Common Myths About Skin Health

Welcome to September, friends! It’s the month when fall starts to set in after a hot summer and we start taking in all the pumpkin spice our little hearts desire. It also happens to be Skin Health Awareness Month, which is something our crew at Skin Elite is passionate about. So in the interest of spreading awareness about strong skin health and how you can give your skin the wellness it needs, I’m tackling some of the nastiest skin health myths that could be holding back your skin.

Eating Oily Foods Causes Acne Breakouts

How many times have you been told that if you wouldn’t eat oily or greasy foods, or if you wouldn’t eat chocolate, your acne would just disappear? I had that bother more than once, and unfortunately, it’s pretty common because this myth is a prevalent one. But the simple fact is that there’s no evidence that oily foods, chocolate, or any other food for that matter has anything to do with causing acne or making it worse. It’s just bunk. It might have come from a misunderstanding of the fact that excess facial oils can cause acne, but those oils are inside your pores and produced by your body – they don’t come from burgers.

The Less Sun Exposure, The Better

This is a piece of well-meaning skin health advice that has just gotten out of hand. Yes, it’s true that you want to avoid excessive sun exposure like spending hours out in the sun without sunscreen or using tanning beds. But some amount of sun exposure is actually healthy and necessary for your body to produce the vitamin D it needs. So head out for that morning walk and enjoy the sunshine at peace.

Age Spots are a Natural Part of Aging

Maybe it’s because they’re incredibly common or because they’ve taken on the name “age spots,” but many people think that those brown spots are a normal and inevitable part of aging, like wrinkles and fine lines. In reality, they’re not. They’re caused by repeated excess sun exposure that accumulates over time. You accumulate more sun damage year after year, which is why age spots typically form more and more as you get older. Unlike wrinkles, though, which you can only hold off and minimize to an extent, age spots are preventable.

If Your Skin is Dry, It Means You Don’t Drink Enough Water

Dry skin isn’t fun from either a comfort perspective or an aesthetic perspective, but it actually doesn’t come from drinking too little water. Dry skin happens when your skin’s natural moisture barrier isn’t doing its job well enough and it allows the moisture in your skin to evaporate too quickly. Think of it this way: the problem isn’t that your skin is taking in too little water, it’s that it can’t hold the water in. That’s why the best way to treat dry skin is with topical products like moisturizer and creams that restore your moisture barrier and lock in hydration.

But with that said, your skin (like any other organ) does rely on you drinking water to be healthy and function at its best, so don’t toss out your Stanley either.

It’s Healthier to Wash Your Skin with Antibacterial Soap

There’s a common misconception that bacteria = bad, but bacteria serve a purpose too. Your skin is actually a natural microbiome, meaning it’s a microscopic ecosystem of its own and that ecosystem relies on good bacteria (among other things) to keep it healthy. The problem with antibacterial soap is that it attacks all bacteria, not just the bad bacteria, so it can disrupt your skin’s microbiome. It can also be harder on your skin’s pH balance and even contribute to the growth of antibiotic-resistant bacteria which affects everyone globally.

There are, of course, certain situations where killing bad bacteria is so critical that you do need to use antibacterial soap regardless, like if you work in healthcare or in food service. But otherwise, just use regular soap instead.

Natural Skin Care Products are Healthier for Your Skin

This myth isn’t just in skin care but in nutrition, cleaning products, and other industries too. There’s a misconception that if a product uses natural ingredients, that makes it healthier, and this blanket statement simply isn’t true. There are healthy products that use natural ingredients and there are healthy products that use manufactured ingredients…and there are unhealthy products in both categories too. Just because a product is natural doesn’t automatically make it healthy or a good fit for your skin, and it doesn’t mean the product won’t cause irritation. Choosing natural products is more of a personal preference.

Setting the Record Straight for Your Health

We’ve all made mistakes when it comes to our skin health, and there’s no shame – it’s a learning process. But this Skin Health Awareness Month is a perfect opportunity to educate yourself about how to better care for your skin so it gives you that gorgeous glow you’ve always wanted.