Your skin is your skin, regardless of where it is on your body, and if you want to keep it healthy and clear it needs some attention. We all know we need to have a regular routine for our faces, but we also need to make sure we are going a little further south with our cleansers and moisturisers.
Breakouts, irritation and dryness can happen anywhere on your body, literally from your scalp to the ends of your toes, so here are our tips on keeping your body smooth, blemish free and glowing.
Use an exfoliating scrub in the shower
The skin on your arms, legs, bum, chest and back is thicker than the skin on your face, so using an exfoliating shower gel or scrub is absolutely fine to use a few times a week without damaging yourself. For a deep exfoliation, start with the scrub on dry skin and turn on the shower. This will help to slough off any dead skin cell, encourage blood flow to the skin and improve your circulation. It is also good for lymphatic drainage.
Sunday Riley’s Charcoal Smoothie Scrub is an awesome mix of salicylic acid (for exfoliation), antioxidants and clarifying charcoal. It leaves your skin smooth, clean and feeling very soft.
Dr Goldfaden's Doctor's Body Scrub Body Dermabrasion contains crystals that polish away dead surface skin, leaving skin brighter, appearing clearer and younger-looking.
Natura Bisse’s Diamond Well Living Body Scrub. This rich and luxuriously fragranced scrub is made up of dead sea salts, ground rice and grape seeds, vitamin E and shea butter to nourish, soothe and renew the skin. You are left feeling like you just had a full body spa treatment.
If exfoliating scrubs just aren’t your thing, try a using a sponge or a soft brush in the shower. This will exfoliate your skin gently, but you can still use your favourite shower gel.
The Spongelle Super-Buffer is enriched with coconut oil and other botanicals to give you a rich lather whilst the sponge buffs away any dead skin cells.
For more stubborn spots, or to help even out rough skin, Dr Dennis Gross’ Alpha Beta Exfoliating Body Treatment is a simple and effective solution. The larger sized wipes are packed full of AHA’s and BHA’s to chemically exfoliate the skin, reduce the appearance of lumps and bumps, and keep your money maker smooth, tight and pimple free.
Moisturise your body after showering
Washing your body essentially strips it of moisture, so whilst a good scrub is a great place to begin your body renewal, following up with a moisturising cream or oil is fundamental to keeping your body firm, soft and blemish free.
A body oil is a good choice for very dry skin, whilst choosing a more active cream is better for skin prone to breakouts.
Dermalogica’s Phyto Replenish Body Oil is packed full of antioxidants and can be applied to dry skin for instant absorption, or to wet skin, where it emulsifies into a nourishing milk. The fresh citrus fragrance is uplifting and subtle.
Pharmaceris’ Ichtilium Body Cream is a soothing and calming solution. It contains salicylic acid to help clear out pores and refine the skin. It is also good to soothe itching and inflammation.
For a 100 percent natural solution, try Egyptian Magic. This ancient formula contains olive oil, honey, propolis and bees’ wax, making this wonder balm soothing, calming and moisturising, without being greasy.
Use an SPF every day
UVA and UVB are very damaging for the skin, so using an SPF is essential. If you are in the sun for a number of hours, you will need to reapply your SPF at regular intervals. You can use the SPF factor as a guide. If you are using and SPF50, you should reapply every 50 minutes, SPF30 – every half an hour, and so on.
La Roche Posay’s Anthelios Invisible Mist offers SPF50 in an easy to apply (and reapply) mist. Non-greasy and light as a feather, this is a great choice for everyday and holidays in the sun.
Frezyderm also offer an SPF50+ that leaves no white tint and has a non-oily texture. The ‘second skin’ technology gives great protection from sun damage and you won’t even notice it is there.