12 Common Habits That Affect the Skin and Hair
So many hair and skin issues, such as
backne, split ends, hair loss, puffiness and others are common nowadays,
affecting our confidence and discouraging us from using skin and hair
care. But don't be discouraged, as all it takes is a bit more attention
and knowledge and you'll be able to get rid of these problems.
Unfortunately, we are often to blame for
these issues, as we unknowingly irritate and harm the skin and hair,
stretching them to the limit. Are you guilty of these 10 bad habits?
Even if you are, you can learn how to avoid them and treat your body the
right way with this informative guide.
1. Old Makeup and Beauty Tools May Be the Hiding Place for Bacteria
Makeup brushes, hairbrushes, and sponges
are all essential grooming tools, but if we don't take care of them and
don't replace them regularly enough, they will start harboring bacteria,
which then can cause dermatitis, acne and scalp issues. Even old makeup
can become the breeding grounds for bacteria.
Some items need to be replaced regularly, such as your mascara,
foundation and makeup sponges, whereas others, e.g. makeup brushes,
simply require thorough and regular cleaning. Make sure to wash your
makeup brushes and sponges with warm water and soap (or a dedicated
brush cleanser) once a week and set out to dry on a clean towel.
2. Drinking Through a Straw All the Time Will Give You Wrinkles Around
the Mouth
Yes, it's true, a simple thing like
drinking from a straw can speed up skin aging.
Let us point out that we think that there's nothing wrong with wrinkles
and fine lines, as beauty is ageless, but if you do want to prevent and
decrease those vertical fine lines around your mouth, ditching the straw
is a good start, plus it's good for the environment.
3. Your Shampoo Can Cause Breakouts
I myself have struggled with this problem,
as I couldn't understand what's causing breakouts around my hairline and
on my shoulders until I realized that it must be the hair care items I
was using that irritated my skin. Little did I know that this problem is
so widespread and so many people have the same problem. Luckily,
there's a quick solution to it, too.
Certainly, you can't and shouldn't stop shampooing your hair, but what
you can do is to change up your hair care products to more
hypoallergenic ones. Apart from that, shampoo and condition your hair
before washing your face and body to make sure you get all the remnants
of the hair care products off your skin, especially the hairline.
4. You Wait for Hours After You Get Out of the Shower to Apply Your
Skincare
If you find that your skin is dry and
parched, this might be why. Many people fail to moisturize their skin
right after they hop out of the shower, which makes their skin lose a
lot of hydration. This, in turn, can accentuate your fine lines and
wrinkles, even if you apply moisturizer later on. The best time to apply
moisturizer and any other skin treatments is right after the shower,
which will make sure you lock in all the moisture in your skin, both
face and body included.
5. You Apply Your Skincare Products in the Wrong Order
If you're someone who has several steps in
your skincare routine, you might be puzzled as to why they don't work as
well as they should, despite you meticulously putting them on every
evening. One very common reason why this may be the case is that you got
their order wrong, as the ingredients with the products that are
oil-soluble and those that are water-soluble don't mix well.
Even experienced skincare enthusiasts make this mistake sometimes, so
don't worry and simply follow this general rule: apply your skincare
products from thinnest to thickest.
For example, if you have a facial spray, a serum, an eye cream and a
moisturizer in your routine, you start with the facial spray, then apply
your serum, followed by your eye cream, and finally, the moisturizer.
This application order ensures all the water-based products meant to
penetrate deeply into your skin do so instead of idly sitting on top of
your moisturizer.
6. You Overindulge With Salt
Despite popular belief, a diet that
contains too much salt doesn't necessarily dry out your skin if you make
sure you drink enough. However, what it can do is make the skin under
your eyes and your face puffy, even if you drink enough, as high sodium
intake makes your body worse at draining all the excess liquids from
your body, i.e. causes water retention.
So, if you find that your eyes get puffy in the morning, your high salt
diet may be why.
7. You Apply Eye Cream the Wrong Way
Some people apply eye cream right under
their eyes all the way up to their lashes, as well as the upper eyelid.
That's not the best way to apply eye cream, as it may actually make your
eye area puffier and irritate the gentle skin around your eyes, causing
premature lines.
Instead, apply the eye cream on your orbital bone, roughly in the area
we highlighted in the image above. The product will be absorbed into the
skin and then travel up to your under eyes without causing excess
puffiness.
8. You Put Your Hair Up in a Ponytail or Bun While It's Wet
When you're having a bad hair day, it's
just too tempting to just put the hair up in a ponytail or bun and
forget the problem ever existed. But if you're doing that while your
hair is still wet, you might be doing double damage. This is because
your hair is a lot more fragile and elastic while it's wet, and by
wearing it up you're actually encouraging hair breakage and split ends
in the area of the hair tie, as well as increasing the likelihood of
getting traction alopecia.
Traction alopecia is a type of sometimes permanent hair loss associated
with constant hair pulling.
9. You're Not Looking After Your Diet
It turns out that a healthy diet shows,
with both your hair and skin health suffering greatly from crash
dieting, overeating and not drinking enough water. But even foods that
are otherwise fine can cause your skin to act out, be it in the form of
breakouts, increased skin dryness or oiliness and pore size. For one,
dairy and foods that contain a lot of white flour, such as white bread
and pastries, have been found to affect the skin.
Luckily, the opposite is also true, and you can boost your skin's health
by consuming a lot of antioxidant-rich foods, such as fruit and
vegetables. One great example of skin-boosting foods are tomatoes, which
have been proven to help prevent skin aging and inflammation, among
other things.
10. Your Pillowcase Is Affecting Your Skin and Hair
You read that right, your pillowcase may be
the culprit behind some of your skin and hair issues, too. In fact,
dermatologists suggest you replace your pillowcase with a clean one as
often as possible, up to two times a week, if you're suffering from acne
or any other skin conditions.
Estheticians and consumers, on the other hand, point out that the
material of the pillowcase also matters, giving preference to satin and
silk pillowcases that reportedly cause less hair breakage and don't
leave crease marks on your face that can speed up the formation of
wrinkles.
Finally, consider the detergent you're using, as that, too, may contain
irritating ingredients that you might just be allergic to. If you feel
like this is the case for you, opt for non-scented or hypoallergenic
detergents, such as those meant for babies, which are generally less
irritating.
11. You're Using a Moisturizer That's Too Heavy for Your Skin
If you're using a moisturizer that's too
thick and emollient (softening the skin) for your particular skin, you
can develop milia, small white bumps on your skin. These typically
appear around the eyes, like in the photo above, but they can also occur
on any part of your face where you've been using a moisturizer that's
too rich for you.
These spots are not acne and picking them will only make them worse, so
don't do that. What you should do is switch to a more lightweight,
possibly gel-based moisturizer and gently exfoliate the milia with a
chemical exfoliator.
12. You're Heat Styling Hair That's Dripping Wet
Heat-styling is our final bad habit, as it
promotes hair breakage and hair loss if done regularly, but it's
especially harmful when you're applying heat to hair that's dripping wet
because you'll have to use a lot more heat to dry it completely. It's
fine to do in an emergency or during a trip to the hair salon, but doing
so several times a week will really damage your hair.
Instead, towel-dry your hair or let it air-dry until it's at least 30%
dry, and then proceed with the hairdryer. This way, you will be able to
blow-dry your hair much quicker and inflict significantly less damage to
your hair.