Your mental health and wellbeing really can be skin deep - YEP opinion

In this week’s Voices of the Future column, Francesca Benson looks at the importance of skincare for mental wellbeing and the need to research the best options for you.
Keeping a good skincare routine can really boost your wellbeing. Picture: Charley Gallay/Getty ImagesKeeping a good skincare routine can really boost your wellbeing. Picture: Charley Gallay/Getty Images
Keeping a good skincare routine can really boost your wellbeing. Picture: Charley Gallay/Getty Images

This year has been stressful to say the least, a seemingly endless stream of bad news against an ever-present backdrop of a pandemic.

We need to take time for ourselves for the sake of our mental wellbeing.

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Despite promising strides towards body positivity, one pressure most of us deal with is adhering to societal beauty standards.

Stigma towards aging, acne, and skin conditions has always been difficult, but comparison to celebrities can make insecurity around these perfectly normal things worse. Facing these issues, skincare seems to kill two birds with one stone. It is a method many of us use to relax, while also working to perfect our appearance. With these factors considered, it is easy to get sucked in by dazzling promises by cosmetics companies. However, this can lead to large amounts of time and money spent on routines that do very little, or even unintentionally damage our skin.

Growing consciousness around what we put in our bodies has driven some to reject synthetic formulations for more “natural” ones. Many eco-friendly brands catering to those concerned about the environment favour natural ingredients.

A more natural routine can feel easier to understand and help us feel closer to the earth, in a world where many do not have regular access to outdoor spaces.

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However, a “natural” branded skincare product is not always the best option. Although many natural ingredients have proven benefits, a significant amount have sparse scientific proof of their supposed effects.

This is not the case for more rigorously tested active ingredients with plenty of clinical data backing up how they help specific skin concerns.

Many brands use the misleading term “chemical-free”. In reality, everything is made of chemicals, and a chemical will have the same function whether it is made in a lab or derived from a natural source.

Language used to promote natural cosmetics can imply that they are gentler or better for you, however this is not always true.

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For example, using some essential oils or citrus juices on the skin can cause irritation and greatly increase sensitivity to the sun.

Some products touted as “natural” can even still contain synthetic ingredients and artificial fragrances that consumers are trying to avoid.

The vast number of products in the world of skincare can be overwhelming.

Social media can make it difficult to detect whether a product’s claims are miraculous or just marketing, and the trend of routines of up to 10 steps make it hard to tell which ones are necessary.

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The skin is the largest organ of the body, and self-care via skincare is an effective way for many to soothe ourselves in trying times.

It is vital, however, to research whether the products we use are actually beneficial, and not always take brand’s claims at face value.

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