Men Who Don't Wear Sunscreen: Exfoliate And Protect Your Sun-Damaged Skin Now
If you're a male with areas of dry, sun-damaged skin on your face because you don't like to wear sunscreen, take steps to improve the quality of your skin now. Spending long periods of time outdoors without applying sunscreen on your face and neck may create a problem called photoaging, which causes your skin to prematurely develop liver spots, peel, discolor, and wrinkle. Photoaging may also increase your risks for skin cancer or lead to it. Exfoliating your facial skin may help improve its appearance and texture. Here's how not wearing sunscreen affects your facial skin and how exfoliating your skin helps improve its condition.
What Happens When You Don't Wear Sunscreen?
If you avoid wearing broad-spectrum sunscreen with a SPF of 30 or more because you don't think that your skin is delicate enough to use it, you may be wrong. The sun emits several types of ultraviolet rays during the day, including UVB and UVA. Both types of rays may cause skin cancer and damage your skin cells by prematurely aging them. Premature aging from the sun causes a number of problems for you.
For example, the texture and appearance of your skin may change from smooth and clear to leathery and spotty over time. Small lines may appear around your eyes, mouth and nose, and you may develop reddish, rough spots on your skin that have the potential to become cancer. If you do develop red spots on your face, it's critical that you see a dermatologist for care. Untreated skin cancer can be deadly if it grows or spreads to other areas of the body.
Sunscreen that blocks UVA and UVB rays can help ward off the harmful effects of the sun, especially between the hours of 10 a.m to 2 p.m., which is often the hottest times of the day. In addition, applying one ounce of sunscreen about 15-30 minutes before you venture out into the sun can also help protect your skin.
The next thing you can do is exfoliate your skin to improve its condition.
What's Exfoliating?
You may think that skin exfoliation is something only women may do to obtain a smoother, clearer, and more youthful appearance, but it's not. Although your skin is naturally thicker and denser than a woman's skin, you still need to protect and provide good care to your skin for it be healthy. Men can benefit from exfoliating their skin, especially if they have sun-damaged skin skin. Exfoliation is used to remove dead cells from the surface of the skin, which allows new cells to grow and develop in your skin properly.
To get started, purchase a soft washcloth, a mild soap-free cleanser and one 12-ounce bottle of vitamin E oil. Mix 2 teaspoons of plain oatmeal and 4 tablespoons of cold water in a small bowl. Oatmeal is a natural ingredient that benefits your skin in many ways, including healing and nourishing it. Vitamin E is an essential oil that's used to moisturize and heal skin.
After you have your ingredients and items, follow the exfoliating steps below:
- Rinse your face with warm water.
- Follow the instructions on the cleanser's bottle to wash your face. Afterward, rinse your face with warm or cool water.
- Allow your face to remain damp. Apply the oatmeal to the skin on your forehead, cheeks, nose, and lower jaw.
- Use the pads of your fingers or the washcloth to gently massage the oatmeal into your skin. Use small circular motions to help the oatmeal penetrate your skin.
- Allow the oatmeal to sit on your face for 10 minutes. The oatmeal will soften and clean your face during this time.
- Rinse your face with cool water to remove all signs of the oatmeal.
- Pat your face dry with a clean towel, then apply 1/2 teaspoon of vitamin E oil to your skin.
A number of sources recommend that you exfoliate your skin at least one or two times a week to achieve good results. You can always adjust how often you exfoliate your face to fit your personal or cleansing needs. Also, be sure to wear sunscreen as mentioned above to keep your skin healthy before and after it clears up.
If you need additional information about the damage to your skin, or if you don't see a difference in your skin after three weeks of exfoliating it, contact a dermatologist like those at Advanced Dermatology Care.