Regaining the glow of your skin

WHEN you have bad habits such as sleeping late, eating unhealthily and not exercising regularly, it’ll be a matter of time before the ugly “evidence” shows on your face.

That’s because your skin is the largest organ in the body, and if you don’t allow it to remove the toxins within by stimulating blood circulation, and rejuvenate cell regeneration by sticking to a nutritious diet, adequate rest and proper skincare routine, the tell-tale signs of neglect will pop up.

Beauty salons offer a variety of treatments to detoxify and revitalise skin, but you could also use natural and more consistent methods of salvaging and maintaining your looks:

Dark circles under the eyes

Quick fix: Gently press a cold metal spoon against the area around the eyes for at least 60 seconds and/or apply a moisturising concealer to cover up the dark circles.

Proper treatment: Get plenty of sleep and drink lots of water. Use eye creams with lightening botanical ingredients and capillary strengtheners like vitamin K. Alternatively, use natural remedies like almond, cucumber juice, lemon and tomato.

Almond oil is an excellent natural emollient with moisturising properties that help soften the skin and leave it supple.

This product, commonly used as a carrier oil, is readily available from stores retailing health and aromatherapy products. Carefully rub a little into the skin around your eyes every morning and night.

Cucumber is a well-known quick fix for tired eyes because of its astringent properties.

Extract the juice from a cucumber and cool it in the refrigerator for about an hour. After blending a little lemon juice into it, use cotton pads to soak up the solution and place them on your eyes for 15 minutes.

Wash thoroughly afterwards and moisturise the area around the eyes with a little almond oil.

Tomato juice is rich in iron and vitamins A and C, while lemon juice acts as a natural bleaching agent.

Blend one teaspoon of fresh tomato juice, half a teaspoon of fresh lemon juice and less than a teaspoon of gram flour thoroughly to form a smooth paste.

Apply this paste on the dark circles and leave for about 10 minutes. Before it dries up, rub it off very gently and wash your face. Do this once daily the next few days.

Dull skin

Quick fix: Use beauty products with natural ingredients that are rich in vitamins, minerals and proteins to help retard the damaging effects of free radicals and nourish the skin.

Proper treatment:

Nourish your skin from within by adhering to a healthy diet (you’ve no excuses now that bingeing season is over).

To maintain the glow in your complexion, use a creamy cleanser, rather than one with a foaming formula, and apply a hydrating mask twice or thrice weekly.

Exfoliate the skin regularly to remove dead cells on its surface, and follow up with a hydrating lotion or facial oil.

Skin breakouts

Quick fix: Hide pimples under a waterproof concealer: using a concealer brush, dab a little concealer on the back of your hand to warm it up to skin temperature before applying onto the pimple and blending it into the surrounding area.

Proper treatment: Regular skin breakouts are often caused by the lack of proper skin care or hormonal imbalances resulting from ageing, stress or genetic conditions.

A healthy diet and good personal hygiene practices are ways to reduce skin inflammation problems.

If the problem is serious, consult a dermatologist and seek medical treatment. — The Straits Times/Asia News Network