Health- What Makes Your Skin Dark?

Your skin is like a window to see how healthy your body is. Acne and pimples on your skin can be caused by oily foods or poor hygiene. Dull skin can be the effect of lack of sleep or dehydration. Sometimes, what we do to our bodies often hinders the skin’s chance to become whiter.

Don’t let your skin whitening products go to waste. Here are some of the things you should stop doing because they can make your skin look dark.

Enjoying the Sun Too Much

The sun is a God-given gift. It is a vast source of light, heat and life. But it can also be a source of skin darkening, dark spots, sunburns, and more. The sun can definitely make your skin darker, but there’s a way around - sunscreens!

Use sunscreen whenever you’re going to stay under the sun for a long or short time. It’s not just for beach and pool parties anymore. Most products like facial cream and body lotions have sunscreen in them already. Use one to help your skin become lighter naturally.

Improper Skin Care Routine

You can’t really call washing your face at night with soap a skin care routine. A proper skin care routine follows at least the CTM (cleansing, toning, moisturizing) method. Exfoliation is also done as needed or at least once or twice a week. The routine during the morning is different from the evening as well.

It depends on the type of skin you have, your age, your usual environment and more. Someone who works at home may not need a skin lightening cream as compared to someone who works out on the field. The needs of a woman in her 20s are much different from a woman twice her age as well.

If you want your skin to not get darker, make sure that you are doing the right routine for your skin.

Less Sleep

The body performs much better when it is in a good condition. You can attain that by having a complete sleep. Your skin also benefits from sleep as it regenerates while you’re dreaming. Without much sleep, the skin around your eyes will be darker. Your skin could be drier and less firm in the long run.

Skin Practices that you Should Avoid

 "You skin reacts to every product and every practice that you do. Make sure that you’re doing everything right so that your skincare routines will be fruitful."

Your skin is your best friend. And like your best friend, it can be moody at times. If you do something wrong, it can throw tantrums in the form of acne breakouts and hurts you with pimples. Sometimes, even if we go all out in treating the skin with expensive skin products and visits to the spa and dermatologists, it’s not enough - or maybe it’s because we do practices that damage the skin.

The first most common practice that we do is picking at our faces. We often do it unconsciously when we were bored or trying to stay awake in a classroom or meeting. Try to keep your hands off from your face unless it’s time for your skincare routine. Avoid picking at your face whenever you are outside as your hands may be at their dirtiest. 

Second, you need to be specific with your skincare routine. Some people think that as long as they follow a skincare routine, they’re all good. But the question is, are they using the creams with SPF during the day? Do they moisturize first before applying makeup in the morning? Morning preparations are so much different.

Is makeup remover a part of the evening skincare routine? Do they use sleeping packs at night? There are a lot of things to consider.

Believe me, you need sunscreen. It doesn’t matter if you are a person of color or if you’ll be exposed to the sun for a minute only. Sun damage adds up over time. Even if you can’t see the sun, it doesn’t mean that the harmful rays are not present. Sunscreens or  skin lightening creams also help combat skin aging.

If you are someone who puts sunscreen every day, do you reapply it when you’re out and about? Reapplying sunscreen is important since it can easily get shed off due to daily tasks.

There are days when stress has gotten over your body and soul. And the solution? A great warm bath. Take note: warm bath. Not hot or cold. Lukewarm should be your target temperature when having a shower or bath. You may find hot showers comfortable, but it eventually dries out your skin.