As our skin is what the world sees of us, we all want our skin to look good. If your skin is clear and healthy looking, it makes you feel good about yourself.So how do you get great looking skin? • Well, it helps if your parents have great skin, because you usually inherit their skin type.• If your parents have dry, patchy skin, or oily, problem skin, then don’t give up and say, ”What’s the use?” There are some things you can do to make sure your skin looks its best.• Not all movie stars and models have fantastic skin. Photographers are clever at covering up ’problem’ skin when they print the film.• Male and female stars and models wear thick make-up to make their skin look better, so, it’s not the end of the world if your skin is less than perfect - so is the skin of most people.Keeping your skin clean is a big part of keeping it healthy and looking good.When you wash your skin, some of the dead cells are rubbed off and that allows new cells to rise to the surface to take their place. Excess oil and dirt are also washed off.How to wash your skin• Wash your body all over once a day. Use a mild soap and warm water. If soap makes you feel itchy you could try a sorbolene cream. It isn’t very expensive and it lasts a long time, because you don’t need very much.• Rinse the soap off, as it could irritate your skin.• Wash your face using a face cloth and soap or sorbolene, and then rinse with cool water. Twice a day is enough, as too much cleansing can damage your skin.• You do not need to scrub violently.• Your body produces its own moisturiser, an oil called sebum, which forms a protective layer over your skin. If you wash too much of this off, your skin is likely to feel dry and itchy.• Protect your skin against the sunIf you are going to be outside, particularly in the sun, then you should wear sunscreen in summer.• Remember to drink lots of water - your skin loves it.• Regular exercise is good for your skin.Eat healthily so that your skin gets the vitamins and minerals it needs to carry out all the jobs it has to do.• Have fun! A happy smiling face always looks great (and if you start frown lines when you’re young how grumpy will you look when you’re older?)• Get into the habit of washing yourself in the morning or before you go to bed at night. www.cyh.com
