Ladies go through a lot to look and feel good. However there are some beauty practices that may be doing more harm than good for your overall well-being. Here they are and here is what you can do to remedy the wrongs.
Overexfoliating
Exfoliation refers to the removal of the dead skin cells on the skin’s surface. Exfoliation can be performed mechanically, by using abrasive scrubs on the skin or chemically, by using scrubs that contain special kinds of acids that dissolve and remove the dead skin cells without scrubbing.
Proper exfoliation removes the barrier of dead skin cells clogging the skin and uncovers fresh new cells below. This opens the way for moisturizing products to penetrate more deeply into the skin, which makes them more effective. In short, a regular exfoliating routine will leave your skin looking fresh and healthy.
What over-exfoliating can do to your skin is that it can remove too much skin prematurely. Your skin hardly has a break to regenerate when you are constanly exfoliating. Secondly it can trigger inflammation in the skin and weaken the barrier function. This causes the skin to become vulnerable to infection,leading to sensitivity and general irritation.If you are using chemical peels there is the danger of your skin pigment changing and scarring taking place.
If you are going to exfoliate consider the following
- The pH of the scrub if it is a chemical peel( make sure it is mild for the skin) and if it is in granule form choose one with soft granules to avoid harming your skin.
- Skin condition- if you have clogged pores, acne,sun damaged skin, breakouts or oily skin then exfoliation daily is not a bad idea. If you have normal skin you have no need to scrub daily. For normal skin twice a month should suffice.
- Thicker skin- Skin thickness varies by skin type, ethnic ancestry, and lifestyle choices. Darker skin tones tend to have thicker skin. Sun-damaged (photodamaged) skin is also thicker (in the Stratum Corneum). Thicker skin can be exfoliated more frequently than thin skin. Especially thicker skin that is oily.
Fake lashes
Have you ever desired long lashes that would add that instant glam to your whole face but despite trying all mascaras that promised to give you longer and fuller lashes it was still never enough? Well you have probably heard of fake lashes.What happens is that you go to a professional beautician and they carefully with a special glue attach it to your eyelids. They can last for as long as a month. What you don’t know is that when it’s time to remove them you will ultimately lose your natural lashes. You also may react to certain ingredients in the glue that may cause nasty infections. It is advised that if you must have the fake lashes in then do it with breaks between applications.
Overprocessing
I remember being in high school and watching girls treat their hair for more than an hour under a showercap in the sun. Back then we had no choice and did not know any better. However after reading through various articles I found out that what that does is weaken your hair causing it to break and thin out.The chemicals end up clogging in the hair cuticle, thus not giving a chance for newer stronger hair to grow and leaving the existing hair limp. To the user who does it weekly what happens is that you will notice your hair becoming softer which you may think is good but the damage going on is immense. If you must treat your hair from home do it twice a month and follow instructions to the letter to keep your hair healthy.
Buffing
Buffing is what is done to your nails to make them look shiny with a nail buffer. What you do not know is that it is stripping away a layer of your nail everytime you do it, leading to brittle weak nails. If you have healthy nails they will shine even without the buffing. Alternatively you can put clear nail polish on your nails to give that shiny polished look.
Another point when it comes to your nails, fake nails are great but again spacing is the secret to maintaining great nails. Continual application of fake nails weakens your nail bed and the removal of the acrylic with acetone is damaging and corrosive.You don’t want stubs for nails so perhaps take a break of at least two weeks before getting a new set.
Waist training
The body type that is fashionable at the moment is the tiny waist with a pronounced behind. Many women are putting themselves under pressure to conform to this and are going to dangerous lengths to attain this by using waist trainers. A waist trainer is an elastic piece of material worn around the mid section to give the illusion of a wasp like waist. It is touted to after repeated use not only to resculpt your body while you wear them, but after enough use, to permanently slim your silhouette.
What most reports do not tell you about this garment is that it is very uncomfortable. One can barely breath in it and it gets uncomfortably hot after a while. You sweat a lot which leads to dehydration which leads to light headedness and even fainting spells.
The waist trainer weakens your core which is very dangerous as this is the part of the body that holds everything together. In the pursuit of beauty you may end up trading in your waist trainer for a back brace to help strengthen weak muscles in your mid section. Ladies the only way to get a smaller waist is by changing your diet and by working out, no shortcuts.