When acne strikes, it’s usually your body trying to tell you something’s up. Everything from the type of breakout to where it’s located on your face has its own meaning; you just have to learn how to interpret it.
Environmental Factors
If your skin issues are caused by environmental toxins, you might see blemishes between the eyebrows and on the temples, in the eye area, and on the apples of the cheeks crossing over the nose. In this instance, your body could be telling you that your liver is stressed, this can cause inflammation around the temples, your kidneys or thyroid are imbalanced (which can lead to eye puffiness and darkness), or your vascular system is under pressure (which may be connected to the flare-ups on your cheeks).
We can’t do much about living in the Metroplex and all the pollution we deal with on a daily basis, but you can protect your skin from the effects of that pollution.
Use serums that are rich in antioxidants containing Vitamin E and Vitamin C (like Rhonda Allison Pumpkin E Serum). This powerful serum fights free radicals and provides vital nutrients to your skin. Look for essential fatty acids in your serums and cleansers, which keep your cell membranes strong and healthy.
Use a sunblock that contains zinc – and use it year round. Zinc protects your skin from harmful UVA and UVB damage, but also provides anti-inflammatory benefits.
You can fight those breakouts from the inside out through changes in your diet. Load up your meal with rainbow colored foods that are high in antioxidants. Try incorporating kale and other dark, leafy greens, and add richly colored veggies like beets and pumpkin (yes, pumpkin again) on your plate. Avoiding acidic foods like caffeine, alcohol, soda, meat, dairy, salt, and sugar will also help your achieve a more alkaline state. Adding foods with healthy fats and that are high in Omega-3 fatty acids such as salmon and other cold water fish are a plus as well. Cooking with coconut oil instead of vegetable oils is another.
Detox with plenty of sweat producing exercise, drink plenty of water and begin your day by drinking the juice of half a lemon in a glass of water.
End your day with a thorough facial cleanse to remove make-up, sweat and all the environmental dirt and debris encountered during your day. Spot treat your breakout with blemish serum and then slather on that vitamin E rich serum and your night time moisturizer. Using a moisturizer that is formulated for breakout prone skin is important. Your skin recovers and rebuilds during your sleep, so “feed” it the nutrients needed for that recovery.
And last but not least – clean your cell phone screen when you clean your face (it will help you remember to do it!) Many breakouts on the sides of your cheeks may be caused by the dirt transferred to your face from your phone.
Remember, Beautiful, healthy skin begins here!