Tips for glowing skin

Your skin is a clear indicator to your lifestyle and internal well being, here are a few popular beauty tips to give you that much elusive glowing skin.

Exercise: 

Exercising can do wonders to your skin. Indulge in some sort of physical activity on a regular basis and notice how it affects your skin for the better. Running, jogging, walking or swimming, take out around 30 minutes from your daily schedule and unwind.

Drink water: 

Probably one of the most advised beauty tips, keeping yourself hydrated on a daily basis is absolutely essential. Juices and other liquids are also highly beneficial. Drink around 10-15 glasses a day and it is sure to positively affect your skin. Additionally, excessive consumption of alcohol should also be avoided.

Go green: 

A healthy diet can do wonders to the quality of your skin. Incorporate a healthy dose of vitamins and proteins in your daily diet and notice the condition of your skin change for the tremendously. Figs, radishes, spinach etc are great for healthy, glowing skin. Nuts like almonds are also known to improve the quality of your skin.

Detoxify, sleep well for radiant skin

Hectic work schedules often keep women away from spending any time on nurturing their skin. But it's easy to do it at home by detoxifying the body and getting proper beauty sleep.

Sun, stress, pollution and dirt leads to several skin concerns like uneven skin tone, blemishes and dull looking skin. However, an expert at cosmetic brand Lakme has shared tips on how one can get the desired flawless and radiant skin in the comfort of your home, said a statement.

Detox your body: 

Your body is a result of what is going on inside it. Skin problems develop when your skin can't do its job of eliminating toxins efficiently. Drink warm water with lemon every morning to help flush toxins from the body. Reduce your intake of alcohol for a few days to give your body and skin a break. Up your intake of fresh fruits, vegetables and water to boost the amount of skin-saving nutrients you're getting.

Get some beauty sleep:

Sleep affects your physical and mental well-being. When you sleep, you're allowing your body to begin the healing process. Good sleep directly leads to fresh looking skin. Try and hit the sack earlier than you usually do and you will see the result within no time on your skin.

Skin serum is in: 

Gone are the days when serum was only for your hair. Skin serums are the latest trend in skin care. Whoever thought skin serums were only used by experts at the salon, think again. You can now use skin serums even in the comfort of your home with ease. Vitamins in these serums help make your skin even and radiant.

Strip off your make-up before going to bed: 

Leaving make-up and dirt on skin doesn't just clog pores but it also causes skin dullness. Always wipe off your make up and wash your face with a face wash to remove all the dirt and grime that your skin has collected throughout the day. Massage your face with a hydrating creme after you wash your face to help replenish your skin while you sleep.

Don't forget to apply sunscreen: 

We know, you've heard it a million times, but stepping out of the house during the day without wearing sunscreen is like directly forcing your skin to dullness. Sunscreen not only prevents your skin from tanning but also keeps it moisturized and hydrated throughout the day. Applying sunscreen everyday helps your skin retrieve its natural moisture.

What to eat for a brighter skin

Here's a list of edible items that can help you get that glowing skin you've always craved for

Shelling out that last penny in the salon and still, women fret about maintaining a glowing complexion throughout the year. It's no secret that drinking about eight to 10 glasses of water on a daily basis will help clear those impurities and give you a healthy looking skin. But it's not just water that will add to your skin's radiance. There are many edibles that will keep you glowing. Here's an index of what you should add to your daily food slot to look bright and pretty.

Strawberries

Yes, this is one secret that has been out of grandma's kitchen trove for the longest time. Strawberries are known to be brilliant as it benefits the skin in more than one way. This accessory fruit is known to be rich in coenzyme Q10, a substance that helps fight free radical damage, and lessens the pace of aging, increases both the adeptness and rate of cellular energy production. Quite high in alpha-hydroxyl acid, this fruit helps get rid of dead skin cells and helps the body build collagen. Another great thing about strawberries, it's highly concentrated with vitamin C, an essential antioxidant that helps prevent skin blemishes, fights the aging process and the harmful effects of the sun.

Tomatoes

There are many reasons to toss a tomato in your diet, it adds to the content of collagen in the skin, thus preventing it from sagging. Also, tomatoes have higher antioxidants , this helps reduce fine lines on the skin. Also, eating tomato sauce and tomato juice can help clear up acne.

Oranges

Another fruit apart from the strawberry that is extremely high in antioxidants are oranges. These help brighten the skin. Orange, a citrus fruit, contains vitamin C, that helps prevent conditions like skin inflammation. One thing known about vitamin C is that, it helps improve the absorption of Vitamin E and iron in the body, and this in turn gives you a radiant complexion. You might have noticed, there are many skin care products that have orange extracts in them.

Eggs

Eggs are great for the skin, they help soften, firm and hydrate the skin. It is known to contain amino acids that help in generation of new skin cells. A study states that two major antioxidants that eggs contain, lutein and zeaxanthin, is known to increase more than four times the protection against the UV damage that leads to lines, brown spots, and cancer. Apparently, eating about one egg a day significantly increases blood levels of lutein and zeaxanthin (but not cholesterol).

(Compiled by Simi Kuriakose)

Clean skin: 4 rules to live by

Clean skin is critical for clear skin. It’s the very first step in your daily skin care regimen. Here are four rules about cleansing that will help you look fresh every day.

The truth about cleansing your skin

1.  Clean skin is not gender biased

Yes gentlemen, that means you need to cleanse too.  I can’t tell you how many times I have heard from you guys, “But Jacquie, I don’t wear makeup and, when I look in the mirror, my skin looks perfectly clean”.  Sorry guys, just because you don’t wear makeup doesn’t mean your skin isn’t covered with bacteria and skin impurities.  Think about what we are exposed to on a daily basis – pollution, smog, cigarette smoke, car exhaust, aerosol sprays… and that’s just the beginning.  Just because you can’t see the dirt and grime at the end of the day, doesn’t mean it’s not there.  It needs to be washed off!

2. Night cleansing is imperative for healthy skin

Believe me, I am the first to admit that there are nights when I am just too tired at the thought of removing my makeup, and cleansing my skin seems like a monumental task.  But ladies, even if you have to crawl to your sink half-asleep to cleanse that makeup off – do it! Sleeping in your makeup can clog your pores and that can result in breakouts.  Unwashed skin can become a breeding ground for bacteria  and it will leave your skin looking dull.

3. Just because you cleansed your face the night before doesn’t mean you don’t need a morning wash too

It’s important to note that just because you go to bed with a freshly cleansed face that doesn’t mean you can skip the cleansing in the morning!  We need to remove any nighttime products we may have applied including night cream and eye cream.  Most importantly, our body, including the skin, works to repair itself when we’re sleeping.  During this time, the skin may secrete oils and other impurities that must be removed in the morning as they may prevent our daytime skin care products from working properly.

  

4. Find the right cleanser for your skin type

Most cleansers pretty much provide the same benefits to the skin: they remove dirt, oil, bacteria and makeup.  Cleansers can be formulated to target different skin concerns such as dry or oily skin and can come in an array of scents and textures.  If you have oily skin it is most common to use a ‘gel’ cleanser.  And, dry skin usually needs a ‘lotion’ style cleanser.

A good cleanser will target dryness by providing light moisture or will help remove excess oils by targeting sebum production.  (“Sebum” is just a fancy word that means oil.)

A good cleanser will never compromise your skin’s moisture barrier, or increase oil production.  So, no matter how tempting, don’t just grab a random cleanser off the shelf. Do some research, trial and error, and find what works best for your skin type.

Be good to your skin and your skin is more likely to be good to you!

7 Steps To Younger-Looking Skin : Must-know skin rules !

Follow these simple steps to erase signs of aging and boost your overall skin health. From what you eat to when you wash your face, small changes can make a big difference.

1. Suds up at night

Clear away the day's debris

"The most important time to wash your face is before you hit the sack," says Doris Day, MD, a New York City-based dermatologist. Dirt, bacteria, and makeup left on overnight can irritate skin, clog pores, and trigger breakouts. Remove this top layer of grime with a gentle face wash (skin should feel pleasantly tight for 10 to 15 minutes post-cleansing), which also allows anti-aging skin care to penetrate deeper for better results. Because oil production dips with hormonal changes in your 40s, cleansing twice daily can dry out your complexion and make wrinkles look more pronounced. To refresh skin in the morning, splash with lukewarm water.

2. Be UV-obsessed

Skin damage can happen at any time of year

Nothing is more important than wearing sunscreen (ideally, SPF 30) every day if you want younger-looking skin. Even 10 minutes of daily exposure to UVA "aging" rays can cause changes that lead to wrinkles and sunspots in as few as 12 weeks. If your moisturizer isn't formulated with a built-in broad-spectrum SPF 30 sunscreen, be sure to apply one daily to block both UVA and UVB rays.

3. Manage stress

They're called frown lines for a reason!

Emotional upheavals can make your skin look 5 years older than your chronological age, says New York City dermatologist and psychiatrist Amy Wechsler, MD, author of The Mind-Beauty Connection. Constant anxiety increases the stress hormone cortisol, which causes inflammation that breaks down collagen. It also triggers a chain of responses that can lead to facial redness and acne flare-ups.

To quell inflammation, eat antioxidant-rich foods such as berries, oranges, and asparagus. When you're feeling tense, Wechsler recommends a few minutes of deep breathing (inhale through your nose, hold for 3 counts, and release through your mouth).

4. Use a retinoid

If you apply just one topical anti-ager, make it this

Research shows that these vitamin-A derivatives speed cell turnover and collagen growth to smooth fine lines and wrinkles and fade brown spots. Prescription-strength retinoids such as Renova provide the fastest results—you'll start to see changes in about a month. To help skin acclimate to any redness and peeling, apply just a pea-size drop to your face every third night, building up to nightly usage. Milder OTC versions (look for retinol) are gentler, although it can take up to 3 months to see noticeable results.

5. Update your routine

Refresh the products you use—and your complexion

Altering even one thing in your regimen every 6 to 12 months jump-starts more impressive improvements in tone and texture. "When you apply products consistently, your skin slides into maintenance mode after about a year," says New Orleans dermatologist Mary P. Lupo, MD. To keep it primed for rejuvenation, substitute a cream that contains alpha hydroxy acids for your prescription retinoid twice a week to boost the benefits. Or bump up your OTC retinoid to an Rx formula.

6. Eat omega-3s

They make you smart, they make you beautiful—what's not to like?

These "good fats" in foods such as salmon, flaxseed, and almonds boost hydration, which keeps skin supple and firm. The same isn't true of the saturated fat in dairy products and meats, which increase free-radical damage that makes skin more susceptible to aging. Limit saturated fat intake to about 17 g daily.

7. Exercise regularly

Here's a little extra motivation to burn calories

Studies find that women who work out regularly have firmer skin than similar non-exercisers. The reason: Exercise infuses skin with oxygen and nutrients needed for collagen production. To keep your skin toned, make time for at least three 30-minute heart-pumping workouts per week.