it into your overall self care routine, I recommend the Self Care Seeker self care planner.
In addition to a skin care routine schedule, it also includes a monthly overview, habit tracker, meal planner, daily journal, and more!
Click here to get the ultimate self care planner!
Use it to implement the tips in this article and meet your skin care goals.
Comment below with your favorite skin care tip!
Thanks to provide this wonderful tips for skin such as drinking water, diet and many more.