10 Things You Must Do To Protect Your Skin In Winter

Sad, sluggish skin getting on your nerves? Then it’s time to hit the refresh button.

When your skin looks kinda cruddy, it’s often your lifestyle habits that are to blame. Hungover skin? Never pretty. Stressed skin? Ditto.

The truth is, booze, sugar, smoking and stress all play their part in below par skin. For starters, sugar-laden booze and sweet edible treats expose your body to way too much glucose than it really needs. And this does nothing for your skin’s precious levels of collagen and elastin, creating advanced glycation end products (AGEs) which kill your radiant, youthful complexion and leave you with dull, dry skin that ages you up faster than you can say ‘pass the Rocky Road’.

Stress is a similar complexion killer, causing unnecessary spikes in cortisol, the stress hormone (which says it all, right?). An overload of cortisol in your system leads to all manner of skin issues including inflammation, excessively oily skin, blocked pores and hey presto, acne breakouts.

And don’t even get us started on smoking which, after baking in the sun all day, is probably one of the worse things you can do for your skin, depriving it of oxygen and nutrients, and literally suffocating your skin with over 7,000 collagen-destroying chemicals. Eesh!

Of course, reducing the amount of sugar you eat, cutting down on alcohol, not smoking and minimizing your exposure to stressful situations are all great ways to get your skin back on track. But they’re not always easy – especially the stress part! So, if you want to give your complexion a simpler and slightly more speedy detox it’s worth looking at your skincare routine.

Full disclosure: it’s not medically possible to get rid of your body’s toxins through your skin. However, keeping your skin clean and well moisturized will go a long way to ridding its surface of pollutants, impurities and dead skin cells. And this is vital in order to create a brighter, calmer and more hydrated, aka healthy, complexion.

Here are a few things you can do to help detoxify your skin for the new year...

1. Double Cleanse Before Bed

We don’t believe double cleansing is necessary on a regular basis, but when your skin looks like it needs an extra nudge in the right direction, it can be a very effective way to purge every last scrap of makeup, dirt, oil, sweat and debris. Plus, deep cleaning your skin helps create the ideal base on which to apply the rest of your skincare formulations so they’re able to function at a much higher level. Win-win.

To set yourself up for double cleansing success, you’re going to need two different formulations. The first should be an oil-based makeup remover to cut through makeup, sunscreen, sebum and anything else that’s, well, oily. Then you’ll need a water-based gel, cream or foam cleanser to wash away all the pollutants you can’t see, while helping to address any particular concerns you may have.

The cleansers you choose will obviously depend on your skin type but our Charcoal Clarifying Cleanser is awesome for deep cleaning and detoxifying your skin. Use this after removing your makeup and you won’t regret it.

2. Steam Clean Skin Once A Week

In ‘ye olden days’, regularly steaming your skin was a given. And frankly, we should all start embracing mom’s favorite skin detox trick. Although, scratch the ‘all’. If you suffer with dryness or sensitivities like eczema or rosacea you might want to give this a miss because super-hot temperatures cause the blood vessels in your skin to dilate which can lead to further redness and flushing. Probably not what you were in the market for...

For the rest of you, however, steaming is a great way to boost blood flow, soften rough skin and deep clean your pores by loosening trapped oil and dirt. Hello clearer, brighter skin.

To nail the perfect steam clean, fill your sink or a large bowl with hot (although not boiling) water. Then cover your head with a clean towel and hover your face about 12 inches above the water for 10 minutes. You could even add some fresh herbs or essential oils like chamomile, lavender or rosemary to the water to decongest or soothe your skin.

After the 10 minutes is up, gently pat your face dry with the towel, then spritz Rose Water Refreshing Facial Toner all over to cool, calm and whisk away those loosened impurities.

3. Don’t Forget To Regularly Exfoliate

Who doesn’t love to exfoliate their skin every now and again? Exfoliating helps boost sluggish cell turnover to encourage dead skin cells to hop it, rather than sticking around at the surface where they clog up your pores and make your skin look dull and pimply.

Exfoliation is pretty important all-year long, especially as you get older when your natural rate of cell turnover slows down. But if your skin is feeling more yucksville than normal, it’s more important than ever.

Chemical exfoliation is probably the most skin-friendly way to exfoliate as it reduces any friction caused from scrubbing away at your skin. Look for glycolic acid and salicylic acid which are two of the best chemical exfoliators found in skincare. Our new AHA/BHA/PHA Liquid Exfoliant contains this dynamite blend, along with skin-brightening vitamin C and gluconolactone, a super-soothing exfoliating acid that also helps hydrate sad-looking skin. 

4. Try Skin Cycling

One of the latest beauty trends to storm TikTok is skin cycling. And while we generally steer clear of faddish skincare whims, this one has real legs – especially for skin that needs a bit of a kick up the butt.

The brainchild of New York dermatologist, Dr. Whitney Bowe, skin cycling is a great way to enhance your night time routine without overloading your skin with too much, all at once. The basic concept is that you exfoliate one night, apply retinol the next, then give your skin two days off by applying moisturizer only. Then you repeat the whole process. Of course, you cleanse and tone as normal every night, but by spacing out your exfoliation and retinol application you reduce irritation or flare-ups. And by giving your skin two ‘recovery’ days you also allow your skin’s super-important barrier function time to heal and rebuild itself.

It's pretty smart when you think about it. Plus, it's a great way to decongest blocked pores while boosting skin turnover and helping to rebuild valuable collagen and elastin.

5. Hydrate, Hydrate & Hydrate Some More

Chronic dehydration is one of the most common side-effects of stressed out, over-indulged skin which makes rehydration imperative. Of course, drinking plenty of sugar-free fluids like water and caffeine-free tea is a great way to go, but your skin will actually benefit way more from topical hydration.

Ensure your skincare routine is literally overflowing with hydrating ingredients like hyaluronic acid, glycerin and aloe vera. These are all humectants which act like water magnets, drawing in moisture like little skincare sponges. Your best bet is to layer up a hydrating serum with a kick-ass moisturizer for the ultimate hydration. We love the combination of Hyaluronic Acid Facial Serum and Vitamin C Brightening Moisturizer which gives you the added skin-loving benefits of vitamins C and E plus green tea and jojoba oil.

Menopausal skin can be anything from slightly tricky to downright terrible. But wayward hormones needn’t get the better off you. You just need to know what to expect and get ahead of the game.

How times have changed. Rewind ten, maybe just five years ago and the ‘m’ word was never spoken about. This important life-changing period of time that happens to every single woman alive, literally brushed under the carpet as if it were some dirty secret. Total madness.

Thankfully, we live in different times and the menopause (there, we said it!) is now a topic we can openly talk about without feeling ashamed or, heaven’s forbid, old. Because it’s an important time and can bring a lot of unsettling uncertainties to any woman going through this perfectly natural stage of life. Hot flashes, weight gain, mood swings, zero energy, they can all go hand in hand with the menopause.

And then there’s your skin which also has its own challenges to contend with.

How The Menopause Affects Your Skin

The menopause can be split into three stages. Perimenopause begins first, usually in a woman’s 40s (although it can start as early as your 30s and as late as your 50s). This period of your life refers to the time in which your body starts to transition out of your reproductive years and into the menopause. Your body’s production of hormones (mainly estrogen and progesterone, but also testosterone to a certain degree) starts to decline, your periods become irregular and a few of the classic side effects may come to fruition. Fun times!

Then you obviously get the menopause which is when your body’s hormones cause you to completely stop menstruating (which can take many years) and all those fabulous (said with a side of irony) side-effects get stronger and more frequent. More fun times. Once menopause is over and you’ve stopped ovulating for a year you’re then said to be in the postmenopause and will be forever more.

As you progress through these different stages, your hormones are all over the place which is never great news for the health of your skin. You see, hormone fluctuations can affect your levels of sebum (cue dryness). Not only that but they upset your collagen production which is already declining as part of the natural aging process (cue wrinkles and sagging skin). Estrogen is also important for helping your skin to retain water so when these levels decrease your skin can’t hydrate itself as efficiently (cue dehydration).

Of course, changes in your skin depend on your skin type but, no matter what, you can inevitably look forward to some kind of ‘unpredictability’ during the menopausal years of your life.

5 Ways To Care For Menopausal Skin

If you’ve started to notice that your skin is misbehaving a little more than it used to, chances are you’re in the stage of your life in which your hormones have become, shall we say, less reliable. Read on for a few effective ways to help keep your skin in check as your hormones are very much not!

1. Be Kind

The most important thing to remember? Don’t panic. Freaking out and overcompensating for dry skin, dehydration, breakouts or wrinkles that were never before is a sure-fire way to irritate your skin. Instead, be gentle with your skin, cleansing, toning and treating it with kindness and respect. Most importantly, avoid ingredients like synthetic fragrances and harsh alcohols that will strip your skin and generate further problems you didn’t sign up for.

A great way to do this? Switch out your regular cleanser for Soothing Cleansing Milk which is perfect for menopausal skin, nurturing and calming your barrier function while bringing vital hydration and even a little exfoliation to the table.

2. Moisturize To The Max

Research shows that the most common skin complaint during the menopause is dry, irritated, and often itchy skin. This is all thanks to lowering levels of estrogen (an important skin hydrator) as well as reduced sebum. Without both of these important moisturizing tools, water is able to escape more easily from the surface of your skin which leads to dryness, dehydration and everything that comes with it.

To help get ahead of this, you’re going to want to introduce a hydrating serum as well as a really good moisturizer into your daily regime. Try the kick-ass combo of our Multi-Vitamin Facial Serum and Renewing Longevity Moisturizing Cream every morning, and Vitamin C Deep Hydration Night Cream before bed.

3. Use Smart Skincare Ingredients To Control Breakouts

Cell turnover becomes super sluggish during this time in your life which gives dead skin cells a free ticket to hang around at the surface of your skin and make your complexion look kind of dull. When it’s combined with wayward hormones it’s also asking for acne breakouts to do a real number on your skin. For most people these are mild and easily managed with healing, anti-inflammatory skincare ingredients like salicylic acid, niacinamide and tea tree oil – well, hello there Tea Tree Face Wash and Tea Tree Super Serum+.

If you feel like yours are more serious and out of control, however, seek help from a dermatologist.

4. Look After Your Collagen

It’s thought that skin loses a massive 30 percent of its natural collagen levels during the first five years of the menopause. Sound like a lot, right? Yeah, that’s because it is. And collagen is extremely important for the strength, firmness and elasticity of your skin so you’ve got to do everything you can to keep it healthy and plentiful.

How to do this? With a healthy diet, good sleep, marginal stress (preferably none at all, but it’s OK, we’re all human) and some smart skincare choices. Namely retinol at night (is there anything retinol isn’t good for?!), alongside our fabulous Collagen range which includes Smoothing Collagen Serum, Firming Collagen Day Lotion and our Collagen Boosting Skin Supplement which contains vegetarian collagen (none of that animal stuff for us, thanks) alongside skin-strengthening vitamins, biotin and acai.

5. Apply SPF Like Your Skin Depends On It

Because, heads up, it actually does. Dark spots are likely to get darker, bigger and more prevalent during your menopausal years as decades of sun exposure combine with wild hormones, causing your melanin to lose control of itself. Your fine lines and wrinkles are equally likely to suffer thanks to a lack of collagen helping to reinforce the strength and plumpness of your skin. Sigh.

Our advice? Don’t leave the house without applying SPF 30 Mineral Sunscreen with Vitamin C to your face and neck. It’s packed with sun-protective zinc oxide as well as aloe vera to hydrate and nourish your skin and a TruSkin favorite, brightening vitamin C. It’s basically a skincare must. Every. Day. Of. The Year.

Menopausal skin can be anything from slightly tricky to downright terrible. But wayward hormones needn’t get the better off you. You just need to know what to expect and get ahead of the game.

How times have changed. Rewind ten, maybe just five years ago and the ‘m’ word was never spoken about. This important life-changing period of time that happens to every single woman alive, literally brushed under the carpet as if it were some dirty secret. Total madness.

Thankfully, we live in different times and the menopause (there, we said it!) is now a topic we can openly talk about without feeling ashamed or, heaven’s forbid, old. Because it’s an important time and can bring a lot of unsettling uncertainties to any woman going through this perfectly natural stage of life. Hot flashes, weight gain, mood swings, zero energy, they can all go hand in hand with the menopause.

And then there’s your skin which also has its own challenges to contend with.

How The Menopause Affects Your Skin

The menopause can be split into three stages. Perimenopause begins first, usually in a woman’s 40s (although it can start as early as your 30s and as late as your 50s). This period of your life refers to the time in which your body starts to transition out of your reproductive years and into the menopause. Your body’s production of hormones (mainly estrogen and progesterone, but also testosterone to a certain degree) starts to decline, your periods become irregular and a few of the classic side effects may come to fruition. Fun times!

Then you obviously get the menopause which is when your body’s hormones cause you to completely stop menstruating (which can take many years) and all those fabulous (said with a side of irony) side-effects get stronger and more frequent. More fun times. Once menopause is over and you’ve stopped ovulating for a year you’re then said to be in the postmenopause and will be forever more.

As you progress through these different stages, your hormones are all over the place which is never great news for the health of your skin. You see, hormone fluctuations can affect your levels of sebum (cue dryness). Not only that but they upset your collagen production which is already declining as part of the natural aging process (cue wrinkles and sagging skin). Estrogen is also important for helping your skin to retain water so when these levels decrease your skin can’t hydrate itself as efficiently (cue dehydration).

Of course, changes in your skin depend on your skin type but, no matter what, you can inevitably look forward to some kind of ‘unpredictability’ during the menopausal years of your life.

5 Ways To Care For Menopausal Skin

If you’ve started to notice that your skin is misbehaving a little more than it used to, chances are you’re in the stage of your life in which your hormones have become, shall we say, less reliable. Read on for a few effective ways to help keep your skin in check as your hormones are very much not!

1. Be Kind

The most important thing to remember? Don’t panic. Freaking out and overcompensating for dry skin, dehydration, breakouts or wrinkles that were never before is a sure-fire way to irritate your skin. Instead, be gentle with your skin, cleansing, toning and treating it with kindness and respect. Most importantly, avoid ingredients like synthetic fragrances and harsh alcohols that will strip your skin and generate further problems you didn’t sign up for.

A great way to do this? Switch out your regular cleanser for Soothing Cleansing Milk which is perfect for menopausal skin, nurturing and calming your barrier function while bringing vital hydration and even a little exfoliation to the table.

2. Moisturize To The Max

Research shows that the most common skin complaint during the menopause is dry, irritated, and often itchy skin. This is all thanks to lowering levels of estrogen (an important skin hydrator) as well as reduced sebum. Without both of these important moisturizing tools, water is able to escape more easily from the surface of your skin which leads to dryness, dehydration and everything that comes with it.

To help get ahead of this, you’re going to want to introduce a hydrating serum as well as a really good moisturizer into your daily regime. Try the kick-ass combo of our Multi-Vitamin Facial Serum and Renewing Longevity Moisturizing Cream every morning, and Vitamin C Deep Hydration Night Cream before bed.

3. Use Smart Skincare Ingredients To Control Breakouts

Cell turnover becomes super sluggish during this time in your life which gives dead skin cells a free ticket to hang around at the surface of your skin and make your complexion look kind of dull. When it’s combined with wayward hormones it’s also asking for acne breakouts to do a real number on your skin. For most people these are mild and easily managed with healing, anti-inflammatory skincare ingredients like salicylic acid, niacinamide and tea tree oil – well, hello there Tea Tree Face Wash and Tea Tree Super Serum+.

If you feel like yours are more serious and out of control, however, seek help from a dermatologist.

4. Look After Your Collagen

It’s thought that skin loses a massive 30 percent of its natural collagen levels during the first five years of the menopause. Sound like a lot, right? Yeah, that’s because it is. And collagen is extremely important for the strength, firmness and elasticity of your skin so you’ve got to do everything you can to keep it healthy and plentiful.

How to do this? With a healthy diet, good sleep, marginal stress (preferably none at all, but it’s OK, we’re all human) and some smart skincare choices. Namely retinol at night (is there anything retinol isn’t good for?!), alongside our fabulous Collagen range which includes Smoothing Collagen Serum, Firming Collagen Day Lotion and our Collagen Boosting Skin Supplement which contains vegetarian collagen (none of that animal stuff for us, thanks) alongside skin-strengthening vitamins, biotin and acai.

5. Apply SPF Like Your Skin Depends On It

Because, heads up, it actually does. Dark spots are likely to get darker, bigger and more prevalent during your menopausal years as decades of sun exposure combine with wild hormones, causing your melanin to lose control of itself. Your fine lines and wrinkles are equally likely to suffer thanks to a lack of collagen helping to reinforce the strength and plumpness of your skin. Sigh.

Our advice? Don’t leave the house without applying SPF 30 Mineral Sunscreen with Vitamin C to your face and neck. It’s packed with sun-protective zinc oxide as well as aloe vera to hydrate and nourish your skin and a TruSkin favorite, brightening vitamin C. It’s basically a skincare must. Every. Day. Of. The Year.

Did you know, your skincare routine needs to work extra hard during the summer months to ensure your complexion stays clear, moisturized and protected all season long?

One of the most important ways to keep your skin healthy is to employ a solid, consistent skincare routine. All year round. And what this means is finding your perfect product matches to help you build a basic routine that includes a gentle cleanser, facial serum, eye cream, moisturizer and sunscreen.

Once you find your sweet spots, however, this doesn’t mean you have to stick to them to the letter. Because things change. And so does your skin.

During the summertime, days get longer and warmer – which means more time outdoors and more environmental stressors for your skin to contend with. The weather also becomes more humid (depending on where you live, of course) which offers up more water in the air. And that’s great for your skin (free moisture, yay!), but super annoying for your hair (one word: frizz).

So, what are the best ways to ensure your routine stays fairly consistent while allowing your skin to smoothly transition from winter to summer? Below, are some of the most important dos and don’ts we believe are crucial for this time of year.

DO Try A Double Cleanse In The Evening

As a rule, we believe that cleansing your skin with just one gentle, but effective formulation should be enough. However, in the summertime you’re potentially sweating more and (definitely) piling on more sunscreen, so an evening double cleanse can be a really good trick to have up your sleeves to ensure your pores are clean and clear before bed.

Double cleansing is pretty simple. It requires cleansing your skin twice – first with an oil-based formulation to cut through makeup, sebum and sunscreen, then again with a water-based product to get rid of sweat and other surface debris. It’s a great way to thoroughly cleanse your skin before bed when it needs just that little bit more after a day in the heat. Try taking off your makeup with an oil-based remover or balm first, then wash your skin with your regular, gentle face wash. We’re big fans of using Vitamin C Brightening Cleanser in the summertime but we have plenty of awesome ones to choose from, right here.

DON’T Overdo The Actives

It’s tempting to go wild with active ingredients in the summer when your skin feels stronger and more resilient. Don’t do that. Topical actives like retinol, alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) and vitamin C are fabulous ways to target and treat your skin. However, you need to tread carefully with them – especially when it comes to retinol which is a potent ingredient that encourages your skin to turn over more efficiently. It’s an incredible way to boost the tone, texture and condition of your skin, for sure, but too much of a good thing can cause sensitivities and will make you more susceptible to the slings and arrows of UV radiation.

Our advice is to stick with retinol at night only, and maybe apply it just two or three times a week depending on your skin. You could also switch it out for bakuchiol which is a milder alternative and a real winner during the summer months. Try our Longevity Regimen Bundle which includes all three of our bakuchiol formulations – Rejuvenating Longevity Serum, Renewing Longevity Moisturizing Cream and Depuffing Longevity Eye Cream.

DO Apply Sunscreen Daily

The single most important way to look after your skin and preserve its integrity is to apply sunscreen every freakin’ day. It’s the most effective way to protect your skin from premature aging and will decrease your risk of skin cancer dramatically. Of course, the sun is around all year long, but in the summertime the intensity of UVB radiation is going to burn your skin lightning fast unless you shield it with a high quality sunscreen.

Your sunscreen should be the final step in your routine every morning, and it should check BOTH of these boxes.

✅ It must be SPF 30 or above. This blocks about 97 percent of UVB radiation.

✅ It must be broad-spectrum. This ensure it offers equal protection from UVA as well as UVB radiation. And that’s the stuff that’s around all year long, even on cloudy days.

We also prefer mineral sunscreens like zinc oxide and titanium dioxide over chemical ones like oxybenzone and octisalate. Mineral sunscreens are a more natural choice. They’re also environmentally-friendly and provide instant protection as soon as they’re applied.

Get your fill of all of the above check points with our SPF 30 Mineral Sunscreen with Vitamin C.

DON’T Forget To Reapply It, Regularly

Applying sunscreen to your face once a day in the winter is OK since you’re probably not spending that much time outdoors. However, in the summertime, when you’re likely to be outside and exposing your skin to longer periods of sunshine, it’s crucial to reapply generously, every couple of hours.

DO Up Your Topical Vitamin C

Vitamin C and summer are like gin and tonic – perfect together. Vitamin C is one of the most die-hard antioxidants, working like crazy to combat the free radical damage that amps up big time in the summertime (thanks to UV radiation). It also contains properties that help inhibit tyrosinase, an enzyme that generates melanin synthesis.

As you know, melanin is responsible for the color of your skin, hair and eyes, and when you expose your skin to sunlight, melanin production goes into overdrive, making your skin tan. Melanin production can also become erratic if you keep on battering it with UV radiation, resulting in patches of dark skin otherwise known as sun spots. And this is where topical C comes to the rescue. By inhibiting tyrosinase and thus regulating melanin production, vitamin C helps to gradually fade patchy, dark areas and limit your risk of developing new ones.

We use an awesome derivative of pure vitamin C called sodium ascorbyl phosphate (SAP) across all of our vitamin C formulations. Why SAP? Well, it’s way more stable than the pure stuff. It's also gentler on your skin which makes it officially the perfect way to treat your skin without causing irritation. Try our Vitamin C Facial Serum underneath your moisturizer every morning.

DON’T Be Tempted To Over-Exfoliate

Over-exfoliating is one of the most common skin faux-pas out there and it’s hella bad for your barrier function, making your skin dehydrated and itchy if you’re not careful. Most derms agree, however, that it can be a great idea to up the exfoliating ante in the summertime to help keep your pores clean and clear while balancing excess sebum and controlling breakouts.

This doesn’t give you free rein, however, to exfoliate too much. And by ‘too much’ we mean every day. Instead, slowly increase the number of days you exfoliate per week to get a more sensible feel of what your skin can handle.

We have two awesome exfoliators to suit all tastes. Our new Vitamin C Gentle Face Scrub is an incredible physical scrub while 6% AHA, BHA + PHA Liquid Exfoliant harness the powers of exfoliating acids to unclog pores and reveal brighter, stronger skin. Take your pick!

DO Lighten Up Your Moisturizing Routine

Moisturizing your skin (whatever your skin type) is vital all year but you can definitely afford to lighten it up in the summertime if you feel like your regular moisturizer becomes too much. Just don’t forego moisturizer altogether. That’s a huge mistake.

Thanks to all that extra humidity in the air during the summer months, your skin is treated to way more hydration than in the winter when the air is colder and drier. So, make the most of this by introducing a lightweight hyaluronic acid serum into your routine. Hyaluronic acid draws in all that water from the air and soaks it into the surface of the skin.

Apply Hyaluronic Acid Facial Serum after cleansing and toning, but before your light lotion or gel moisturizer.

And that's what we call the perfect moisturization routine – all without any pore-clogging ingredients ruining your skin’s mojo.