At ECOCOCO we believe that skincare should be simple, but flip through the pages of your favourite magazine or check out a beauty blog, and you’re likely to come across an overwhelming amount of advice, a lot of it, false. So, to make it easier for you, we’ve debunked seven beauty myths that might be causing your skin some serious damage.
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You don’t need to wear SPF if it’s not sunny
Listen up and listen closely because this may be the most important advice you ever receive: ALWAYS WEAR SPF!! Even if its cloudy or rainy or you’re indoors because UV rays and UVA rays care not for the weather forecast and will penetrate through glass and windows searching for fresh faced, SPF free skin to damage.
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Dry skin? Drink more water
We’ve spoken about this before here, but for those who missed it: dry skin is a skin type that lacks oil, not water, which means it needs oil-based products to replenish it. Unlike dehydrated skin which needs water inside and out to rehydrate and plump.
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Exfoliating will dry out your skin
Only if you’re doing it wrong. Over-exfoliation has the potential to damage the skin’s moisture barrier causing irritation and leaving it dry. However, if you’re only exfoliating 2-3 times a week using a gentle exfoliant your skin will be very happy with its lack of congestion from dead skin and product build up.
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Makeup stops skin from breathing
Not unless your skin has decided to grow lungs. Skin doesn’t breathe. when people talk about skin “breathing”, they’re actually referring to whether the pores are clogged up or not. Clogging the pores – whether it’s with non-comodegenic skincare and makeup, sweat, grime, pollution or any other environmental toxins – can cause pimples, whiteheads or blackheads if left to build up and get infected but as long as you’re taking your makeup off thoroughly before going to bed, cleansing and exfoliating your skin should be absolutely fine.
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Pimples develop overnight
Wrong again! Pimples take at least 1 week to form. If you wake up in the morning with a zit on your forehead, that little guy was days in the making. The most likely cause: a blocked pore with a build-up of sebum 2 weeks ago that has become infected.
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Toothpaste is a great spot treatment
Back away from the tube. While there are some ingredients in some toothpastes that can have a drying effect on your blemishes, most contain harsh chemical and irritants that your skin is not a fan of. Stick to dedicated spot treatments and clay masks that have been specifically formulated for skin and not teeth.
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Face oils will make skin oilier
If your face oils are formulated correctly, they should do the exact opposite. Often when skin is dry it overcompensates by producing excess oils. Face oils like our Skin O’lixirs are created with oils completely different to the ones your skin produces and are designed to deeply hydrate the skin and regulate oil production.