How to Protect Your Skin From Pollution, Cold and Sun?

4 min read

Sun, cold, pollution...Protecting your skin against environmental aggressions means adopting a routine dedicated to the skin's natural protective barrier. In short: nutrition, hydration, smoothness, and anti-UV filters!

How to protect your skin from pollution?

Pollution is a real scourge for our skin. Researchers have, in fact, shown that it accelerates skin aging by releasing free radicals. And that's not the only harmful effect, as it can contribute to the oiliness of your skin or cause blemishes to appear! In other words, if you want to keep your skin young and blemish-free, pollution is the enemy you must fight.

How can you do this? First, adopt a thorough facial cleansing: remove makeup and cleanse your face morning and night with a cleansing milk, a purifying cleansing gel, or a purifying micellar water if your skin tends to be oily.

Then, after each cleansing, use a more or less nourishing moisturizing cream, depending on your skin type: light for oily skin, more nourishing for dry skin. Well moisturized skin is the best weapon against external aggressions, such as pollution!

If your skin shows signs of aggression linked to free radicals (wrinkles, dull complexion, blemishes, blackheads...), you must act with vitamin E, one of the richest antioxidant actives known today.

How to protect your skin from the sun?

Beneficial only in the right doses, the sun is quite dangerous when there is too much exposure. UVA and UVB rays bring consequences to the skin, and notably accentuate the effects of pollution.

UVA rays penetrate the skin most deeply. They are responsible for the aging of the skin. These ultraviolet rays are also responsible for blemishes, due to hyperpigmentation of the skin.
UVB rays cause sunburn. These painful burns can leave a mark on the skin in the form of scars that will darken over time.

Rule nº1: limit exposure to the less hot hours, and if possible, stay in the shade.

Rule nº2: use a sunscreen that ensures coverage against UVA and UVB rays. The ideal sun protection factor (SPF) is at least 30. If you have fair skin and are prone to sunburn, opt for an SPF50.

If necessary, after sun exposure, you can calm melanin and diminish brown spots caused by the sun with glabridin, a formidable whitening agent that promotes a more even skin tone.

How to protect your skin from the cold?

Another great enemy of the skin: the cold! In winter, the air becomes drier and your skin is exposed to sometimes sub-zero temperatures. The result? Your skin becomes red, uncomfortable, and taut... In short, dehydrated! In addition, the cold can exacerbate certain existing skin diseases, such as atopic dermatitis.

There is only one solution: protect your skin well by reinforcing the hydrolipidic film. If your skin becomes more dehydrated, don't forget to moisturize it with a very rich moisturizing cream (in vegetable oils, for example).

Do you tend to get erythemas in the winter? Even so, make sure you go outside with your skin well protected. Even when hidden, the sun is beneficial to your skin, mood, and immune system!

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How to Protect Your Skin From Pollution, Cold and Sun?

Isabel Godinho

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