The beauty industry is perennial, dynamic, and always expanding. Nowadays, the beauty industry is on a path towards achieving inclusivity and empowerment. While the approach toward the concept of beauty is evolving, the inherent structure of the beauty industry remains the same. An integral part of the industry and what we consider essential for beauty is skincare. These days, skincare is considered the foundation for not just beauty, but also for attaining healthy, nourished skin.
Just like the beauty industry, skincare has grown exponentially within the past few years. With the skincare market being oversaturated with all sorts of skincare products, it might be hard to figure out what works best for you. Choosing the right skincare products can significantly enhance your skin’s appearance and health, but conversely, the wrong choices can do a lot of damage. So, to help you make some sense of the variety of skincare products available, we have crafted a comprehensive guide about the do’s and don’ts of shopping for skincare.
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Know Your Skin Type and Consult a Dermatologist
To benefit from the optimal effect of skincare products, you have to use ones that are specifically designed for your skin type and conditions. Understanding your skin type and what it needs will help you choose products more accurately. Choosing the wrong product can harm your skin. For instance, using products made for oily skin on dry skin can be counterproductive. So, do your research and figure out what your skin type is.
It’s always advisable to consult a skin specialist to better understand your skin type. Since dermatologists are well-versed in the world of skin products, they can precisely recommend to you what to and what not to use. In general, there are three broad classifications of skin types:
Oily skin: For this skin type, it is advisable to use products that control excess sebum production and hydrate only the parts of the skin that need it. Products tailored for this skin type usually contain hyaluronic acid and benzoyl peroxide, which are two key ingredients that help maintain healthy skin.
Dry skin: Dry skin requires extra hydration to make it radiant and supple. Shea butter and lactic acid are key ingredients for helping this skin type.
Sensitive skin: When dealing with sensitive skin, you have to be extra careful while choosing your products since you don’t want to use anything that can easily irritate your skin. For people with sensitive skin, products containing aloe vera, oatmeal, chamomile, and shea butter seem to do the trick.
Of course, skin types can’t all be reduced to just 3 categories. There are many different skin types and several factors that affect them. A thorough understanding of what your skin type is should be the first step in your skincare journey.
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What Are Your Goals
Once you know what your skin type is, you should focus on what you want for your skin: your end goals. What does your skin need? Do you wish to smooth out fine lines, or reduce your acne? Answering these questions will help you filter out what sort of products you require since every product is designed to address a particular aspect of skincare.
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Ingredients: What to Seek and What to Avoid
Reading the list of ingredients used in skin care products can be daunting, especially if this is your first venture into the skincare world. Even if manufacturers try to simplify the products listed by throwing in words like “vitamin E” and “natural oils”, unless you’ve done your research, it can be hard to distinguish one ingredient from another. The ingredients used influence the impact of the product. It is therefore essential to understand what ingredients will work best for your skin. If you’re ever in a conundrum about ingredients, turn to products recommended by dermatologists, such as Unity Skincare. Their products are dermatologist-approved and a quick visit to their website will reveal a catalog of all their products and their respective contents. Since there’s no blueprint solution to perfect skin, you might have to try and test your way through. To do so, you’ll need to know the basics of what to avoid and what not to.
Ingredients that are generally good for most skin types: Glycerine, tocopherol (Vitamin E), L-ascorbic acid (Vitamin C), ceramides, hyaluronic acid, retinol, niacinamide (Vitamin B3).
Ingredients to steer clear from include added fragrances, perfume, parabens, sulfates, and formaldehyde.
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Number of Ingredients
When you figure out the ingredients that suit your skin and the ones that don’t, products with long lists of ingredients don’t seem intimidating. Moreover, once you chalk out the basics, you’ll find the confidence to experiment with new products. Don’t let long lists of ingredients discourage you from trying medical-grade products. Ingredients are listed by decreasing order of concentration, so make sure the active ingredients you seek are the first ones to be listed.
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Sunscreen
It’s always a good idea to use products that contain sunscreen. Harsh UV rays from the sun are a major detriment to your skin, so using moisturizers and creams that contain SPF is crucial. There are varying degrees of protection offered by different sunscreens, so take your time to peruse your options and choose the ones that provide maximum protection.
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Develop a Skincare Routine
Persistence and repetition are the keys to achieving flawless, youthful skin. Using your products sporadically will not do your skin any good. For your skin to adjust to your skincare products, constant use is necessary. Besides, skin care products won’t make your skin healthy and glowing overnight; they need time to work and show their effects. Following a skincare daily routine will land you the results you seek. Your skincare routine doesn’t need to be extensive with 50 steps and 100 different products involved. But, some fundamental steps do need to be followed. Cleanse, hydrate, protect, treat, and repeat should be your daily mantra for good skin. You won’t get instantaneous results, but don’t let that deter you from following your regime daily.
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Skincare Trends
Today’s internet culture is the hotspot for trends, and the skincare industry is a part of it. With rising numbers of products in the market and every other celebrity and influencer endorsing their brands, it becomes easy to fall prey to the hype. We’re not saying that popular products are all attempts at deceit. Many reputed brands provide top-quality products, but just because someone who has flawless skin recommends them doesn’t mean those products will work for you. Everyone’s skin is different, and what’s good for you might not be what’s trending.
Don’t take suggestions at face value; always test them out before sticking to them. You should also be cautious of products that claim to transform your skin overnight. Another thing to keep in mind is that to promote products, marketers often use words that might give you a skewed representation of what the product is. Just because a product says it is 100% natural doesn’t mean it actually is. There are no set rules and regulations surrounding the use of such words, so companies might use them liberally. Researching your products, no matter how popular they are, is the right way to go.
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Patch Test
Doing a patch test before adding a product to your skincare routine is a good practice. Patch tests will help you identify which products or specific ingredients incite an allergic reaction or skin irritation. Never compromise on a patch test, even if it makes your product shopping process a bit lengthy. If a product causes any sort of negative reaction on your skin, then it’s not for you.
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Do Your Research
Always research products before buying them. You can talk to a dermatologist or do your research online. There are online databases for product research such as CosDNA and EWG’s Skin Deep. Everything from manufacturing practices to health impacts can be found on such websites.
Following these 9 tips will help you find the right products for your skin. With sufficient research and a proper understanding of your skin’s needs, you’ll be able to breeze through the skincare world with ease.
