Washing face and brushing teeth are two basic hygienic rules that we are taught as children. Having learnt them in my home, I wash face twice a day. In the evening – to remove impurities settled during the day; in the morning – to refresh the skin after the night.

Washing face every day is a basic rule in skin care

All impurities that can clog skin pores have a bad influence on the condition of our complexion. Blackheads, pimples and irritations come in a flash. If we want to keep our face firm, young and discolouration-free, washing it every evening is a must. First of all, we remove makeup that keeps air from getting inside the skin. Second of all, a washing gel sweeps away other impurities e.g. sebum excess, toxins, fumes, smog, dust, etc. It is logic – we want to apply a night nourishing serum when we go to sleep thus are no longer exposed to harmful substances. All cosmetics must be applied to cleansed facial skin. In this way, nutrients can absorb quickly and work more effectively.

But, is morning washing routine a must?

Out of habit, I wake up and (half-asleep) make for the bathroom to wash my face. It does no harm provided I don’t use soaps or gels including strong detergents. Over the night, the skin is exposed to little harm. It can sweat a bit and that’s all. That’s why, we don’t have to strongly cleanse it. After we fall asleep, our skin starts rebuilding its natural protective barrier that is made up – among others – of lipids. That’s the reason we might have a feeling it is greasy after waking up. The evening wash routine totally removes sebum yet the proper amount of sebum is necessary to protect the skin from external aggressors. So, washing face in the morning seems a bit too much. Instead of using a face gel, freshen up your skin with cool water – it will effectively eliminate the feeling of unfresh skin, wake you up and firm the skin up.

The vicious circle in skin care is another thing I want to tell you about.

Do you know that strong purifying cosmetics are harmful to the skin? As mentioned earlier, our skin is surrounded by a hydro-lipid layer that creates a natural barrier protecting the skin against damaging substances. You wash the layer off with strong products. Result? The skin automatically produces the doubled amount of sebum to rebuild the protective barrier. That’s why the more we wash the skin, the more problems with oily complexion we get. Many of my friends got themselves oily and shiny skin because of their face washing obsessions. Be careful, girls. You must never overuse anything.