Skincare habits to adapt if you are working from home

Topic: Skincare habits to adapt if you are working from home

The lockdowns due to the COVID-19 situation have made us stay indoors to avoid risking exposure. Along with the challenges of staying indoors, taking care of daily responsibilities and working from home, the challenge of personal health and hygiene has been brought to the forefront of our daily routine. In the day to day hustle of life, we may sometimes forget to give our skin the love and care it needs, and this can lead to acne breakouts and oily skin. I have therefore compiled a list of Skincare habits you can adopt if you are working from home.

Ensure you have a Skincare Routine:
Setting up a consistent routine for skin care will help you maintain and improve your overall skin health. There is no doubt that with the struggles of meeting everyday commitments, we tend to neglect our health. Developing a skin care routine with your dermatologist is fairly simple, however, keeping up with the routine is challenging. Do not let that deter you from following your regimen. 

Having a skin care routine acts as a preventative measure to many underlying, discerning skin issues as well as a treatment to any conditions you may have currently. Regular cleansing, moisturizing and using a retinol or hyaluronic acid cream at night is highly advised to maintain the skin moisture levels at normal.

Consciously Prevent Acne Breakouts:
Finding a good AHA or BHA cleanser is necessary to avoid oily skin and keep the skin moisture levels balanced. These also help prevent further breakouts by reducing dryness significantly. It is also important to note that if you have an ongoing acne condition, avoid exfoliating the affected areas. Try not to scrub, squeeze, or pick your acne as this can leave significant and permanent scarring. Most places do not yet have easy access to medication, so keeping in mind the repercussions of the damage it is best to be preventive regarding acne. 

Sunscreen is your best friend:
The common misunderstanding is that sunscreen is only to be applied when you are outdoors. On the contrary, sunscreen with a high enough SPF is vital to your skin health. Research shows that although UVB rays are blocked by your windows, it is the harmful UVA rays that penetrate even through glass. UVA rays have long lasting, damaging effects on the skin in the long run. Both visible light and infrared radiation also aggravate pigmentation. So remember to continue applying your sunscreen daily, even if you are working from home. Sunscreen additionally helps with longer exposure to screens. Your devices have screens that emit IR radiation, apart from being damaging to the eyes, it can also cause long term tanning and pigmentation problems. So it is advised to take a break from your screens not only to rest your eyes, but to also encourage skin health.

Maintain a balanced and healthy diet:
It is easier said than done, to adopt a healthy diet. Know that it is okay to take your time adapting to the changes in the house when enforcing strict dietary restrictions around the house in these difficult times. A balanced and healthy diet which is high in protein, high in fibre and low in carbohydrates is one of the most important steps to take in order to maintain your skin as well as hair. 

Avoiding refined foods such as sugar, maida (refined flour), processed foods and adding nutrient rich vegetables into your diet will be of great benefit in the long run. Increasing the intake of Yellow vegetables that are rich in beta carotene, a derivative of Vitamin A, is great to prevent breakouts and acts as a natural agent in the process.

Have a consistent sleep-wake cycle:
Working from home involves a lot of haphazardly placed tasks which you may have to complete within the day, whether it be related to work, family or other responsibilities. This may have you stray away from your daily sleep cycle quite often. However, it is important to set a schedule for work and sleep, since either being affected is not an ideal scenario. 

Several sleep deprived patients complain about acne breakouts, skin allergies and eczema, which are caused due to inflammation from reduced sleep. It is therefore necessary to sleep early and wake up early, as an impaired sleep wake cycle can cause long term skin complications. 

It is no mystery that if you are working from home, the stress levels can sometimes be higher with so many variables in play, which may lead to neglecting serious causes for concern. To get appropriate advice on skin and hair health and hygiene it is suggested that you consult your Dermatologist online for any skin issue that may seem discerning to you. We are always happy to help. If you reside in the Whitefield area of Bangalore, Dr. Divya Sharma’s Clinic is open to address all of your skin care and hair care needs.