Tips for clearer skin

This is the first of what I hope to be semi-regual post on health/beauty tips.
The first one shall be on clearer skin.


Many of us have suffered from acne at least once, if you haven't then your very blessed and I'd love to have you genes! I don’t have perfect skin but over the last month I have found ways to keep my skin clean and clearer.
The main thing NOT to do is don’t mess with them. A bad pimple can take 8 days or so to heal BUT if you mess with it can take three weeks or more!
Drinking allot of water is also very important and one of the easiest things to do to improve you skin. Eight glasses is the recommended amount of daily water intake. I'm sure you've all heard that eating chocolate and French-fry means you'll break out, this is not true as long as that's not all you’re eating. If you eat a balanced diet of healthy food and eat things like chocolate and greasy foods sparingly then more than likely it won't make you break out. Eating veggies and fruits are wonderful for the skin because they supply the body with the things it needs to control oil production and to keep you feeling great.

Here are a few quick tips.
~Do not touch your face, this spreads oil and will cause breakouts.
~Change your pillow case often to prevent oil and bacteria from spreading from your face to you pillow case and then back to your face.
~Pull your hair back off your face at night; even if its just a headband or loose ponytail. You hair will run against you face and get not only your hairs oil on your skin but also what ever product you used in your hair.
~When your doing your hair be careful not to get hairspray on you face, this can cause majoir problems. Cover you face with one hand while you spray to prevent getting it all over your face.



One thing that I had to do to keep my skin clear is stop wearing makeup. I have nothing against make-up I enjoyed wearing it but it caused my skin it break out, even when I tried "light" and "clean" make-up. If you don’t want to give up make-up then try to cut back on how much you use. Give your skin a break every so often and go natural! I've never worn foundation but I've been told that it’s very bad for your skin because it can clog your pores; if you do wear it be sure to wash your face before bed! Another way to help cut down on make-up caused acne is to wash your powder brushes/poofs once a week. The shelf life of powder is about six months after that time its best to throw it out, bacteria can be transferred from your face to your brush to you make up that over time will grow in your makeup which in turn will get on your face and cause blemishes.

If choose to go with out makeup be warned that the first little bit you’ll more than likely feel weird and you’ll feel very self aware about every “fault” but after about a week and half you’ll notice a difference in your skin. I’ve been tempted to wear powder since I stopped wearing make-up last month but my skin has cleared up so much! A tip to remove redness is to put a few drops of eye drops on the affected area and in a few minutes the redness will be greatly reduced! Ice also will bring down the swelling and will reduce the size in about 2 minutes. If you have a shine problem oil blotting sheets work great for absorbing the oil and they only take 3 seconds to wipe over you face! Be sure to wear a little lotion with SPF to keep your skin glowing and healthy.

Every morning after I wash my face I apply face lotion, if you have dry skin then your face will try to produce more oil to moisturize you body and may cause break-outs. I have combination skin so I don’t know how people with oily skin should apply lotion but I'm sure you can look it up online and read up on you skin type for more details.

It’s best to wash your face twice a day, once in the morning and once before bed. I use Noxzema in the morning and at night I use a mixture of witch-hazel and tea tree oil to tone and clean my face. I've tried many differnt products over the years and nothing seems to work as well as witch hazel. Another great product that’s all natural is Acne no more by Forces of Nature. This is applied only on pimples (not the whole face) and normally clears them up in 2-3 days.

Acne can be embarrassing, trust me I know, but it shouldn't stop you from feeling great about your self. The most beautiful girl with the clearest skin is far from pretty if she doesn't have a good heart. So even if you do have to deal with acne, as I do, remember that it’s simply a fact of life and that it’s truly what’s on the inside that counts. So show that pretty heart and let your love for Christ shine for the world to see.

1st Peter 3:3-4 “whose adoring let it not be the outward adoring of plaiting of the hair, the wearing of gold, or of the putting on of apparel; but let the hidden man of the heart in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quite spirit, which is in the sight of God a great price.”