10 Secrets to Glowing Skin

Beauty, as the saying goes, is only skin deep. But the importance of skin goes a lot deeper. Here are 10 ways to keep your skin healthy and glowing.

1. Avoid Long Steamy Showers

Instead, opt for shorter, cooler sprays. Long, hot showers strip the skin of its moisture and wash away its protective oils. So limit your showers to 10 minutes and keep the water cool.

2. Apply Aloe Vera Gel Daily

Smooth some aloe vera gel over extra dry skin everyday. The acids in aloe eat away at dead skin cells and speed up the healing process. Buy a pre-prepared product or cut the end off of an aloe leaf, split it open and spread the gel on the dry area.

3. Cook with Garlic Every Day

A 1996 Danish study found that skin cells grown in a culture dish and treated with garlic had seven times the lifespan of cells grown in standard culture. They also tended to look healthier and more youthful than untreated cells. Plus, garlic extract dramatically inhibited the growth of cancerous skin cells.

4. Drink Plenty of Orange Juice

Orange juice is rich in vitamin C, essential for the manufacture of collagen, which helps to keep the skin smooth and youthful. Other foods rich in vitamin C include guava, kiwi fruit and red peppers.

5. Exfoliate Every Day

Use a loofah every day to keep ingrown hairs and scaly skin under control. While you’re in the shower, gently scrub bumpy or scaly skin with a circular motion to remove dead skin cells.

6. Take Multivitamins Daily

Many nutrients are vital to healthy skin, including vitamins C, A and B. The most reliable way to get them all is to eat healthily, as well as taking a daily supplement.

7. Keep Your Hands Off Your Face

Because your hands touch so many surfaces, they are a magnet for dirt and germs. Rub your eyes, stroke your chin, cup your cheek, and you’ve transferred everything on your hands to your face. As an extension of this, use headphones or a headset when talking on the phone

8. Change Your Moisturizer Every Season

Every time the seasons change, replace your moisturizer. Your skin needs more moisture than in summer. So when it’s time to wear a heavy coat, it’s time to buy a heavier moisturizer. When you swap your coats for t-shirts, switch to a lighter one.

9. Get Rid of Excess Oil

De-shine your face by periodically dabbing on loose powder to blot excess oil. Don’t use pressed powder, which actually contains oil as an ingredient.

10. Choose Cosmetics Carefully

Keep your beauty products simple, particularly if you have sensitive skin. Stay away from anything with colour or fragrance, or anything that produces bubbles or has ‘antibacterial’ on the label.
source credit:readersdigest.ca