Whether they are taking Sunday night yoga classes at the gym, drinking organic smoothies or just simply resorting to retail therapy, college students are constantly on the hunt for new ways to better themselves.
However, while there are university students who strive for healthier lifestyles, there are some who neglect an important and basic routine. The first step to improving your health habits is to focus on your largest and most visible organ: the skin. Whether you love it or hate it, it is imperative to take care of it.
Skin care. It is two simple words, but it is associated with a million and one myths, sciences, products and confusions. Why does skincare have to be so confusing to so many people? Let us clear up some misconceptions about skincare: It is not for the old and wrinkled, and it is definitely not just for the experts.
According to Nectar Skin Bar Aesthetician Hanne Powers and Bliss Bar General Manager Michelle Caron, the golden rule – and the first step – to better skin, is to wash your face twice a day.
Two female university students, Alanna DeLeon and Tsahai Crawlle, take different measures to skincare. However, skincare experts Powers and Caron said there were flaws in each of the girl’s daily routines.
DeLeon, a public health major, only washes her face once per day – when she showers at night. “Because I’m lazy and I usually wake up 30 minutes before I have to leave for class, I don’t have time wash my face,” DeLeon said. “My sister and my brother are really prone to acne, and I don’t think I am.”
Powers said that when you clean your skin, you remove some of the dead skin cells. When you massage your cleanser in, you stimulate your cells, and you remove oils, impurities and other bacteria that are sitting on your face.
“And if you have all those dead skin cells and dirt on your skin, all that dirt can stack up on your face, and that can feel like dry skin,” Powers said. “So some people think they may have dry skin, but it may just be dirt on their faces.”
There are various products on the market that wash away impurities and other bacteria from your pores – including microdermabrasions and peel exfoliations. These skincare items help remove dead skin cells, which leave your skin feeling fresher and your complexion looking brighter.
Crawlle, a communications major, uses brown sugar or regular face wash with beads in it to exfoliate her face once a week. Crawlle said she also likes to apply charcoal facemasks in addition to exfoliating her face.
While Crawlle exfoliates her face with different products and applies facemasks, she admits to washing her face only once a day. “I don’t wash my face in the morning, but I make sure that I put my moisturizer on my face before putting on makeup, so the makeup has something to stick to.”
However, merely applying moisturizer to your face does not improve your skin’s condition. “If you don’t clean your skin first and you put a moisturizer or a balm on instead, it will not penetrate your skin,” Powers said. “You create a perfect growth place for bacteria.”
Both experts agreed that a long-term effect of a lack in skincare could accelerate the aging process. Therefore, along with washing your face, moisturizing is important, too.
“You want to get lotions that protect from UVA and UVB rays, because a lot of people don’t realize that UVA rays cause aging in the skin, and UVB leads to burning of the skin,” Caron, who has worked in the spa and salon industry for 18 years, said.
Both the cleansers and the products do not have to cost a large sum of money, though. For college students on a budget, they can purchase these skincare items at their local pharmacy. Although, good salons, according to Powers, should and do have different skin care lines that are varied in price.
Caron recommended just about any regular facial cleanser that can be purchased from your local pharmacy. However, Caron said you should invest more in products that go beyond just cleansing your face – like an exfoliator. Make sure to go to a skin care professional or a dermatologist. They can evaluate your skin type and condition and recommend specific products.