Tips for a Life Time of Healthier Skin

Sleep:
Research has indicated that our hormone levels increase when our sleep patterns are disturbed. Increased hormone levels results in increased sebum production which leads to... yep you guessed it--more acne. It is during our time of sleep that our skin cells begin to be nourished and regenerating takes place the most as the body repairs itself from a long day. Get to bed earlier! Go to bed at least 1 or 2 hours early than you usually do and in a couple of days you will notice your face getting clearer and healthier.

Individuals have also reported severe acne outbreaks due to prolonged sleep deprivation.

Stress:
Stress is something that needs to be reduced in your life since it tends to aggravate acne in many people. Some students experience high levels of stress during finals weeks at school resulting in increased levels of acne.

So, how do you lower your stress levels. Aside from eliminating things that cause you stress in your life, look into relaxation techniques. Relaxation techniques are great for stressful situations. You may even look into practicing meditation or yoga to further reduce your stress levels.

Touching: Stop it already!
Avoid rubbing, touching, or itching your skin with your hands. Your hands contain a lot of bacteria that can cause acne flare-ups. This is definitely one of the most often overlooked remedies. Seriously, stop putting your hands by your face! And everything else too? here are a few things that come into contact with most people?s faces every day:

• resting hands on your cheeks while reading.
• rubbing your chin, or resting it on a surface while thinking ? How gross do you think that desk is?
• Be careful of your cell phone... it spends lots of time in dirty places. How many minutes does it spend pressed against your cheek? Clean it daily with an alcohol pad to prevent bacteria from forming.

Touching your face is probably one of the most difficult things to avoid since you don?t even think about it. You aren?t alone, everyone communicates with their hands and their face, so most of your hand to face contact throughout the day is completely unconscious in nature. Make it a habit to avoid hand contact and be conscious of it during the day to avoid bacteria.

Washing your face.
Although washing alone may not prevent acne, the wrong type of washing can aggravate acne making it worse.

Keeping your face clean requires you wash it no more than twice a day unless it?s absolutely necessary. Skin must maintain the proper pH levels to remain healthy. Over-washing will make your face dry and irritated causing more breakouts.

Ever notice how red and raw your face looks after you really scrub it clean? I do not recommend this because such treatment will only serve to irritate the skin causing more breakouts. Let your skin relax!

Follow these recommendations:

• Work a small amount of cleanser into a lather in your hands
• Massage the lather on the surface of your skin in a circular motion over your entire face.
  *Note* USE YOUR HANDS! Face cloths may irritate the skin.
• Rinse well with warm water.
• Using a clean soft towel, gently pat dry your face.