When people in a study got at least 8 hours of sleep, they were deemed by outward appearances to be healthier folks compared with when their looks were evaluated after a bout of little sleep.
Face-refreshing sleep
No doubt about it, a lack of sleep will show up on your face, giving you the appearance of aging skin. So it's no surprise that when people were kept up for 30 hours in the study, they were perceived as "tired looking." The way sleep affected looks went even deeper, though. After a good night's sleep, the same people not only were deemed healthier looking, but also were considered to be more attractive in general—just based on other people's perceptions of a morning-after photograph. Yep, turns out that the need for "beauty sleep" isn't just a lame excuse for leaving a dinner party early.
Best face forward
A lack of sleep doesn’t just contribute to aging skin. It affects the way your brain, endocrine system, and immune system work, too. And sleep deprivation can contribute to serious health problems, including high blood pressure and weight gain. Are droopy eyelids, dark circles, and saggy facial expressions broadcasting your sleep battles in the bedroom? Time to do something about it—you’ll not only look younger, but you’ll feel better also.
Best Beauty Solutions for the Top 3 Skin Complaints
1. Problem: Persistent whiteheads, blackheads and occasional pimples
Beauty solution: Regular cleansing with benzoyl peroxide (BPO). Wash your face with the highest strength BPO cleanser your skin can tolerate once a day: morning, night or after exercise. Start with 2.5 percent and work your way up. (If your chest and back are a problem, too, 10 percent is usually best for them.) Rinse really, really well. Give this 2 to 3 weeks to work.
If that's not enough:
For more help, follow up your BPO cleansing with a toner that contains salicylic acid. You can use it as a spot treatment, too. The toner will slough away dead, dry skin cells that can clog pores, and it can also calm inflammation, which makes pimples stand out.
2. Problem: Dull, dry skin
Beauty solution: Moisturizers that contain glycerin, a potent "humectant" that draws water from the atmosphere into the skin's outer layer. Apply twice a day after cleansing or using a potentially irritating exfoliating product, like one containing glycolic acid.
Any glycerin-based moisturizer that also contains silicone, which makes the moisturizer glide smoothly onto even rough skin and bolsters the water-loss barrier, so your skin's less likely to dry out, says Dr. Amy.
3. Problem: Fine lines
Beauty solution: Serums or creams that contain retinol, a form of vitamin A. Though not as potent a rejuvenated as its prescription-strength cousins, Retina and Tamarac—which go after serious sun damage and wrinkles—retinol can improve fine lines with far less irritation than the Rx forms cause. Apply to just-washed skin once a day.
If that's not enough:
Try retinol treatments that also contain polyphenols, antioxidants extracted from green tea or coffee berry. They take the cell-damaging punch out of free radicals created by sunburn and inflammation, which helps prevent deeper wrinkling. Even more important, polyphenols appear to stimulate collagen production, which puts the bounce back in skin. Apply to clean skin.
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