Pampering skin…the right way

Is my Skin soft? How will I get face glow like that actress? Am I fairer than her? Is this wrinkle alarming my aging? Each one of us must have always comforted ourselves every time we see a mirror.

Skin..its colour..softness…everyone is just crazy for a picture perfect skin! People can do anything for achieving such flawless skin. Different products, cosmetics, various parlour treatments, home remedies or even dermatologist consultation..each and everyone must have tried at-least one of these tricks for their dear skin. And yes, women men youngsters, aged….all are in this category.

The question is why?? Why everyone is so obsessed with bright glowing spotless skin? Why they can do anything for that? Why there are so many products in market exclusively for skin care? And off course that typical obsession over fair skin…Why?

Our Face is the Reflection of Innermost Beauty. It reflects our confidence, our emotions. A warm smiling face always leaves a strong long lasting impression; and first impression matters a lot. And so everyone wants to have a perfect face for that perfect impression. Market always reflects Human tendency; thus we always see a wide range of beauty or skin care products.

We will discuss all skin issues along with their care and how to pamper our Dear skin in upcoming articles. But before that, lets understand the basics of our Dear skin so that we can take good care of it.

Skin is the outer covering of our body and the largest organ in body. Because it interacts with the environment, skin plays an important immunity role in protecting the body against pathogens and excessive water loss. Its other functions are insulation, temperature regulation, sensation, synthesis of vitamin D, and the protection of vitamin B folates.

Skin Colours- Human skin shows high skin color variety from the darkest brown to the lightest pinkish-white hues. The most important substance determining human skin color is the pigment melanin. Skin pigmentation in humans evolved to primarily regulate the amount of ultraviolet radiation (UVR) penetrating the skin, controlling its biochemical effects. Near equator, UVR is maximum leading to darker skin and away from equator, UVR is minimum leading to fairer skin. Thus we see fairer skin as we go towards northern India and darker skin towards southern India.

Also it has been observed that females are considerably lighter in skin pigmentation than males.

Skin Types- There are four basic types of healthy skin: normal, dry, oily and combination skin. Skin type is determined by genetics. The condition of our skin can, however, vary greatly according to the various internal and external factors it is subjected to like pollution, use of chemicals, hormonal changes etc..

• Normal skin- Refers to well balanced skin. The T-zone (forehead, chin and nose) may be a bit oily, but overall sebum & moisture is balanced. Thus normal skin is neither too oily nor too dry.

• Dry skin- Refers to a skin type that produces less sebum than normal skin. As a result of the lack of sebum, dry skin lacks the lipids that it needs to retain moisture and build a protective shield against external influences. This leads to an impaired barrier function.

• Oily skin- Refers to a skin type with heightened sebum production.

• Combination skin- Here the skin types vary in the T-zone and the cheeks. The T-zone can differ substantially – from a very slim zone to an extended area.

Indians mostly have combination type skin. Do check your skin too.

Skin Aging- As skin ages, it becomes thinner and more easily damaged. Intensifying this effect is the decreasing ability of skin to heal itself as a person ages. Among other things, skin aging is noted by a decrease in volume and elasticity leading to thin, loose and wrinkled skin. There are many internal and external causes to skin aging like excess stress, pollution, chemicals or hormonal imbalances etc.

Considering all these facts one must choose what is correct for his skin. Also maintaining healthy skin is just not superficial but needs proper nourishment. Proper balanced diet, adequate sleep, use of less chemicals or artificial things, protection from Harmful chemicals or pollutants - this is the key for natural Healthy Skin.

What Ayurved says in skin care and what is the perfect skin care regime…will discuss in next article. Till that…stay tuned.