Seven Sins You Give Your Skin 11/06/08

Tips from the Makeup Gal
Stress can be a major factor in the process of aging our skin. It can also cause breakouts/acne. Stress causes blood flow to be directed away from the surface of the skin. This can cause a grayish or sallow color to the skin. Skincare products are difficult to combat this situation unless the stress issue is addressed first and foremost. The skin needs to be calm and relaxed so that it can absorb products more easily. Exercising will help to trigger the chemicals that can stimulate a more relaxing environment. Also, try lavender oil or chamomile and listen to relaxing music to reduce stress.
Exercise helps skin by increasing the oxygen in the blood, therefore reducing the amount of toxins building in your system. Lack of Exercise does not help the body to tolerate stress as much as a daily exercise routine. Daily exercise will help with sleep. Try something that increases your heart rate and makes you breathe faster and do this at least three times a week for 30 minutes a day. There are many possibilities such as aerobics, swimming, cycling, running, walking fast, dancing, etc. Be sure to check with your physician to see if it is safe for you to start a program though.
Lack of Sleep can create major skin problems. Undereye puffiness and darkness are two that really stand out. These are a dead giveaway for lack of sleep. At night the skin repairs itself while you’re sleeping by producing new cells and replacing collagen and elastin resulting from damage done throughout the day. The skin adheres better to treatments at night so this is a good time to use serums and night creams. It is great to get at least 8 hours of sleep at night but, some people can function on lesser hours. When I was a police officer, I asked one of our teachers at the academy, who also was a psychologist, how I could function on only 4 hours of sleep a night because that was all I was able to sleep. He stated that some people’s bodies adjusted to this and it was just part of their physical makeup and it was nothing to worry about. Since then though, I’ve become a major insomniac. Some things that may help with sleep are the following; taking a bath with a water temperature of 100 to 106 degrees, if you can stand it, which produces sleep hormones: adding lavender, chamomile, or melissa oils to the bath water which will add to the benefits (unless you are pregnant): warm milky drinks such as chamomile tea with a little milk and honey: and if necessary taking herbal supplements such as valerian or passionflower, but I’d be weary of these if you are taking other medications. Definitely, check with you doctor due to contraindications with other medicines. I cannot take melatonin because of an extreme allergic reaction (that happens the next day) and plus it still keeps me awake all night. You never know how your body will react to certain drugs.
If you are having major issues with your skin, it is best to go to a dermatologist because they specialize in skin problems and their diagnostic abilities will be more accurate. Otherwise, stay away from the seven deadly sins of the skin.
Some portions of this article were retrieved from "The Complete Beauty Book" by Helen Foster.