Most of us start our nighttime skin care routine just before bed. But what if I told you that wasn’t the best time?
Not only are you risking skimping or skipping out on it – I mean, how often are you too tired to properly remove make-up, cleanse, tone and moisturize? – but you’re also not allowing your skin to receive full benefits from the products you’re using.
That means even if you are consistently following through with a nighttime skin care ritual, you’re not getting out of it what you could.
So when is the best time to start?
Around 7 or 8 PM
A big part of this has to do with circadian rhythms.
You see, just like your body, your skin has an internal clock. And because of this, your skin’s natural repair mechanisms start to kick in as the sun begins to set. Basically, as you begin to wind down for the day, your skin stem cells kick it up a notch, working hard creating new cells and replacing old ones.
When you cleanse earlier in the evening, you help keep your skin’s internal clock in sync with the rest of your body. Since your skin is no longer busy defending itself against daytime pollution and UV rays, it can effectively work on absorbing the nutrients your skin needs to refresh and regenerate. Which in turn helps to protect against damage and signs of aging.
5 reasons to make sure you commit to a nighttime skin care routine
Your face is dirty. Seriously. Just think how often you inadvertently touch it throughout the day. You probably don’t even realize how frequent an occurrence that is. And, this exact habit can make your face one of the dirtiest parts of your body.
Less breakouts. In addition to the fact that touching your skin leads to the spread of acne bacteria, cleansing at night reduces oil build-up which can clog pores.
A clean palette. As I mentioned above, your skin repairs itself at night. And work like that is easier to do with a clean slate. Nighttime cleansing ensures makeup, dirt, grime and pollution are removed, and products that will assist with skin regeneration are properly absorbed.
It’s called beauty sleep for a reason. When you slack on sleep, it shows. Literally. Not just with your mood, or those dark circles under your eyes, but because your skin can’t repair itself. Not getting enough sleep and not cleansing before bed leads to inflammation which is an underlying cause of premature aging and acne.
Hydration boost. Moisturizers evaporate over the course of the day, so washing and re-moisturizing in the evening will keep the skin hydrated while it rebuilds.
Takeaway: Exhaustion is the number 1 reason a person doesn’t wash their face at the end of the day. So change up your habits, and get it done earlier in the evening.
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