In the course of a week my business takes me to numerous independent and assisted living facilities. These are my favorite places to visit and one of the reasons I have chosen skin care as a means of helping humanity. The elderly are a wealth of information on subjects of the past and present. I have met many people I would have guessed to maybe be in their 80’s with their quick minds and quick steps to find out they may be approaching their 100th birthday or have been there for some years. When conversing with them it is like stepping into a history book, but when asking them the simple question “do you have dry skin?” approximately 80% will tell you no. The simple answer is of course they do.
Unfortunately, this opinion is not restricted to just the elderly. In working many Farmer’s Markets asking the general public the same question we get similar answers.
“Your skin is the largest organ of your body and by far the most taken for granted and the most neglected. We bake it, we put chemicals on it and we starve it.”
Your skin has a tendency toward dehydration and in extreme cases dry skin lacks elasticity and can be extremely sensitive to the sun, wind and cold temperatures. Wash your face at least once a day with a rich organic facial cleanser that has no sulfates, and warm water. Pat your skin dry and use a non-alcohol toner that will not dry your skin out. Follow with a rich creme based moisturizer to hydrate your skin and keep it rejuvenated.- Pay special attention to fragile areas such as eye and lip areas. These areas of your face are more sensitive and deserve special attention. The skin around the eyes is ten times finer than the skin on the rest of the face. Find an organic lip balm that is compatible to your lips and don’t hesitate to reapply to this particularly fragile area as often as necessary.
- Use an organic exfoliation treatment once or twice a week. It must be effective yet gentle and respectful.
- Moisturizing is essential. The dermis (inner layer) is made up of 70% water and the epidermis (outer layer) 15%. In order to keep the skin well moisturized, it is important to choose a daily moisturizing organic skin care product that will balance the level of water within the skin. I recommend using a product that contains Hyaluronic Acid and Aloe Vera.
- Use sunscreen and drink lots of water. The recommended water intake per day is half your body weight in ounces.
- Pollution, smoke, stress etc., all these have harmful effects on the skin. Use organic skincare products to protect your skin against these daily stresses before leaving the house and cleanse your skin thoroughly when you come home in the evening.
Enjoy the balance of the summer and remember to be kind to your skin.
