Stop Committing These 7 Deadly Skin Sins

We all do them, but it doesn’t mean we should. So turn over a new leaf after you discover the skincare sins you’re committing.

#1 Overdoing It
Dermatologists say that they often see patients who go overboard by either washing their faces too much or exfoliating too much. Pick a gentle, fragrance-free cleanser and keep the cleaning at twice a day. With exfoliation, maybe twice or thrice a week should be enough—every day just strips away important nutrients, causes irritation and dries out skin.

#2 Popping Pimples
People swear by this in many cases, but 99.99% of dermatologists say you’re just making acne worse and giving yourself a nice scar as a memento of the pimple you popped. Instead, a spot treatment with salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide (depending on your skin type) should zap the zits.

#3 Toning
Most toners have alcohol, so they strip away lipids that naturally exist in the skin to make it look moisturized and full. Even with oily skin, skip the toner and go for a gentle cleanser and an oil-free moisturizer.

#4 No Focus
Often, people are so desperate for results that they don’t stick with a product and keep switching. While results are important, you have to give products time to work. You also should factor in your skin type so you match up the treatment to it and don’t make things worse.

#5 Wearing Makeup
Fine to wear it, but not at night, even if you did have a rough day and are exhausted. Leaving it on clogs your pores, offers food for bacteria (eww!) and actually suffocates your skin, which in term hurts your collagen-building process.

#6 Too Much Magnification
Some folks obsess so much over their looks that they use a 5X magnifying mirror to look over their complexion. Bad idea: this makes you freak out over imperfections no one else can see with the naked eye, and that’s what counts.

#7 Leaving out Makeup Brushes
Put them in covered containers. Leaving them lying around means that bacteria and other particles from products you use, like hairspray and more, can get on them and thus get on your face, where they can irritate your delicate facial skin and cause problems.