Our lives are full of routines. Our morning routine, our daily routine, our workout routine, our work routine, our family routine, our daily skincare routine, our nighttime skincare routine, and many more. With all of the routines you have to check off the daily list, you should ensure that your skincare routine is appropriate for your skin type as well as try to minimize steps in that routine without compromising the health of your skin.
Our skin not only serves as an important image of ourselves presented to the world but protects our inside from the often harsh outside environments. A carefully followed skincare routine can help to create healthier, happier, more attractive skin, which in turn will make you feel more confident and secure about your facial, neck, and décolleté’s appearance.
Your skin is unique. We all have different needs, strengths, textures, tones, and characteristics. You must determine the most appropriate skincare routine to fit your needs, time restraints, and budget.
Before you embark on your skincare routine journey, it is important to understand that your skin type, environmental factors, diet, and most importantly your genetics determine your skin type. Different skin types will have different responses to skincare products, so the appropriate products for your skin type must be determined for the greatest effectiveness to your skin. Using a product formulated for acne-prone skin will not increase the moisture needed for individuals with dry skin and this would be a big no-no or even cause undue damage to the skin.
Here is Aprisa®’s recommendation for a simple skin care routine, which will be discussed more in-depth below. Aprisa® is for everyone - all skin types - and so easy to use. No 20-step program!
Knowing your skin type is a MUST!
Before developing your daytime and nighttime skincare regimens, you will need to figure out your skin type. Most skin types fall into these five general categories listed below.
Dry skin tends to have low levels of natural skin oils which hold in moisture. Typically this type of skin will need oil-rich products to supplement the levels missing from the skin.
Sensitive skin can encompass a variety of issues such as frequent rashes and bumps, reactions to fragrances, and irritation and redness after application of products. Due to the trickle down effect, the skin generally reacts poorly to harsh or allergenic ingredients and even natural ingredients if you suffer from environmental allergies. Lighter, natural, and more soothing ingredients, such as aloe or oatmeal, can help to calm highly reactive skin.
Many people with normal or combination skin will neglect their skin care due to the fluctuating nature of their skin. Some areas may be dry, others oily, and different zones of the skin may have unique concerns compared to other areas. The different variations in the skin can make this skin type challenging as you need to isolate which areas need which types of products. Often however, general “all-purpose” products for this skin type tend to contain higher water content.
Oily, or acne prone skin, can be the most frustrating for people. As the skin is characterized by high levels of natural skin oils, products used on this skin type should be lighter and more water-based. Another focus for the skin type should be gently decreasing the oil content.
As we age, so does our skin. Even with the best of intentions, and the best attempts, we will all wake up one day with mature skin. Mature skin comes with its own set of unique challenges and needs. As the skin barrier weakens, products containing higher oil content can help to seal in some of the moisture you must conserve.
Two topics which often go hand-in-hand are cleansing and exfoliating. Both can be encompassed within both your morning and nighttime skincare routine as long as you chose the appropriate skin care product. But what are they, and how can you fit them into your daily skin care routine?
Cleansing is pretty much exactly what it sounds like! Cleansing is a fancy way of saying to clean off the dirt, sweat, make up, excess oils, and other undesirable pollutants from your skin. Depending on your skin type, habits and environments, you may need more or less cleansing. Make sure when you cleanse to use water which is just slightly warm to help loosen debris on your face while not drying or inflaming your skin. If you incorporate cleansing into your nighttime skin care routine and your morning skin care routine, you will want to place a bit more emphasis on the evening cleansing, as this will likely be when your skin needs it the most, after a long day out facing the world. So don’t rush, just relax, take your time, unwind and cleanse.
There are multiple types of cleansers for the five general skin care categories. Gels and other water-based cleansers are best suited for normal or oily skin types. These cleansers are designed to help clear away some of the excess oils and work to more deeply clean the residue from your skin. For dry, sensitive, and mixture skin types, often a cream-based cleanser will be a better bet. While you won’t get as deep of a cleansing, the oils and moisturizing ingredients in these cleansers will prevent the stripping of oils from your already dry skin. They also typically contain ingredients to help soothe and calm sensitive skin while cleansing.
Some cleansers contain salicylic, glycolic, or lactic acids, or other ingredients such as benzyl peroxide to help cleanse particularly stubborn or oily, acne prone skin. These can be very helpful if your skin type tends toward the oily side, or in areas of combination skin types, where there are higher oil levels. But it can be especially irritating to sensitive skin types. Some cleansers also may include additional active ingredients to help with anti-aging skin, tone correction, or other concerns.
Exfoliation is the process of removing the dead, dry layers of skin. Most frequently exfoliation is accomplished by actual physical scrubbing. This can be accomplished by the use of your hands, a towel, a gentle brush, or a loofah. Exfoliation should always be a gentle process to prevent damage to the skin. Oftentimes, cleansers or other products may contain tiny abrasive substances to aid in exfoliation. Ideally make sure you aren’t using products that contain plastic microbead exfoliants, as these are bad for the environment, rivers, and streams. Use products that contain natural exfoliants such as sugar or salt crystals, ground-up seashells, etc.
Alpha-hydroxy acids (AHA) or beta-hydroxy acids (BHA) such as glycolic, lactic, or salicylic acid, are sometimes used as chemical exfoliants. These acids help to dissolve the connections between dead, dry cells, so they are removed from your skin more easily.
Be careful to avoid excessive exfoliation as you can remove too much skin if combining physical and chemical exfoliants, or doing too much or too often. This can leave your skin vulnerable to inflammation, UV damage, sunburn, or even infection in serious cases. This is specifically of concern in already dry, sensitive, and mature skin types.
