BY CYNTHIA WAIRIMU
Women throughout history have been known to use makeup to enhance their beauty. This dates as far back as ancient Egypt where they used copper and lead ore to create the very first cosmetics. Most well-off women felt the need to always look their best which was achieved by any means necessary including the use of lead, mercury, and even leeches to give the skin a pale complexion that was the standard unit of beauty back in the day.
There have been huge steps towards the betterment of these home remedies, with top-notch products that are way less harmful. However, this is a battle yet to be won as there are thousands of cheap and readily available products with highly potent byproducts, sold to a huge number of people, knowingly or unknowingly because of the need of instant beauty fixes without foresight on the adverse effects of the same. Beware!Makeup, when done well, looks very good on the person and enhances their beauty by giving them a face lift, hiding away crow feet and pores, and eye bags from inconsistent sleep, making makeup
very handy indeed.
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This being said and done, at the end of the night, when all is settled and you need to get in your forty winks, it is usually very tempting to sleep in your makeup. After all, you can wash it off in the morning as you take a shower. This is highly discouraged. Do not sleep in your makeup. Here is why:
Breakouts
When you form a habit of sleeping in your makeup, the dirt, especially the free radicals found in the environment, which stick to your makeup and dead skin on your face, will clog your pores and cause chronic inflammation resulting in pimples and rashes as well as your skin deteriorating.
Once your pores are clogged, the chances of amicrocomedone forming and attracting
acne causing bacteria to your skin are pretty high.
Aging
Yes! Makeup and dirt on your face if not cleaned off means that the pollutants in the air will cause oxidative damage to your skin which will result in the breakdown of healthy collagen. This will then cause fine lines and wrinkles to form on your face. So your skin will age prematurely and no one wants that. Imagine looking ten years older than you are simply because you felt too tired to clean your face at the end of the day.
Acne infection
If you are prone to acne, then not washing off your makeup will make it worse! If you have oily skin and what we could term as sensitive skin, then you need to be wary as the irritants such as dyes and perfumes could cause worse reactions. “For those with oily skin, like acne patients, sleeping in makeup could worsen their skin conditions,” saya Dr Chiu, a dermatologist.
Dull complexion
Dr Chiu says that regular cleansing and exfoliation are integral to revealing healthy new skin cells and allowing the natural repair processes of the skin to occur. While Dr Gilbert, a dermatologist and founder of the Clear clinic says “Foundations and thick, oil-based primers are often the worst offenders, they prevent the skin from renewing itself naturally at night, causing blackheads, acne and dullness.”Cleanse every evening, your skin will thank you later and with the proper skin routine, you won’t need as much makeup to achieve a brighter look. The natural glow will keep you
going instead. Whether you use makeup or not, it is important that your skin remains clean.
It is usually the first line of defense against infection. If you have queries, it is important to see a dermatologist for more focused attention on your skin type and how to take care of it.
