Rosh Hashanah is a prime time for us to think about our daily habits and adopt some new things. Towards the end of this year and the start of the new one, Paula Black Dayan, an expert in advanced cosmetics and natural medicine, has listed all the mistakes we make that cause damage to our faces. 

1. Touching too much

How many times a day do you think you touch your facial skin? If you answer about 20 times or more in an hour, you're probably right. We do it without paying attention, touching the nose, mouth, cheeks and eyes all day. We play with our facial skin and spend many hours in front of the mirror and look closely for any redness, pimples or pigmentation, while touching, messing around and creating damage. Dayan said that many people come to her clinic with damage they  caused themselves from over-touching their faces. 

Touching the skin with unclean hands transmits contaminants to the skin, nose and mucous membranes of the eyes, which is the easiest way for viruses to enter the body.

2. Excessive cleansing 

You need to keep your skin clean, but sometimes people cleanse their facial skin excessively, thinking it’s helpful. However, it’s harmful since every time we clean it removes layers that cause the sebaceous glands to produce more oil. It can cause pimples to appear. What’s too much? If you start to get pimples in new places, you’re probably cleaning your face too often.

3. Not knowing your skin type

People have one of four skin types: oily skin, combination skin (some areas oily, others dry), dry skin or normal skin and each skin type needs its own products. A mismatch between various creams and serums and your skin type can definitely create spots. It’s worthwhile to go to a professional cosmetologist who can diagnose the skin type and recommend the correct products.
(Credit: Ingimage)
(Credit: Ingimage)

4. Dirty makeup brushes

Most women have four to five makeup brushes in various sizes and different types. When was the last time you cleaned them? Grease and thousands of molecules of bacteria quickly accumulate on the brushes, which you touch every day (sometimes twice) to your face. The brushes should be cleaned after each use (rinse with soap and water, then dry - that's enough). It’s true that it’s not easy to wash brushes after each use, but cleaning them once a week is a good start.

5. Linens aren’t changed regularly

How often do you change linens? Think about every night that you go to bed after a whole day outside where your skin gathers pollution, sweat and other “good” things that get smeared on the pillowcase and sheets. Every day, more and more layers of pollutants accumulate, and all of this stuff touches your face. Yes, homes aren’t hotels where sheets are changed daily, but change pillowcases twice a week and all sheets once a week. Use bedding made of quality fabrics like cotton.

6. Products unsuitable for the weather 

When it’s broiling outside, avoid heavy and greasy products that clog and "suffocate" the skin. The skin is an organ that needs to breathe, so heavy products absorb sweat and pollutants that make it hard for skin to breathe. Use light and pleasant creams which contain sunscreen and have vitamins that nourish the skin.

7. You're stressed out

Our mental state greatly affects our bodies, and the same is true for facial wounds. In Israel, there are many reasons to be stressed and tense almost 24/7 and the psychological effects cause unpleasant skin problems like acne, seborrhea, rosacea and many other non-photogenic effects. When there is an outbreak, we ask ourselves what went wrong the past week. Usually after a mentally charged week the physical evidence, like pimples, appears on the face.