Todos conocemos la importancia del cuidado personal de la piel. La opinión sobre el modo de hacerlo (“cuidarse”) varía de una persona a otra. Algunos creen que ir a un salón de belleza cada dos días es un cuidado personal de la piel. Otros piensan que basta con aplicarse crema o loción de vez en cuando. Hay quienes consideran que el cuidado personal de la piel es algo que ocurre una vez al mes o al año. Incluso existen otras personas que se dedican al cuidado personal de la piel todo el tiempo. Sin embargo, el mantenimiento de una piel sana no es tan complicado ni tan caro (teniendo en cuenta lo beneficioso que es). Los cuidados corporales consisten en seguir una rutina o un procedimiento para atender las necesidades de la piel.

Incluso antes de empezar con una rutina, tienes que determinar tu tipo de piel (grasa, seca, sensible, normal, etc.) y seleccionar los productos de tratamiento personal adecuados para ella (puede que tengas que experimentar con unos cuantos productos de cosmética personal). Aquí tienes una rutina que debería funcionar para la mayoría de las personas con piel normal.

The first thing on personal skin care routine is Cleansing. The three main ingredients of a cleanser are oil, water and surfactants (wetting agents). Oil and surfactants extract dirt and oil from your skin and water then flushes it out, thus making your skin clean. You might have to try a couple of cleansers before you find the one that suits you the best. However, you should always use soap-free cleansers. Also, you should use Luke warm water for cleansing (hot and cold water, both, cause damage to your skin). Take care that you dont over-cleanse your skin and end up damaging your skin in the process.

The second thing on the personal skin care routine is exfoliation. Skin follows a natural maintenance process wherein it removes the dead cells and replaces them with new skin cells. Exfoliation is just a way to facilitate the skin in this process. Dead skin cells are not capable of responding to personal skin care products but still consume these products, hence preventing them from reaching the new skin cells. Thus removing dead skin cells is important in order to increase the effectiveness of all personal skin care products. Generally, exfoliation takes it place just after cleansing. As with any personal skin care procedure, its important that you understand how much exfoliation you need. Exfoliate 4-5 times per week for oily/normal skin and 1-2 times per week for dry/sensitive skin. Exfoliate a couple of times more in hot and humid weather.

Next thing on personal skin care routine is moisturizers. This is one of the most important things in personal skin care. Even people with oily skin need moisturisers. Moisturisers not only seal the moisture in your skin cells, but also attract moisture (from air) whenever needed. Use of too much moisturiser can however clog skin pores and end up harming your skin. The amount of moisturiser needed by your skin will become apparent to you within one week of you using the moisturiser. Also, applying the moisturiser is best when your skin is still damp.

The last thing on personal skin care routine is sunscreen. A lot of moisturizers (day-time creams/moisturisers) come with UV protection so you can get double benefits from them. Such moisturisers are recommended for all days (irrespective of whether it is sunny or cloudy).

Again, experiment with various personal skin care products and also with the amount you need to apply. What gives you best results is the best personal skin care recipe for you. However, if you have some kind of skin dilemma, it is best to consult your dermatologist before you actually start using any personal skin care products.