5 Tiny Tweaks to Transform the State of Your Skin

For harried workaholics, a minimal skin-care regimen that still gives you maximal glow may seem like a pipe dream—but there are, in fact, a few basic changes that do reap major rewards. “It’s about making smart decisions over doing more things,” says Whitney Bowe, M.D., a New York dermatologist, who regularly fields questions on the topic from her multitasking clients. “People want to simplify their routines as much as possible and get the biggest bang for their buck.” Here, Bowe suggests five simple tweaks to transform your skin in a flash.

Invest in Sunglasses
“You’ll want to be wearing wraparound broad spectrum sunglasses with UVA and UVB protection for two reasons. Every time you squint into sunlight, you’re creating wrinkles around the eyes, just by making the movement repeatedly. The other reason is because the skin around the eyes is very thin, very fragile, so it’s especially prone to damage from UVA and UVB rays.”

Take a Probiotic
“Make sure you have a probiotic at least once a day. There’s new evidence that they’re amazing for the health of the skin: Calms down inflammation, slows down signs of aging, protects against sun damage and free radicals. It could be yogurt with live active cultures, a cup of miso soup, sauerkraut with your lunch, or kombucha—all sorts of sources. You want to get at least one dose a day, and any dietary change usually takes a month or two to appreciate the change in the skin.”

Layer Your Skin Care
“The two most important skin care steps are to invest in a quality serum with peptides or antioxidants and layer it under a hydrating night cream to seal the moisture in. Make sure to apply those powerful anti-aging ingredients at night because that’s when the skin starts to regenerate and repair itself. The layering is key: When you layer a serum underneath a cream, the serum actually penetrates deeper into the skin. For those with more time, indulge in an eye cream, a neck cream—do the whole ritual. But realistically speaking for people who are exhausted, just wash off your makeup, put on serum and cream, and call it a day.”

Try Green Tea
“It’s better if you switch between coffee and green tea in the mornings. Coffee has been shown to protect against skin cancer, but green tea is actually better for anti-aging. If you can alternate every cup of coffee with a cup of tea, you’re actually getting more powerful antioxidants that way—and the green tea slows down the degradation of collagen.”

Cleanse Religiously
“Cleansing at night is not just about unclogging pores. During the day, pollution particles attach themselves to our foundation, to creams. No matter how tired you are, if you don’t wash it all off before you go to bed at night, you’re fighting that extra free-radical damage all night long, and pollution, which has been shown to cause brown spots and sun spots.”

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