Is Your Skin Fit For Summer?

While you may have relaxed a bit during the recent shelter in place orders, summer is no time to slack on your skincare routine. You can still enjoy your summer fun, but don't let summer get the best of your skin. Change up your skincare routine with the change of season to combat the challenges summer brings.

With the warm, sunny days of summer, come heat, humidity and prolonged sun exposure. While the increased heat and humidity can lead to extra oil and shine, UV exposure can accelerate common signs of aging like fine lines and wrinkles, age spots, and loose or sagging skin. These are some of the reasons you’ll want to adjust your skin care routine for summer. Not quite sure how?

1. Cleanse

When it is hot and humid, your skin may produce more oil. To keep your summer skin matte but hydrated, cleanse first thing in the morning and before bed with a gentle cleanser to remove excess oil, dirt or residual makeup, without stripping your skin of its natural moisture protection. Washing your face twice a day is key, even if you skip makeup for the day.

Recommended Products:

R Essentials^TM Antioxidant Infused Foamy Gentle Cleanser delivers protective antioxidants and soothing botanicals while providing a deep, hydrating cleansing experience.

Obagi ^® Nu Derm Toner balances the pH of your skin following cleansing, preparing your skin for the next step.

Application Tip: Cleanse with cool water to assist with dry, red, or puffy skin.

2. Treat

Treat yourself by treating your skin. Skin regeneration requires the presence of proper nutrients. Nutrient demand increases under conditions of stress, exposure to free radicals and UV radiation. A bright spot in the nutritional arsenal to fight aging is vitamin C. Amazingly, vitamin C is not just a potent antioxidant. It accelerates production of collagen and elastin to plump and firm the skin while also inhibiting excess melanin production, minimizing dark spots and brightening skin tone.

Recommended Products:

R Essentials^TM Super Charged Vitamin C Serum, more than a vitamin C. This system of high performance ingredients brightens your complexion, supports healthy collagen production, and fights free radicals.

Obagi^® Professional C Serums (10%, 15% and 20%) deliver concentrated L-ascorbic acid to minimize the signs of aging. 

Application Tip: Apply a few drops to freshly cleansed skin (following toner if used) in the morning; allow vitamin C to absorb before applying additional products.

Humidity and makeup are not always the best combination for flawless summer skin. It is important to take a hands off approach to summer breakouts. Touching your face is one of the easiest ways to spread bacteria and make a pimple problem worse. If you experience breakouts, don’t pick! Picking can only make things worse and possibly lead to scarring.

Recommended Product:

R Essentials^TM 5/2 Gly-Sal Treatment Pads provide an easy-to-use treatment option to control oil, reduce breakouts, promote gentle exfoliation, unclog pores and calm your skin.

Application Tip: Sensitive or dry skin may benefit from ramping product use; start with a once a day or every other day application and increase gradually over the next few weeks.

Remember to exfoliate. This step is often overlooked, but very important to skin rejuvenation - minimizing brown spots, lines, and wrinkles while boosting your skin’s healthy glow.

Recommended Products:

R Essentials^TM Clarifying Brightening Polish accelerates your skin’s natural renewal process, gently refining skin texture, revealing a fresh, smooth complexion.

Obagi^® Professional C Microdermabrasion Polish + Mask reveals brighter, smoother, more youthful-looking skin, using a powerful infusion of 30% L-ascorbic acid and ultra-fine crystals for exfoliation.

Application Tip: Exfoliate gently one to two times per week for best results. Protect your skin’s barrier; do not over exfoliate.

3. Hydrate

Heat and sun exposure can sap the skin of its moisture, leaving it dry and defenseless. Think of hydration as providing a protective shield, locking in moisture and nutrition while blocking the unwanted entry of harmful aggressors.

Proper skin hydration requires more than just drinking water. Choose a lightweight moisturizer to maintain hydration and soft, supple skin during the day and reparative cream at night. 

From plumping serums to emollient creams, hydration is an important part of your skincare regimen. 

Recommended Products:

R Essentials^TM Ultra Hydrating Hyaluronic Acid Serum quenches dehydrated skin, delivering all-day moisture retention and supple, smooth skin.

R Essentials^TM Advanced Correction Cream nourishes dry, stressed skin and fortifies barrier function. The power of ceramides, peptides and stem cells leave skin firm, smooth and soft.

Application Tip: Combining both a hydrating serum and moisturizing cream can deliver the best results, increasing the skin’s moisture content and fortifying the protective barrier.

4. Protect

Harmful UV rays are everywhere! Don’t forget your SPF! Whether it is outdoor activities, sunlight coming through the window or blue light from your computer and cell phone, UV exposure can be damaging to your skin. A mineral-based SPF helps to prevent skin cancer and signs of aging. 

Recommended Products: 

R Essentials^TM Tinted Physical Sunscreen performs double duty, providing powerful broad-spectrum SPF 50 protection and the benefits of a mattifying BB cream. No need for the tint, try our Sheer Physical Sunscreen.

Application Tip: Wear this tinted SPF alone for light complexion perfection or under makeup as a mattifying primer.

In addition to committing to a healthy summer skincare routine, your skin rejuvenation efforts can be accelerated by getting consistent, adequate sleep, drinking plenty of water and cleaning your makeup brushes regularly.

Makeup Brush Cleaning Tip: 
express a pea-sized amount of your facial cleanser into the palm of your hand; wet your brush under warm water, swirl the brush in your palm for several seconds; rinse your brush under warm water and massage the brush bristles between your fingers, thoroughly washing all of the suds away; lay brush flat on a clean towel to dry.

As you look to be fit for summer adopting healthy habits, don’t neglect your skincare routine. Think of it as an opportunity to pamper and protect yourself all-in-one.

Need help determining which products are right for you? We can help. Call to schedule an appointment with a skincare professional at Advanced Dermatology & Cosmetic Surgery today. (tel: 800.647.9851)