Skin Health
No skin consistently shows the same characteristics; skin is constantly variable. Therefore, skin care creams should be continuously renewed according to the skin's changes. Hair, just like skin, is in a state of change. Skin beauty and health depend on the foods we eat, and our mental and hormonal balance. Our skin, just like our other organs, has its own rhythm. Every 28 days, all the cells in the skin's outermost layer are renewed.
There can be many reasons for the disruption of the functioning and balance of beautiful, healthy, soft skin. Our skin is easily affected and reacts to both internal and external factors. Adolescence and emotional stress can affect our skin's oil balance; cold weather can dry out and sensitize our skin. With age, skin also loses its vitality and begins to lose its natural functioning. Therefore, it is necessary to help the skin by providing external support.
Skin does not like extremes. Suddenly changing the ambient temperature tires the skin; it spends excessive energy to adapt to the new environment, putting the skin under stress. Applying sudden hot-cold treatments to the skin is harmful. One of the necessary applications for the skin is to remove dead skin cells by exfoliating. For this, it is quite nice to exfoliate using a salt and sugar mixture, oatmeal, or crushed almonds with massage. For oily skin, applying a clay mask removes excess oil without harming the skin and opens pores, allowing the skin to breathe.
How Should Skin Cleansing Be Done?
Skin cleansing should be done with products that have a suitable pH of 5.5 for the skin. Soaps are not suitable products for skin cleansing. Over-washing the skin damages the skin's natural lipids (oil), causing it to dry out. If your skin is dry, over-washing will cause excessive moisture loss; if it is oily, the sebaceous glands will respond by producing excess oil as a reaction to over-washing. Washing your skin only in the evening when you come home, with a suitable product to remove dirt and makeup residue, will be sufficient. Skin loses moisture throughout the day; therefore, it is necessary to replenish the lost moisture with thermal waters rich in minerals or rose water.
Dermatologists' and ophthalmologists' recommendation for a facial wash product is to use baby shampoo. It is an excellent product with a suitable pH value to cleanse the skin of makeup and dirt. (Prefer the yellow-colored ones.)
The Similarity Principle in Oily Skin Care
What is the similarity principle? It is the principle of treating like with like. Until now, different methods have always been applied in skin care; new generation cosmetic products are based on the similarity principle. The essence is to care for skin with high oil production by giving it oil. In regulating skin with excessive sebum production, large pores, oiliness, and blemishes, based on the law of similarity, as oil is applied to the skin from the outside, the sebaceous glands reduce their own oil production. Carrot, calendula, neem oil, nettle seed, almond, jojoba, apricot kernel, pumpkin seed, and grape seed oil are perfect for oily skin.
Warning: Excessive oil application to the skin causes hair growth. Avoid excessive oil use. It is sufficient to add a few drops of oil to your skin care toner and use it. Toners should absolutely not contain alcohol. Mineral-based or herbal toners are also suitable for oily skin. Orange and cinnamon cause allergic reactions on oily skin. Plant tinctures recommended for dry skin can be used to balance hormones in oily skin.
While researching this article, I also read skin care recommendations from all over the world. Young people recommended silica supplements to each other. Medical publications state that silica obtained from sea minerals is of no use in hair and skin care. Zinc-containing foods, hops, fennel, red clover, and horsetail tea are very beneficial for oily skin.
For Dry Skin
Even if you care for dry, moisture-lost skin with oils, the oil will not penetrate dry skin, it will stay on the surface and prevent the skin from breathing. Using oil on dry, aged, and moisture-less skin will also stop the production of oil secretion. Especially if you use oily creams at night, the skin will completely stop oil production and as a result, you will get no benefit at all. The skin's breathing is also cut off; the skin thickens due to lack of oxygen and wrinkles become more pronounced. These applications are revolutionary.
For aged skin, lotions without oil but with moisturizing properties, or mixtures of plant juices, thermal waters, toners rich in vitamins and minerals should be preferred. Plants to use to provide moisture to the skin: mallow, green tea, quince, marshmallow, fennel, hops, ginger, cinnamon, thyme, olive leaf, sandalwood leaf, horse chestnut, pomegranate flower, hibiscus, rosehip, red clover, horsetail, shepherd's rose, chicory, rose, basil, cherry, barley, and lily flower. A toner can be prepared and used with one or several of these. Barley water is a very good choice as it contains magnesium and vitamin B. Red clover is nature's richest source of silica. Horsetail contains plenty of vitamins and minerals. Borage (joy herb) is beneficial for tense skin.
For dry skin, as daytime care, raspberry, strawberry, orange, jasmine, rosehip, ginger, pomegranate, and grape seed oil are suitable. These oils are volatile oils that act as tonics, penetrating the skin quickly. Using them during the day and going outside causes staining due to the sun's effect. Oils should not be applied directly to the skin and exposed to unprotected daylight. The skin care products you purchase having these characteristics will provide solutions to your skin problems.
Recommendations Regarding the Use of Care Products
For care products to penetrate the skin better, the skin should be left to dry for a while after washing. Creams should be applied to the skin with massage. Care products do not penetrate moist skin; they stay on the surface and are expelled from the skin surface after a while.
Recommendations for Daytime Care
For oily skin, care products rich in oil content should be preferred. Rich thermal toners and zinc-containing toners are also necessary for oily skin. Toners should not contain alcohol.
For normal, dry, and dull skin with reduced moisture and a tendency to wrinkle, liquid products with low oil content and fast absorption should be preferred. The use of thermal waters before care creams should not be neglected.
Night Care
The skin should be cleansed and toned (with thermal waters). For night care, oily creams sold as night creams should not be applied. Oily care creams are not recommended for all skin types. The reason for this is: not to tire the skin during sleep, to speed up its renewal by allowing it to breathe, and to help the skin build its own defense system. Oils applied to the skin tire it throughout the night and create a barrier, preventing the skin from breathing. Our grandmothers preserved their skin beauty with these methods in the old days.
Note: For skin beauty, sipping one or two cups of herbal tea a day without boiling it is very beneficial for the skin. Add some plant extract to boiled, slightly cooled water, steep for 5-6 minutes, and sip. Do not boil when preparing herbal tonics for skin care. Crush a pinch of herbs, let them rest in a glass of warm water for half an hour, strain, and apply as a tonic 4-5 times during the day.
Ensure that the care oils to be used are not heat-treated, are cold-pressed, and additive-free.
