5 Bedtime Habits That Are Spoiling Your Skin

For a gorgeous glow when you get up in the morning, avoid these bad bedtime skin habits. ou know you should wash all your makeup off before bed if you don't, or don't do it right, then you're adding years to your face but that's not all you need to consider before turning in at night. For glowing skin, there are quite a few bedtime habits you should banish from your routine here, the 5 biggest ones to avoid.

* Not washing your face

The number one skin sin is simply going to bed without giving your face a good wash. Even if you do not wear makeup you should wash your face nightly. Your skin is going through a repairing and rebuilding phase during the nighttime and debris such as dust, smoke, and skin care products can clog your pores leading to worsening acne.

* Skimping on sleep

There is really such a thing as beauty sleep and getting less than six hours of snooze time at night gives your skin less time to repair itself which can lead to more wrinkles, an ashy complexion, and those dark circles under your eyes. Not getting enough sleep could also increase inflammation and stress hormones, aggravating skin conditions like acne.

* Choosing the wrong anti-aging cream

The majority of anti-aging creams are still based on moisturizers such as mineral oil. Wrinkles look worse when they are dry, so any kind of moisturizer helps, but many only improve things temporarily and don't address the root cause of the wrinkles, such as collagen loss, free radical damage, sun damage, and environmental factors. Unless there is an actual 'active ingredient' such as retinol, the benefit is just moisture and nothing else.

* Not changing your pillowcases regularly

Sleeping on the same pillowcase night after night could expose your skin to some pretty nasty stuff, such as bacteria, sloughed-off skin, and sweat. Dr. Shipp recommends changing your pillowcase at least weekly more often if you're acne-prone.

* Leaving on your makeup

While dermatologists always stress that washing your face before bed is a must-do, they're especially adamant about clearing off every trace of makeup every night. You should never sleep with makeup on your skin. You're essentially setting yourself up for an acne eruption.