Beauty Blunders, Busters and Breakthroughs...Oh My!

Guess what? Everything those people, commercials and print ads said to sell you a product can’t exactly be taken for a grain of salt.  So how do you know if what you’re getting is worth your money and your patience?  1. Become an ingredient snob (but really, who has the time?) 2. Make your own line (We simply aren’t the Kardashians.) or 3. Follow these simple tidbits of advice (Easy.)

First on our tour: Myths

Myth #1: More Product Yields Better Results

False:  While to the cognitive thinker more=more, right? …Not necessarily. Only enough product is needed to cover the area you are treating, all the area needs are the ingredients to get absorbed into the pores to begin working – more product won’t make that process happen any faster…you’ll just use more and end up having to replenish before you really need to (No rinse and repeat necessary.)

Myth #2: Junk Food Will Make You Break Out

False: A little (Read: nibble) indulgence never hurt anyone, especially your face.  Unless you have a known allergy to the ingredients (let’s just listen to common sense there.)   A poor diet can however have adverse affects on the skin – so keeping with relatively healthy eating habits can make your skin glow!

Myth #3: Extreme Routine Face Cleansing Will Eliminate Acne

False:  It sounds batty, but over-cleansing your skin can do more bad than good.  Stripping the skin of its natural oils causes the glands to go into overdrive and churn out even more sebum, making you a greasy (and very possibly broken-out) mess.  Stick to a gentle cleanser used once at night before bed and in the morning, always following with a moisturizer no matter what your skin type.  Exfoliation should only take place 2 to 3 times a week to give skin time to bounce back and regenerate new, happy cells.

Myth #4: Tanning Clears Up Breakouts

False: What? No Way! Yes way…sure you’ve noticed less breakouts than before after a round of UV-worshipping, but the only reason is all that glorious darkening of your skin is a whole lot of damage happening.  Damage ranging from drying it out, to hyperpigmentation, to wrinkles down the road – basically it’s a your skin cell’s way of screaming out to stop baking pronto. Skin cancer anyone? Thought not, use a daily SPF and if out in the sun reapply every 2 hours (yes, even if it says water-proof.) Your skin will thank you by not making you appear 20 years older.

Myth #5: Beauty Products Have a Shelf Life

True: Just like your favorite produce, your makeup products have an expiration date.  Remember you are using these things on your skin so they can accumulate bacteria, to keep them fresh remember to use a brush solvent on your makeup brushes to sanitize and never share makeup, germs are still germs, even in frosty pink shadow. Here are a few common ones: Mascara and Liquid Eye Liners: 3 months. Liquid Face Makeup, Cream Eye Shadow: 6 months. Powder Face Makeup, Powder Eye Shadows, Pencil Eye Liners, Lipstick, Lip gloss: 2 years

Next up: Facts

·      Your cell phone is making you break out.  Solution: Wipe down your screen with an antibacterial wipe as much as possible to counteract the petri dish of germs, sweat, and dead skin cells.  Also a really awesome Bluetooth headset wouldn’t be a bad idea either.

·      You still need sunscreen on a cloudy day.  Don’t fall into the false sense of security that an overcast day seems to provide, the sun’s UVA and UVB rays are still as strong as ever and can still do plenty of damage.

·      Baking soda is still as awesome as it once was. ["Uses for Baking Soda: Health and Beauty”]

·      Just because it says natural doesn’t mean it is.  Unless you are mixing up the concoction yourself in the kitchen (which is totally fun, a blog for another time) the product contains preservatives and other ingredients to extend its shelf life.

Enjoy yours.  -BadBrainsBeth