You wear sunscreen every day, exfoliate regularly, and never go to sleep with your makeup on. Still seeing troubled skin? It’s true: some healthy skin habits are too much of a good thing.

Taking good care of your skin and using healthy products is key in maintaining beautiful skin. But overdoing it can damage skin, cause irritation and blemishes, and speed up aging.

Let’s take a look at the top healthy skin care habits women tend to overdo.

6 Healthy Skin Habits You May Be ODing On

1. Over-cleansing: Didn’t know you could get skin too clean? Using a foaming cleanser has definite benefits, but using this product on skin that is dry or sensitive leads to dryness, irritation, and even breakouts. Curb your sudsing by washing skin only when it actually needs it (post workout, when it feels greasy…) and use a cream or oil cleanser the rest of the time.

2. Over-exfoliating: Another skin care technique that tends to get overused is exfoliation. We’ve all heard that this step helps with acne, and keeps skin fresh and glowing. More than once per week (twice if skin is not sensitive) is overkill, and can irritate and damage skin. The best way to exfoliate the face is with non-abrasive fruit acids, which remove dead cells without abrasive granules.

3. Using the wrong healthy skincare: Yes, going nontoxic with your skincare is the healthiest choice. But if you are using skincare that is wrong for your skin type it can be causing problems. If you are experiencing dryness, zits, irritation, or excessive oiliness, chances are you are using the wrong skin care products. Choose skin care designed for your skin type.

4. Going oil-free: For those who battle oily skin, steering clear of excess oil is essential in keeping the complexion clear. But did you know drying out the skin leads to breakouts too? That dry, flaky layer traps the oil your skin creates naturally and causes pimples. Choose products made with healthy natural oils that are formulated for oily and acne prone skin types, and skip the super drying potions.

5. Sticking with your tried and true: So you’ve found the skin care products you love and they love your skin right back. Great! Do you find they don’t work quite as well some months as others? To keep skin balanced and happy year ‘round, switch up your routine for the seasons. It doesn’t have to be a drastic overhaul, but a bit more moisture in the winter and lighter products in summer make all the difference.

6. Using chemical sunscreen: Wear sunscreen daily. We’ve all heard this precaution a thousand times. And you are applying your moisturizer with SPF every day like a good girl. But if that product is made with nasty chemical sunscreens you are doing more harm than good. Opt for a safe mineral sunscreen for face. You can even use a tinted moisturizer and ditch your foundation.

Related on EcoSalon:

Are Your pH Levels Causing Acne or Wrinkles?

Why Fruit Oils Are Your Skin’s New Jam

6 Microbead-Free Exfoliating Body Scrubs for Rough Winter Skin

Image of woman looking in mirror via Shutterstock

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Winter has definitely set in. Even if you have no SAD tendencies, that dry winter skin can get you down. You don’t have to turn to plastic microbeads or synthetic emollients to get your bod back to soft and silky.

Have you hit that point in winter where you shun short sleeves and wouldn’t dream of letting your SO touch your legs?

Rough, bumpy, leathery skin doesn’t take long to set in once indoor heating and dry weather are a part of the scene. Your skin may seem beyond repair right now, but all you need is a healthy body scrub. And no, microbeads are not necessary (nor are they soon going to be available, either, thanks to Obama’s recent ban).

Sugar, salt, crushed apricot kernels and walnut hulls are all used to effectively exfoliate skin–even more effective than plastic in the first place. It’s important to remember when using abrasives to be gentle and limit to once or twice per week. Another alternative is using fruit and lactic acids. These guys do the work without the physical abrasives, and can be used more often than a traditional scrub.

Winter skin is rough because it is dry. To get the most out of your body scrubs this time of year, use products with natural oils or follow up with a healthy body moisturizer.

6 Microbead-Free Body Scrubs for Winter Skin

1. Tata Harper Smoothing Body Scrub employs a variety of exfoliants – pink Himalayan and Hawaiian sea salts, cranberry fibers, apricot seed powder, and organic sugar – to get skin super smooth. Argan and olive oils moisturize and soften.

2. Raw sugar does the work in Soapwalla Almond Luxe Body Polish, while cardamom and ginger rev up a nice glow you thought you wouldn’t see until next summer.

3. For luxe feel and delicious scent with your scrub, go for Odacite Invigorating Jasmine Mimosa Body Scrub. Walnut shell powder leaves skin baby soft.

4. Mostly used as a facial treatment, I use One Love Organics Brand New Day Scrub & Mask on my decollete and arm too. Works like a charm for instant smoothness.

5. We love our coconut oil, right? S.W. Basics Body Scrub takes things to another level with this sugar and shredded coconut combo.

6. Hydrea London Carbonized Bamboo Exfoliating Gloves are another way to go when polishing the bod. Carbonized bamboo fibers produce negatively charged ions, said to recharge skin and boost the mood.

*Disclaimer: Help support EcoSalon! Our site is dedicated to helping people live a conscious lifestyle. We’ve provided some affiliate links above in case you wish to purchase any of these products.

Related on EcoSalon

The 6 Best Hand Creams to Combat Extremely Dry Skin

7 Rich and Luxe Organic Skin Balms to Soothe and Protect Dry Winter Skin

Why Fruit Oils are Your Skin’s New Jam

Body scrub image via Shutterstock

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The mere mention of skin peels may send most of us running for cover. Especially the sensitive skinned among us. While it may sound like a toxic ingredient nightmare, there is a valid place in the beauty regimen for peels.

The term is unfortunate. Peel sound so…harsh. And yes, chemical acid peels are harsh, causing skin to turn red and peel from the face. They are effective in revealing fresh skin, but continued use can actually weaken and thin the skin, causing irritation, inflammation, and excessive dryness or oiliness. Not good.

Peels are really just another form of exfoliation. We’ve been told that exfoliation is key to healthy, clear skin, which it is, but could we be doing it all wrong? Or at least be doing it better?

Let’s start with why exfoliating is so essential to cooperative skin. Dead skin cells build up on the top layer of skin, trapping oil and debris underneath. This leads to breakouts, sallow complexion, and enhancement of fine lines. It also inhibits the skin’s ability to properly absorb the healthy ingredients in nourishing skincare.

All skin types benefit from exfoliation, not just congested skin. It can be done in different ways, to varying degrees and frequency. So, we’ve established sloughing is indeed a good thing. But as with other beauty rituals, like cleansing for example, could we be doing this whole exfoliating thing wrong?

Granular is the name of the game with most exfoliating products. Salt, sugar, and other particles (ground nut shells and meal, pumice) are used in these products to break up and remove dry, dead skin cells.

No doubt, this abrasive method of exfoliation is effective. But you know how we are chronically talking about inflammation and its link to many health issues, including unhappy skin? This friction could be causing more harm than good for certain skin types. Have we gotten out of hand with our sloughing?

Particles, even the micro-est of the micro, can cause tearing and scratching of the skin. Delicate skin types should avoid abrasive exfoliants, as should those with irritated skin or open sores. Remember to be gentle with granular scrubs and use no more than twice per week.

What’s a delicate skinned gal to do? Men exfoliate their faces when they shave. Should we all go out and buy a Norelco? Hang on just a sec before you delve into your guy’s medicine cabinet.

The latest, greatest exfoliating ingredients are hitting the beauty scene large. True, they are acids, but they are natural fruit acids from apples and pears (malic acid), citrus fruits (citric acid), and grapes (tartaric acid). Fruit enzymes, like papaya and pineapple, are also highly effective skin sloughers. Think of these ripe ingredients as the safe way to peel.

Fruit Acid Skin Peels for Glowing Skin

Tata Harper Resurfacing Mask

La Bella Figura Bio Active Healing Mask

Living Libations Green Papay Lime AHA Mask

Dr. Alkaitis Cellular Repair Mask

Related on EcoSalon

Are Your pH Levels Causing Acne or Wrinkles?

Redness Rescue: Natural Remedies for Rosacea

Can You Fight Sunspots Naturally?

Image of happy apple face via Shutterstock

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