You started searching for a product that will make your skin better quite a long time ago. But: You haven’t found it. You’ve circled through acids, various vitamins, peptides, ceramides, what have you: and nothing helped. A skincare diet for better skin might be just the thing for you.
Try this: do nothing for a while (at least a month). With nothing I mean using a cleanser and a sunscreen (and a moisturiser, if you need it) – but apart from that, nothing.
This has nothing to do with skin detox, btw. This has something to do with keeping irritation away.
Why?
The skincare business is booming, and skincare has made it directly into the top three of self-care routines. Everybody seems to love pampering routines, and there’s definitely something soothing in applying potions and lotions. With each product, though, the potential for irritation rises.
If you just have vaguely irritated skin (uneven skintone, irregular outbreaks, skin that seems to fluctuate between oily and dry), you’re a prime candidate for this method.
What?!
Let me quickly tell you about my skincare routine at the beginning of 2019 (you could even have a look at it in various posts here, although I feel rather embarrassed looking at them now): I used Vitamin C, Niacinamides, Retinol, AHA and BHA in various combinations. And I nevertheless had less than stellar skin. What got me thinking, though, was that I had my best skin invariably when I used only a handful of products. Consequently, I slowly started to eliminate product groups from my routine.
This is, obviously, not for people with a clear-cut skin problem. If you’ve rough, bumpy skin and exfoliation with BHA was like the second coming for you, why stop? Likewise, if retinol cleared your Acne, great! Or if your fine lines all vanished because now you’ve a killer hydrating and moisturising routine, please don’t change that in the name of detox.
How?
I’ve said it before, but problematic skin can be a huge factor in your well-being – or, non-well-being. The temptation to buy the next promising sounding product can be really, really high. Resist it, though. A period in which you just use the basics (please, use well-formulated, gentle cleansers, moisturisers and a good broadband sunscreen!) can show you what’s lacking in your routine – and what’s too much. After one skin-cycle (which lasts for about a month) you can think about what your skin really needs.
For example: notice some roughness after your experiment? Introduce an exfoliant! Dryness? Maybe you need more hydrating ingredients in your skincare! Do you think your skin lost a bot of elasticity and firmness? Retinol might be a good idea.
Product recommendations
Use the most basic and bland products (which means most gentle and least likely to aggrevate) you can find. Cut out products with fragrance and alcohol – studies nowadays are unsure how truly damaging both are, but better safe then sorry, eh?
I love cleansing oils, and use either my fave super cheap drugstore one or Hada Labo’s Super Hyaluronic Acid Hydrating Cleansing Oil. If you need that foaming sensation, cosrx’s Low pH Good Morning Gel Cleanser is a real crowd pleaser. Also, insider tip: those ‘intimate washes’ for your nether reagions make often for a really good face wash: they’re formulated for super sensitive skin, are often fragrance-free with a pH of 5,5 that least irritates your skin. Also? Cheap.
Don’t forget your sunscreen
For a basic moisturiser, I like Cerave. Both Bioderma and La Roche-Posey also do super pared-back moisturisers for sensitive skin. (Look for the Toleriane/Tolerance lines.)
Don’t forget your sunscreen! The best lightweight, pleasant to wear but fragrance- and alcohol-free sunscreen for me is still Canmake’s Mermaid Skin Gel. It’s a bit of a bother to order, though. If you find another one that fits the bill, let me know! I’m always on the hunt for a good sunscreen.
If you want to know more about how to achieve better skin, look here, for example, and don’t forget that less is very likely more – you might want to go on a skincare diet for better skin.
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