Life, Beauty And Health Facts, Tips And Hacks

10 Proven Ways to Keep Your Skin Young and Healthy

We’re all in a constant battle to keep our skin, hair and nails looking healthy. Even the skin care industry is taking advantage of this fact and launching new products day by day. Their clever marketing persuades people to buy the products, but often without any results to show for their money.

Fulfilling the desire for younger-looking skin does not mean having to spend a fortune on expensive products and treatments.

Remember, the skin is the body’s largest organ. Healthy and youthful skin is a sign of optimal well-being. From eating right to your exercise routine, from your skin care regimen to your sleeping style, everything affects your skin quality.

Maintaining healthy and younger-looking skin can be accomplished with the right approach.

1. Protect Your Skin from the Sun

One of the most important things you can do to keep your skin beautiful is protect it from the sun. A lifetime of sun exposure can cause wrinkles, age spots and other skin problems.

The American Academy of Dermatology says that the sun plays a major role in premature aging of the skin. This is why it’s important to protect your skin from the sun every day, even on rainy and winter days

You can protect your skin by seeking shade, wearing clothes that cover up all your body and applying sunscreen that is broad-spectrum, SPF 30 (or higher) and water-resistant on all exposed skin.

Even tomato paste consumption can provide protection from sun damage. A 2012 study published in Nutrition Research reports that tomato paste supplementation improves endothelial dynamics and reduces plasma total oxidative status in healthy subjects. This is important for healthy skin.

Sun exposure is also linked to skin cancer, one of the leading causes of deaths due to cancer.

A 2001 study published in the Journal of Biomedicine and Biotechnology reports that ultraviolet (UV) radiation induces skin cancer. Researchers emphasized raising awareness of the harmful effects of UV exposure for prevention of skin cancer.

A recent 2015 study published in Genome Biology also found that aging and sun exposure are the leading causes of skin cancer. Sun exposure causes epigenetic changes, such as DNA methylation, which are well established mechanisms for cancer.

Sun exposure is even damaging for the hair. A 2008 study published in Collegium Antropologicum says that absorption of radiation in photosensitive amino acids of the hair and their photochemical degradation produces free radicals. This has adverse impacts on hair proteins, especially keratin, leading to structural impairment of the hair shafts.

2. Wash Your Face Just Once a Day

Unless you have a skin condition like acne, dermatologists say you only need to wash your face once a day, in the evening right before going to bed. Always use a mild cleanser.

Nighttime cleansing helps remove makeup, pollutants and other particles that have collected on the skin throughout the day.

If you like washing your face to feel fresh in the morning, skip the cleanser and just rinse with lukewarm water. Cleansing your face twice a day or more can cause dryness, especially if you have dry and sensitive skin.

That squeaky-clean feeling you get after washing your face is actually not good as it indicates that your skin is overly dry.

A 2012 article by the American Academy of Dermatology reports that how you wash your face can make a difference in your appearance. Experts offer several suggestions in the article, including:

•Use a gentle, nonabrasive cleanser that does not contain alcohol.

•Wet your face with lukewarm water first, then apply cleanser using your fingertips.