Let’s be honest.
We’ve all done it.
You get home late, watch a little TV, then climb into bed.
The last thing you feel like doing is crawling out of your warm sheets to go wash your face.
What’s the worst that could happen?
Well, if you do it once in a while, it’s probably not a big deal.
However, don’t make it a habit.
“It is important to wash your face before bed no matter how dead tired you are.”
Sleep is a crucial time for our bodies to rest and replenish.
Your muscles need to recover from the day, but so does your face.
“Your skin recharges from the things it endured during the day as you are sleeping.
“When you sleep in your makeup, it conflicts the skin repair process.”
Here are just some of the downsides to passing out in your mascara.
It’s also our largest organ, so it some tender love and care.
“When oils mix with your makeup at a rapid rate, it will cause blemishes to appear.
They may take days to weeks to disappear.”
“Just like our internal organs, our skin is always at work,” Beverly Hills celebrity dermatologistDr.
So when we sleep in our makeup, we block those little pores.
When our pores can’t do their job of secreting serum, the problems start.
And it happens to the best of us, even those who know better!
“If you’re not removing your foundation, it can lead to clogged pores and pimples.”
Take it from an expert.
Clean off that foundation every night.
“This can lead to breakouts if you’re acne prone.
If you already have dry skin, you’re probably hesitant to wash too much.
However, washing your face at night with a gentle cleanser is still necessary.
You may notice white bumps
Have you ever gotten those tiny white dots on your face?
Your makeup could be to blame.
“These are tiny white cysts.”
“This can be done with an electric needle and then extracted.”
I’d rather wash my face, thank you very much.
All of these chemicals and pollutants are absorbed by our skin.
Give your skin a break, and cleanse away all the garbage it’s exposed to all day.
Those pollutants are making you look older!
Sleep is the magical process that repairs our skin and systems.
“When it comes to anti-aging, every cell in the body is programmed to work a certain way.
So when something like makeups stresses our skin, the process slows down.”
Give your skin the best chance it has to look younger on its own by washing each night.
It truly makes a difference.
“Sleeping in makeup covers and congests our pores,” explains Dr. Yeretsky.
“And are you ready for this?
It doesn’t allow cell turnover to happen.
If it does, it happens very slowly.
So yes, you are aging yourself every time you sleep in makeup!”
You could also try some over-the-counter creams.
“you’re able to also use peptides or retinol.”
And it’s not just the makeup.
The only way to remove these irritants is to wash your face with a gentle cleanser every night.
Not all dermatologists believe sleeping in your makeup is such a big deal.
Moral of the story?
If you slept in your makeup last night, don’t sweat it.
But you should probably wash your face tonight.
A lazy girl’s plan
Most of us probably plan to wash our faces at night.
If you’ve been too lazy in the past, make a game plan now.
“Too tired or too lazy to make a trip to the bathroom sink and wash your face?”
“I like to buy makeup wipe removing cloths from the drugstore to remove any makeup residue.”
Dr. Yeretsky agrees with planning ahead.
“The best thing to do is create rituals,” she says.
“Daily, simple skincare rituals that you are actually going to complete with pleasure and purpose.
Find skincare products you enjoy and actually want to use.”
“Use scent-free soothing moisturizer and pop a vitamin C pill to offset some of the antioxidant damage.”
“But a good cleaning, as in a facial, would be helpful.
Even exfoliating in the morning and hydrating with lots of oil-free moisturizer and eye cream would help.”
Try skipping your makeup routine the following day to allow your skin to breathe.
You could also try a gentle cleanser that removes some of that dirt and oil.
Micellar wateris water with small balls of oil in it meant to draw away dirt and oil.
Then follow suit with hydrating serum or moisturizer containing hyaluronic acid to restore the skin.”
Crews recommends the Alchemy Aesthetic Institute Moisture Surge Hyaluronic Acid Serum byVirginia Dermatologyfor a gentle, hydrating product.
According to her, it’s like a drink of water for your skin!
“But if you have dry skin, you should not.
The dryer your skin, the less water you should put on your face.
ensure to completely rid your face of makeup before going to bed.”
Do I still need to wash if I don’t wear makeup?
If you don’t wear makeup everyday, there’s nothing to wash off, right?
“Having a dirty, sweaty face in general is bad policy,” board certified dermatologistDr.
Dirty faces may be a good place for bacteria to look for a home.”
Makeup or not, our skin is exposed to a lot during the day.
Not only does it prevent acne and premature aging, it saves your body from absorbing some nasty pollutants.
“This can clog pores, cause acne, and age the skin.”
Treat your skin better than your car and wash up tonight!
