As we come into the warmer months, now is the perfect opportunity to refresh your skin for the new season!
Nobody wants to wake up with dull and tired skin. But a fast-paced lifestyle, chemical exposure, makeup, and pollution can clog your pores and make your skin look lifeless. For healthy and glowing skin, you need to take care of your body. If you think that a 'detox' is only meant for your body, think again. Detoxing your skin is essential for your skin's recovery process.
Get our tips on how to detox your skin from the inside out and recommendations for skin detox products.
If everything is functioning properly in our bodies, we shouldn’t have any outward signs of inflammation or irritation like breakouts, redness, excess oil, hyperpigmentation, dark circles under our eyes, puffiness or general dullness.
Any internal issues are directly reflected through our skin. The healthier you are on the inside, the healthier you are on the outside!
In saying that, external factors can build up on your skin, such as pollution, makeup, oil, dead skin cells and bacteria. These sit on your skin, clogging your pores and causing a lacklustre complexion that's more sensitive, volatile and prone to breakouts. If your skin seems extra dull, is breaking out, or just seems off, it might be time to consider a skin detox.
From dietary changes to skincare products to brushing to exercise and more, many ways can help your body eliminate toxins and impurities. They can instantly transform your dull and tired complexion while improving your energy levels.
Think of all that you put into your body - medicines, alcohol, and unprocessed food continue to work their way through your bloodstream. Skin detox is crucial to get rid of these contaminants.
You don’t need expensive products, spa visits, or fancy equipment. There exist simple techniques that you can practice daily or as often as you like. The following skin detox methods work wonders not just for your skin but your entire body from the inside out.
Yes, even in a skin detox you may have to be careful with what you eat. Assess your diet and consider your intake of sugar, salt and alcohol - it’s a tough reality to face that these are not helping how your skin looks. For total skin rejuvenation, it’s important to adapt your diet to your skin cleansing goals. Stay off dairy products, fried foods, and added sugar, which are all pore-clogging and skin-dulling. Instead, opt for lots of alkaline-rich fruits and veggies like pears, broccoli, kale, watermelon, and bananas. Alkaline minerals (like calcium, magnesium, and potassium) keep skin strong (and hair, bones, and teeth, just for added bonus points). Glow from the inside out with healthy fats like avocados and walnuts.
The key to any detox is implementing what you enjoyed from it into your everyday life, to continue to see results. You may not be able to promise your skin that you’ll always say no to greasy pizza or spicy margaritas but you can put more care and effort into your daily skincare and add foods into your diet that you feel make a difference. With minor changes like that, your skin will keep its happy, healthy glow!
If you would like more tips on eating your way to healthy skin, read our blog here.
Exercising is an integral part of skin detoxification. When you exercise, your skin perspires and your heart races. It helps flush out unwanted waste, toxins, and impurities.
Use a face mask or exfoliant with bentonite and kaolin clay
Bentonite and kaolin are two of the most popular cosmetic clays and you’ll usually find them in the best detoxifying face masks.
Bentonite clay detoxifies skin by absorbing oils, dirt and toxins which attach themselves to the clay. When the clay is cleansed from the skin, the debris is washed away with it.
Kaolin clay acts in the same way but has a more fine-grained texture than bentonite and its absorption properties are milder. It’s a good choice for normal to dry skin that may find bentonite too strong.
Using a clay mask as a step in your skin detox can help aid in the removal of impurities, target acne forming bacteria, and generally leave the skin smoother and softer.
We love using our Bright Face Mask or UnMask, which contain both of these amazing, skin purifying ingredients, while working to gently and effectively exfoliate your skin.
For more information on the benefits of exfoliating, check out our blog here.
No matter your skin type or concerns, cleansing should be a part of your daily routine. It’s usually best to cleanse right after you step out of a warm shower when your pores are soft and open, or by applying a warm wash cloth over your face and neck beforehand. This allows for maximum effectiveness.
We love to use our signature oil cleansing routine. Why consider oil cleansing for your skin?
One of the biggest, but also least known, benefits of oil cleansing is the protection and maintenance of the acid mantle. But we hear you ask, what is the acid mantle, and why should I worry about it?
The acid mantle lies on the surface layer of skin, and is a very thin, natural protective film that’s made up of sebum (skin oils), amino acids, fatty acids, lactic acid, water (from perspiration), and skin’s own natural moisture.
This layer is naturally acidic, with a pH level between 4.5 and 5.5. However, most cleansers are alkaline, containing soap or detergent. This can initially help your skin to feel squeaky clean, but also tight and dry, as it strips away the acid mantle, thus destroys the natural balance of your skin and causing it to go into overdrive to produce sebum, or leaving it dry and unprotected, open to bacteria and dirt.
Oil cleansing breaks down excess oil, but does not completely strip away all oil from the skin. The oil that makes up the acid mantle is therefore still able to do its job and protect your skin.
As we mentioned above, cleansing oil uses the "good oils" in your skin to remove the "bad oils." The cleansing oil will bind with the oils on your skin, either naturally produced sebum or those from makeup and other products. So when you rinse it all off, the 'good oil' takes those 'bad oils' and dirt along with it.
In addition, when massaged into the skin, oils in the cleanser bind to surface impurities [pulling out dirt without clogging pores] and allow them to be comfortably rinsed away leaving the skin clean, soft and hydrated.
A cleansing oil contains antioxidants and anti-aging ingredients that improve the texture and appearance of your skin.
Oil cleansing is for all skin types. That’s right! From oily to dry skin, a combination of both, sensitive skin, blocked pores, rosacea, young and aging skin, we have seen it all and been wowed by the results!
Oil cleanser for dry and sensitive skin
Oil cleanser for oil and acne prone skin
Ensure you hydrate your face with a serum or moisturizer twice a day (morning and night). Serums are excellent as they hydrate your skin and help other products sink deeper into your skin.
By using a Vitamin C-rich serum, like our Dream Serums, you are encouraging your skin cells to turnover at a faster rate, thus increasing your collagen production and purging any clogged pores.
Drinking water is the best detox for your skin. Beverages like alcohol, coffee, and sugary juices are dehydrating liquids. If your skin is asking for help, it's best to steer clear of these drinks.
When you wake up, start the day strong by drinking a glass of water with lemon juice. This helps digestion and pushes your liver into detox mode to flush out build-up toxins.
As we mentioned earlier, alcohol dehydrates your body and skin, which is going to leave your skin looking tired and aging. Similarly, smoking speeds up aging while damaging collagen and elastin.
It’s common knowledge that most of us don’t get enough sleep.
What most people don’t realize is that the hours we spend asleep are actually just as beneficial, if not more so, as your skincare routine.
During the day, your skin cells are in defense mode, doing their best to protect themselves from UV exposure and free radical damage. When the sun goes down, your mind and body switch into an active regeneration mode – repairing daytime damage and boosting the production of substances that protect and renew.
In short, quality sleep is crucial to both skin health.
Here’s what happens while you snooze away:
Very hot water and frequent showers strip your skin of oils. Even aggressively washing your skin is not good.
The simple move of decreasing your sugar intake is an excellent way to start your skin detox journey.
When those sweet cravings hit, swap your longing with dark chocolate, with at least 70 percent cocoa content, a healthier option. Who knew dark chocolate could help curb both your sweet and salty cravings. Fruits are also a great alternative as they contain natural sugars.
If you’re looking for more tips on decreasing the sugar in your diet to help detox your skin, check out our blog here.
The skin covers every inch of your body and is the first line of defense against the outside world. More than 600 sweat glands, 100 oil glands, 1,000 nerve endings, and 20 feet of blood vessels make up an inch of your skin.
A skin detox helps:
Nobody wants to wake up with dull and tired skin. But a fast-paced lifestyle, chemical exposure, makeup, and pollution can clog your pores and make your skin look lifeless.
For healthy and glowing skin, you need to take care of your body. If you think that a 'detox' is only meant for your body, think again. Detoxing your skin is essential for your skin's recovery process.