How to Get Healthy Skin So You Can Look Your Best

Learning how to get healthy skin means learning how to respect yourself and your body. You may not want to hear this, but I will say it to you anyway. If you want better skin, skin that is healthy and attractive, you need to do some things you may not want to do, and stop doing some things you love to do.

It’s all about you and what you decide is important to you, and making a commitment to do what it takes to make what is important to you a reality. If having healthy, beautiful skin is more important to you than smoking, for example, you will stop smoking. If smoking is more important to you, then you might as well not continue reading this article.

Still with me? Good. You’ve learned the first lesson for how to get healthy skin: do the things that will help you obtain your goal, and avoid the things that will make you fail in achieving your goal.

I’m not saying changing the way you look – and believe me, the condition of your skin will change the way you look, for better or for worse – will be easy to do… Got that? Changing the quality of the largest organ of your body, your skin, will not be easy to do.

Have you ever watched that clever weight loss show, The Biggest Loser?

What a great idea! Showing everyday people setting goals and doing what it takes to achieve those goals, not in one felt swoop, but gradually, through a daily commitment to doing what is necessary to achieve that goal. Not easy, by any means. Pretty hard, actually. Sometimes heart-breakingly hard. But so do-able! Sometimes wanting the best things requires your best effort. But in the end it is worth it!

Still with me? Yes, I see that you are. That’s great news because you have now mastered the second lesson for how to get healthy skin: getting healthy beautiful skin will not be easy, but if you commit yourself, on a daily basis, to doing what is good for your skin and avoiding what is bad for your skin, you (and others) will see a marked improvement in your skin over time, and you will feel it too! Some things are worth sacrificing for.  Some people will see results in a few days, others may take weeks or months, depending on the condition of your skin and the kind of damage or aging you will have to overcome.

So now you know that getting healthy beautiful skin requires a daily commitment to doing some things and avoiding other things and understanding this is a process that won’t be easy because you will be changing certain things in your life and breaking old bad habits. But you embark on this journey knowing that you will achieve your goal of healthy attractive skin if that is the goal you have set for yourself.   

The third lesson for learning how to get healthy skin is identifying the do’s and don’t’s of good skin care.  What are some of those do’s and don’t’s?

• Don’t allow the sun to turn your skin into caliche crust (that hard cracked earth that appears in severe draught areas). Not only will the sun dry and age your skin prematurely, leading to deep wrinkles, it will set the stage for skin cancer down the road.
  
  
• Do apply a suitable sunscreen protector and wear protective hats and garments if you have to be in the sun for any extended period (more than 15 minutes per day).
  
  
• Don't smoke, unless you want your skin to look drab and grayish and wrinkled.
  
  
• Don’t use commercial soaps for washing or bathing, as these tend to over-dry your skin. 
  
  
• Do use gentle, cleansers that are free of dyes and perfumes.
  
  
• Don’t wash with hot water, which dries out your skin.
  
  
• Do wash with tepid water to preserve the natural oils of your skin.
  
  
• Do use a good gentle moisturizer after washing to protect your skin against over-drying, especially after bathing.
  
  
• Do exfoliate weekly to remove dead cells and stimulate the development of new skin cells.
  
  
• Do drink lots of fresh water every day to flush out toxins and keep your body and skin healthy and sufficiently hydrated.
  
  
• Do eat right. That means lots of whole grains, low fat, protein-rich foods, leafy green vegetables, and fresh fruits.
  
  
• Do exercise every day to promote healthy blood and oxygen circulation for your heart and to nourish your skin and all the organs of your body.
  
  
• Do get plenty of sleep and rest in order to repair your body and rebuild it at the cellular level.
  
  
• Do take vitamin and supplements suitable for your gender and age to preclude any deficiencies and to meet all your daily vitamin and mineral requirements.
  
  
• Do what is most appropriate for your skin type (this could be a whole separate lesson for learning how to get healthy skin); if you have oily skin, for example, don’t use a moisturizer aimed at dry skin; if you have dry skin, don’t wash your face as often.
  
  
• Do use quality skin care products to enhance the beauty of your healthy skin if you would like to see even better results. See our article on how to review skin care products so that you can make informed buying decisions.
  
  

Learning how to get healthy skin requires a whole lot of commitment coupled with a little knowledge and a dose of common sense. Learn how to get healthy skin by following the tips in this article and by exploring the wealth of information available to you on our website.