I can’t believe it’s 2023 already! My prediction is that this year is going to be an amazing year for beauty and glowing skin. Let’s ditch all the unnecessary noise and focus on what is really important: healthy skin. Read on to find out 7 holistic skincare habits everyone should stick to.
1. Hydrate Your Body from Within
This is one of the hardest habits for me, as I don’t usually feel thirsty at all, and it’s so easy to forget that tea you made yourself an hour ago. However, drinking enough water is essential for maintaining healthy, glowing skin. Water helps flush toxins out of your body and keeps your skin cells hydrated and plump. Let’s aim to drink at least 8 cups of water per day.
2. Prioritise Sleep
We all heard that in 2020, 2021 and 2022. So just a little reminder, that nothing changes this year: adequate sleep is important for overall health, including the health of your skin. When you don't get enough sleep, your skin will be dull and you’ll be more prone to breakouts. The recommended sleep per night is 7-8 hours. If you have a vampire toddler like me, who just DOES.NOT.LIKE. sleeping - just aim for as much sleep as possible. And if you don’t have a child, you’ve got no excuse, get that sleep!
3. Eat Well
I know it’s so easy to just buy that pre-made meal, be it frozen pizza, or Indian curry from the local Tesco. And to be honest, I think it’s just fine, once in a while. But don’t let that become your habit. Remember that the state of your gut is always reflected on your skin. Pre-made (processed) meals usually don’t contain as many nutrients and are high in salt, unhealthy fat and sugar, leading to inflammation and breakouts. They also contain preservatives, and some of them can wreck your guts are linked with cancer. Try to learn what healthy foods you enjoy the most, and cook it for yourself.
4. Stop Overloading Your Skin
With all the complicated and long skincare ingredients lists, one can not be so sure what she puts onto her skin every single day. And if you have many skincare steps in your routine, with many products with even more ingredients, it’s easy to lose track of it all. Some ingredients might not interact with each other as planned, or you can simply use too many potent actives at once, and your skin goes haywire. In 2023, I say: let’s choose by ingredients, not by nice packaging or brand. Simplify your skincare and don’t buy more if you have enough at home already.
5. Focus on Strengthening Your Skin Barrier
A well-functioning skin barrier is the cornerstone of healthy skin, so let’s have a quick look which ingredients you should be searching for when buying your skincare. Ceramides are one of my favourites when it comes to skin repairing. Naturally occurring in our skin, they act like a glue between the cells and seal in moisture; keeping your skin hydrated, plump and juicy. I also swear by plant oils and extracts, especially those high in linoleic acid, which strengthens the cell membranes and is the prime protector of the skin barrier. Those are oils such as raspberry seed oil, sea buckthorn oil, rosehip oil and hemp seed oil.
6. Protect Your Skin from Environmental Damage
Be it UV radiation from the sun or air pollution, such as cigarette smoke, exhaust gases, or smog, there’s almost no way to avoid the exposure to the environmental stressors of our daily lives. Fortunately, we have the almighty antioxidants to protect our dull, saggy, hyperpigmented, dry and/or inflamed skins (yes, these are all the negative effects of the pollution). They neutralise free radicals by giving up some of their own electrons. Some of my favourite antioxidant actives are coenzyme Q10, Vitamin C, bakuchiol and astaxanthin. Also, let’s not forget superb antioxidant oils like plum oil (contains polyphenols), jojoba oil (contains Vitamin E), and aforementioned superstar ingredient sea buckthorn oil.
7. Switch to Waterless Skincare
I can go for hours about the benefits of waterless skincare, but that’s what you can expect from someone who started a waterless cosmetics brand. The main appeal of these types of products is that they’re more sustainable, gentler on your skin, more potent/concentrated (so you’ll need less of it and it’s essentially cheaper in the long run), and the formulas aren’t drying. The perfect combination for a super healthy, radiant skin. Check out my range here :)