I have spent this weekend Spring cleaning my home. It’s almost Spring but honestly, its my little girl’s birthday party next weekend and that’s what really motivated me to clean my house. So in the honor of Spring cleaning today I would like to inspire you to do some skincare “spring cleaning”. It turns out most of America is spending money on skincare products that don’t work and can even be harmful to skin. Where did you buy your last skincare product? Was it recommended by your dermatologist? Or was it something “fru fru” that you impulse bought? You should absolutely invest in your skin, its the largest organ in your body after all! Spring clean your skincare with me and trade in old gimmicks for skincare products that work! Here are the first 5 items on my list for you to Spring clean, in other words please throw in the trash:
- Scrubs. WHY? WHY? WHY? People like to feel something happening. If you feel those beads scrubbing your face, you’re probably thinking “its taking all those dead skin cells and dirt right off, ahhhhh”. I’m thinking AAAHHHHH STOP! Your causing inflammation and irritation to your skin which can trigger acne, redness, rashes and much more. If you want an exfoliator trade harsh scrubs in for a gentle non harmful one like Cerave SA lotion.
- Fragrance body washes. My teenage boys are the hardest to convince of this (that includes my husband). Those fragrances dry out your skin and leave a residue on your skin that can flare your acne. Throw ‘em out and trade them for a plain bar of Dove soap.
- Heavy make-up. The goal is to use noncomedogenic(won’t cause black/white heads) products. That means mineral based make-up. Trade in that heavy acne triggering muck for some light and airy Jane Iredale powder.
- Scam Retinol- I hear lots of people tell me they can’t use a retinol because it irritates the skin or “I’m allergic”. Probably because you got convinced to buy one that has also added anti-aging miracle workers and a root from the wild jungles of Indonesia that a 100 year old medicine man concocted and uses to still look 20. Point is all those additives can be too much, too irritating. Get a medical grade retinol that has been researched to be effective and nonirritating. My favorite? Skinmedica 0.5 Retinol Complex, it’s what I use and look how good I look? (working on goals from last weeks post)
- Tanning lotions- I really shouldn’t even have to put this on my list but I’m surprised as to how many people ask me if its okay to get a tan if using these oils. Just because the tanning oils label says 5 SPF on it doesn’t mean that your tan is any safer. Getting a sunburn after you wore 100 SPF isn’t any better than getting a sunburn after you didn’t wear any sunscreen. Throw away all those gimmick lotions that make you think your doing something good for your skin while you tan. Don’t tan, its totally out of style unless your Snooki or just love wrinkles, dark spots and leather. If you gotta have some color my favorite rub on tan is Jergens, its fooled me before which means it looks close to a natural sun color.
Johnson Dermatology is going to be having a recycled products program soon so before you throw away these things go follow JD on Facebook to be in the know and maybe even get something back for those old products. Out with the old, in with the new! Hope to see you all this week at the clinic, until then, stay skintastic!
