“I spend so much money on high-quality creams – why does my skin still look so bad?”
You could hear the frustration in this lady’s voice.
She had come into our clinic to discuss the best way to improve her dull, dry complexion. And she’d brought with all the skincare products she applied regularly.
There were dozens of them, spilling out of her bag…
Moisturizers, cleansers, toners, an expensive day cream, an even more pricey night cream, an eye cream, SPF, a couple of serums… another moisturizer…
I have no idea how one small bag fitted so much!
She had clearly spent a small fortune on these high-end products in the local department stores, and couldn’t understand why they had no real impact.
When our aesthetician told me the story later my heart went out to this lady, because for many years – before I understood skincare – I’d made the same mistake.
What I know now and wish I’d known then is that most over-the-counter creams don’t help.
They don’t even do what they claim….
….namely, hydrate your skin, smooth out fine lines and wrinkles and leave your skin a whole lot healthier.
You see, over-the-counter creams and moisturizers are like a band-aid // plaster.
If you have dry, flaky skin, they’ll cover up the problem for a few hours, possibly giving you temporary relief.
They’ll feel good on your skin and smell great, which is why people love using them, and often slather on as much as possible.
But a few hours later, your skin will be right back where it was –
Dry, patchy, feeling rough to the touch…
And if you wear makeup, it will still be difficult to apply, clinging to all the dry spots on your face.
The reason over-the-counter products make no long-term difference is simple.
They don’t include active ingredients…
That’s what we call ingredients that actually change your skin’s structure deep within so that your skin quality improves and you retain more moisture.
Instead, a typical moisturizer or cream just sits on the surface of your skin…
…And as soon as you wash it off, you lose all the benefits.
It’s as if you never put it on…. So what’s the point?
It’s throwing good money after bad.
So how do you break this cycle, and get your skin hydrated and nourished, once and for all?
Of course, you should still use moisturizer, creams, and serums – but it’s important to pick the right ones.
A bit like a good chef, you need to look for top-quality ingredients.
It’s not the price of the product that counts, or the packaging, or how smooth and luxurious the cream feels….
You need to make sure that it has active ingredients which will actually change and improve your skin structure – ingredients like:
>> Hyaluronic Acid, which is able to absorb up to 1,000 times its own weight in water
>> Retinoids or Vitamin A, which thickens up your dermis, helping it retain moisture
>> Vitamin B, which – you guessed it – helps the upper layer of your skin retain more moisture
And the real secret? You need to make sure that these ingredients are present in high enough concentrations to make a difference (that’s the key).
