"My wife was afraid of the dark... then she saw me naked and now she's afraid of the light." -Rodney Dangerfield
I get it. Skincare sounds like something “girls do.” Or, is it? According to the American Society of Plastic Surgery in 2016 minimally invasive procedures for men grew by 74% from 2015. What is crazy is the use of Botox in men has grown a staggering 376% from 2000 to 2016! Granted, I can hear you say, “botox isn’t skincare.” You’re right, it’s not, but it does help demonstrate the move towards procedures that were once deemed “only for women.”
Pollution
If you drive a car, use the subway, ride the bus, or live within 50 miles of a city, chances are you encounter air pollution. This is important because the emissions from vehicles regularly hit your skin. When this happens, the microscopic pollution particles create free radicals, which destroy cells in your skin. This is caused from a chain reaction and loss of electrons--more on that in upcoming articles.
Dry skin
We all get dry skin. It’s normal. But, did you know that dry skin can cause acne and cause you to age quicker? It’s true. According to Dermatologist Dr. Carl Thornfeldt, your skin will attempt to create an equilibrium of moisture and hydration for your skin. If you over wash your skin your sebaceous glands (say that 5 times fast) will produce oil to compensate. When more oil is put on your face, it traps bacteria in your pores. When white blood cells come to the rescue, bam! You’ve got acne. An easy fix is using a medical grade cleanser. Try using Epionce’s Lytic Gel Cleanser. You can thank me later.
The sun
Depending on what dermatologist you speak with the sun causes 60-90% of aging. Think about it. The sun is bombarding us with radiation whenever we are outside. Even when it’s cloudy. That radiation causes damage on a cellular level. When the photons from the sun hit our skin, we absorb most of it. Some of it turns into vitamin D, which we need. But, a lot of it causes cellular damage.
The Results
To find out how much men use skincare, we recently conducted our own study with 250+ men ages 34-59 in the US. The results were a bit scary. Only 13% of the men surveyed say they put on sunscreen every day. 8% don’t put it on. Ever. Those guys can enjoy frequent visits to the dermatologist or plastic surgeon as they age to cut tumors out of their skin. Or, just use sunscreen. It’s an easy fix!
Thoughts
Moving forward our hope here is that you start thinking about using skincare. It can help you. And it’s not the taboo subject it once was. Puzzled on where to start? Try our personalized skin care quiz, which creates customized skin care programs for both men and women. You can thank us later.
To your skin health,
Team Reflect
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