Taking a shower may seem simple, but for your skin and hair, it is much different. For instance, hot water might help you relax after a long working day, on the other hand, your skin and hair will not be pleased.
Sometimes you have to change your habits for the sake of your health, and today, we will discuss some shower practices that are doing harm to your skin and hair, in addition to how you can shower, the right way.
Shower Practices Do’s and Don’ts
#1 Hot Shower, Yes or No?
I have always enjoyed taking a hot shower in winter, but I have also noticed that my hair would turn frizzy fast, and my skin would be very dry afterward. Why? The answer is so simple: hot water is too harsh for your skin and hair.
-Don’t
Hot showers strip away natural oils from your skin; making your skin very dry and itchy, and eventually end up with eczema.
-Do
You should avoid taking hot showers, and instead, keep showers at warm temperature. Moreover, take a quick cold (or maybe warm) rinse to seal skin pores and hair cuticles.
#2 Shampoos
-Don’t
Parabens and fragrances are two ingredients that you should exclude from all your beauty products, including your hair care products.
Parabens are a class of widely used preservatives in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical products. While these parabens could preserve your beauty products, they may cause harm to your health, too.
Fragrances are pretty scents that may give a relaxation feeling, but for some people, fragrances may cause irritation. Even some essentials oils may irritate your skin. I avoid products containing lavender essential oil as I found that it dries my skin.
-Do
Look for paraben-free hair care products. Also, products that are natural, and containing the least number of ingredients. Other ingredients to avoid include triclosan, synthetic colors, formaldehyde, sodium lauryl sulfate, and sodium Laureth sulfate.
When shampooing your hair, make sure to message your scalp to remove dirt, oil, and hair products build-up. To restore moisture, follow with a conditioner.
#3 Soap or Body Wash?
-Don’t
Soap can be too harsh for dry skin since, in most cases, it will strip off oils from your skin, leaving your skin dry and itchy. Body washes, on the other hand, can be too harsh if they contain parabens or if they are extra lathery.
-Do
Soap-free body wash is the best for your skin, you can also use moisturizing soap especially the ones that contain shea butter, olive oil, and natural oils or butter.
#4 Wash your Loofah and Towels.
-Don’t
Wet loofah and wet towels can be a perfect bacterial growth medium, in addition to yeast. Using the same loofah and towel over and over again without washing and drying them will transfer germs to your skin, causing acne, and skin problems that you could avoid easily.
-Do
Wash and dry your loofah and towels regularly to avoid bacteria build-ups and infections. Remember that sunlight is a great way to kill these germs.
#5 Avoid rough towel drying
-Don’t
Roughly drying your skin may irritate your sensitive skin.
-Do
Gently pat dry and apply a moisturizer directly while your skin is a bit wet. This will help lock in moisture, and prevent your skin from getting dry.
My Teak Shower Bench combined these tips and much more in the following infographic. Make sure to Pin it for future reference.
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if I wanted to apply a second coat for a darker tan. What do I do? I applied my tan early this morning and am about to Rinse off.. I do want a slightly darker look tho, what would you recommend to do??
I thought it was interesting that you suggest not taking hot showers. I can understand how they can harm your hair and possibly strip away natural oils from the skin as well. For my hair, I like to wash it with luke warm water and low fragrance soaps.
I know a hot water shower dries out my skin, but in the freezing cold winter it’s so hard to resist! Haha
Wow, nicely explained do’s and don’ts for shower practice. Thank you for sharing.