Products such as moisturizers, fake tanners, and concealers are all sold to give you the appearance of naturally healthy skin.
The problem is that these products only give your skin the appearance of health.
If you want to protect your skin, you need to improve your health.
Skin health is crucial because skin is one of the most important organs in your body.
It retains your bodily fluids, protects you from harmful microbes, and helps control your body temperature.
This organ has an important job. Without skin you can’t live, and without healthy skin your health will suffer.
Improving your health through the proper maintenance of your skin is easy to do. It’s as simple as protecting your skin from harmful irritants and providing your body with the nutrition it needs to grow healthy skin cells.
Incorporate these healthy skin care habits into your routine and improve your overall health and wellness:
Protect Yourself from the Sun
Sun exposure causes damage to your skin. Over time the sun’s ultra-violet rays destroy fibers in the skin called elastin.
The destruction of these fibers leads to dead, saggy skin.
You won’t recognize the signs of destructed elastin immediately, but as time goes on, the physical evidence becomes apparent.
This type of damage accelerates the aging process, leaving you looking older than you actually are.
Your physical appearance isn’t the only thing at risk due to sun exposure.
You’re also at risk of developing skin cancer. Over-exposure to UV rays is the number one cause of melanoma, which is the most serious type of skin cancer.
The sun causes melanoma because UV light damages the DNA in your skin cells.
If enough damaged DNA builds up over time, cells can start to grow out of control, which is how cancerous cells form.
Avoid the negative effects of the sun by protecting yourself against the sun’s harmful rays.
When outside, always wear sunscreen, make sure your arms and legs are covered with clothing, and avoid going out during the peak hours of sunlight.
Quit Smoking
Smoking accelerates the skin’s aging process. It does a great job at adding premature wrinkles and blemishes to your skin because it:
- Changes the elasticity in the fibers of your skin.
- Narrows the blood vessels in your skin, which reduces blood flow.
- Reduces the amount of moisturizing vitamin A in your skin.
Smoking not only alters the appearance of your face but also delays your ability to heal from wounds.
Not being able to heal on a normal schedule puts you in danger of wound infection, graft or flap failure, skin tissue death, and blood clots. All of these things are affected because of:
- Lack of oxygen to cells.
- Decreased collagen synthesis.
- Delayed growth of new blood vessels.
Last but not least, smoking is a major factor in developing skin and mouth cancer. 75% of all oral cancers occur in smokers. It’s obvious how dangerous smoking is to the health of your skin.
The only way to get rid of these dangerous skin threats is for you to quit smoking.
Stay Hydrated
Drinking water is one of the best ways to keep your skin healthy. It nourishes an ingredient in your skin called hyaluronic acid.
Hyaluronic acid’s job is to hold water inside your skin. When it’s doing its job correctly, it gives your skin a healthy appearance and also decreases your risk of developing wrinkles.
Hydrated skin is also better at protecting you from UV rays, microorganisms, and toxic substances because it remains more flexible.
To keep your skin hydrated, you need to drink at least 64 ounces of water per day.
Avoid Excessively Hot Showers/Baths
When you expose your body to hot water temperatures, you put yourself at risk for skin damage.
Much like getting a sunburn, sitting in hot water can cause problems for your skin such as skin inflammation, minor burns, skin irritation, and skin peeling.
These problems occur because your skin’s moisture balance is thrown off.
When your skin isn’t moisturized properly, you lose essential oils, fats, and proteins that keep your skin healthy.
Turn down the water temperatures or decrease the time you spend in the bath/shower to protect your skin from harm.
Get Plenty of Vitamin C
Vitamin C provides strong antioxidant protection for your skin. This vitamin is capable of:
- Reducing sunspots and other sun damage.
- Boosting healthy collagen production.
- Decreasing inflammation in the skin.
- Increasing the effectiveness of sunscreens.
Adding more vitamin C to your skin care routine or daily diet is one of the easiest things you can do to promote healthy skin in your body.
The following foods are great sources of Vitamin C:
- Oranges.
- Red bell peppers.
- Kale.
- Broccoli.
- Papaya.
- Strawberries.
