If even the thought of the word ‘diet’ makes you cringe, you’ll be happy to know that the skin care diet doesn’t focus on what you put in your mouth. Don’t worry about cutting back on gluten, sugar or alcohol, the skin care diet making the waves right now, focuses on what you put on your skin.
Thought to be a push-back against one of the latest trends to hit the beauty world, “The 10 Step Korean Skin Care Routine”, the skin care diet emphasizes how to minimize the steps in your skin care routine. As someone who’s a minimalist when it comes to skin care, I can’t even begin to imagine the number of products and the amount of time it would take to implement a 10 step skin care routine on a regular basis. While the end goal of the skin care diet is to decrease irritation, I see how this would not only free up significant amounts of time PLUS leave more money to spend on other things.
It’s not surprising that skin bombarded with lots of actives on a daily basis may struggle. This can become extremely problematic if one loads up on products containing retinoids, alpha hydroxy acids and/or low pH ingredients (like Vitamin C) all in one go. Products that are either incompatible or harsh can result in the development of redness, sensitivity and irritation. More serious cases may result in contact dermatitis, a condition that presents with large, burning, and itchy rashes that can take anywhere from several days to weeks to heal.
Why a Skin Care Diet?
The word diet is involved because it’s a way of eliminating products that may be harming your skin or which may be unnecessary. Individuals are advised to cut back to the basics – a cleanser, moisturizer and a sunscreen, products which typically tend to be free of potentially harsh active ingredients. This regimen may be compared to an elimination diet that is often recommended to help individuals with suspected food allergies. You remove most things from your skin care regimen and then gradually reintroduce those that you consider essential, one at a time. This process allows you to determine how your skin tolerates and responds to each treatment and helps you make certain that you aren’t introducing ones that are problematic for your skin.
When it comes to your skin, more steps and products are not necessarily better and it’s never a bad idea to simplify your skin care regimen. At Apothekari, we recommend 4 steps to great skin – Cleanse, Prevent, Protect and Treat (for individual skin concerns). It’s possible to get away with just 3 products and then add one or two for specific issues. I don’t know about you, but I’ll take 3 or 4 steps over 10 any day!
