A lot of times when you ask people what’s their skin routine like, they always mention “I moisturise everyday”.” What about cleansing? “Nothing, I just wet my face in the shower”. Or “my skin is so sensitive that I’m scared to use anything”. Well today we are going to talk about the importance of cleansing your skin.
Basically a cleanser is a facial care product that is used to remove make-up, dead skin cells, oil, dirt, and other types of pollutants from the skin of the face. This helps to unclog pores and prevent skin conditions such as acne, comedones( blackheads and whiteheads).
Using a cleanser to remove dirt is considered to be a better alternative to a bar soap or another form of skin cleanser not specifically formulated for the face for the following reasons:
- Bar soap has a high pH (in the area of 9 to 10), and the skin’ surface pH averages between 4.7 and 5.7.This means that soap can change the balance present in the skin to favour the overgrowth of some types of bacteria, increasing acne or sensitivity.
- Bar cleansers have thickeners that allow them to assume a bar shape. These thickeners can clog pores, leading to acne.
- Using bar soap on the face can remove natural oils from the skin that form a barrier against water loss. This causes the sebaceous glands to subsequently overproduce oil, a condition known as reactive seborrhoea, which will lead to clogged pores. In order to prevent drying out the skin, many cleansers incorporate moisturisers.
What about wipes?
Cleansing wipes don’t effectively clean the skin, instead, they just smear dirt, bacteria, oil, and makeup across the face. It’s like applying cleanser to your face and then not washing it off, or “skipping the rinse cycle of your laundry,” says celebrity aesthetician Renée Rouleau.
They can clog pores and trigger breakouts, so you could essentially be giving yourself acne if you’re not cleansing properly. There are certainly higher quality cleansing wipes that are better alternatives, but you should still be using a cleanser on your face to treat your skin in the best way possible.
How to cleanse properly?
It is very important to know how your skin behaves in a normal day and that helps to use products that are best for your skin.
Are you a make-up wearer? PreCleanse will help to prepare for the deep cleanse without leaving residue that may block the pores. Do you spend time indoors or outdoors?
Do you spend time in the city or country?
How does your skin look or feel…dehydrated, tight, normal, sensitised, tired etc ? All these questions help you choose the right cleanser for your skin.
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To prepare for your cleansing routine you need , your make-up remover and or pre-cleanse , choice of cleanser and access to warm water , a clean face towel
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- STAGE 1 :Remove your eye and lip makeup using your make-up remover and face pads. Do not worry about the foundation at this stage.
- STAGE 2 : Using a preclease or your appropriate cleanser apply all over your face , even over the eyes and lips( if product instructions permit).This removes even the stubborn makeup including foundation.I recommend the Dermalogica precleanse for any kind of skin. PreCleanse thoroughly melts away layers of excess sebum (oil), sunscreen, waterproof make-up, pollutants and products that build up on skin, allowing your prescribed Cleanser to penetrate even further for a professional cleansing result.It removes oils without clogging pores, contains conditioning essential fatty acids that nourish the skin and enables your prescribed cleanser to work more efficiently.Use warm water at each stage. If you have a cleansing brush, you can use it at this stage. Rinse off or use a damp flannel to remove all the residue.
- STAGE 3: Now that all the dirty and dead skin has been loosened and softened, apply your recommended cleanser all over face as per manufacturer’s instruction .
An example for you : dry skin would benefit more from moisturising cleansers while the oily skin would need a clay cleanser to control the oil production. Of course other skins have more than one condition and usually gel cleansers can be used for such skin. Wash off with warm water and wipe with a damp flannel.
This stage restores the pH of the skin and gets it ready for the next process -exfoliation or absorption of products if you are going to tone, apply serum and moisturiser.
For a full range of professional product :
- Visit https://www.dermalogica.
co.uk/ - Browse the website and shop as usual, adding items to your bag
- View your bag, and enter my UNIQUE CODE into the ‘Promo Box’ : PSTA-HGGT-T57G-XHMW-T653
- Checkout as usual
Visit us again for the next topic.
All the best for your skin and wellbeing ,
Pamela Sithole x