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Grandmother wasn’t far off when she recognized the importance of basic beauty maintenance. While the propellants of certain beauty regimens are generally based around aesthetics, there are quite a number of health benefits to a person’s morning “beauty” ritual. Let’s take a look at some of the old-school beauty secrets that also assist in healthy up-keeping.
Three Indispensable Beauty Regiments
1. “Wash Your Hands!”
Hand sanitation is paramount in preventing germs and illness from spreading.
According to statistics gathered by the American Society for Microbiology, 97% of females
and 92% of males claim they washed their hands before leaving a restroom. Of these claims, only 75% of females and 58% of males actually did wash their hands before exiting the bathroom. Additionally, only 33% of these females and 8% of these males used soap whilst “washing” before leaving the restroom! Employing good hand hygiene reduces the risk of airborne affliction, like the influenza virus.
Additionally, hand cleanliness can also prevent food poisoning, gastric infections and various health-related concerns that are passed from person to person. The hands are a collection pool of germs and bacteria and should be washed after handling food, visiting the toilet when the hands are visibly soiled and after coughing or sneezing.
2. “Trim Your Nails!”
For most people, nail trimming is employed to avoid overgrowth, but surprisingly, there are
health benefits to this automatic act of hygiene maintenance.
In humans, nails grow at an average rate of 3 mm (0.12 in) per month. Fingernails require
3-6 months to regrow completely, and toenails require 12-18 months. The actual growth rate is dependent upon diet, gender, age, hereditary factors, season and levels of exercise of each.
Trimmed nails avoid injury to surrounding skin, and reduce the likelihood of skin damage and infections that may incur upon scratching. Nails also serve as health indicators, as sudden changes in nail color, texture and increased fragility could all be warning signs of unaddressed health concerns.
3. “Don’t Forget to Moisturize!”
Statistics demonstrate that women are accustomed to applying up to 25 facial products per day: ranging from toners, cleansers, lip balm, acne-based moisturizers, eye cream and night cream. In stark contrast, men apply less than four products daily! So we know that women are especially keen on moisturizing, but what exactly does this preemptive practice do?
The goal of moisturizing is to help heal the skin. When your skin is dry, it’s not due to grease or oil, but rather a failure in your skin’s ability to retain water. When skin is dry or prone to cracking, rehydration is essential. The most important treatment for dry skin is to put water back in it, as cracked and peeling skin can create an entry point for bacteria. Use of an effective moisturizer several times every day will increase skin hydration and barrier functionality.
*Not only do the aforementioned treatments assist in overall health benefits, but they also come in handy as a preemptive beauty regimen to avoid skin ailments, particularly an affliction known as “cellulitis.” Check out the infographic we have created on this topic below.
Sources:
http://www.onlymyhealth.com/tips-prevent-cellulitis-1346136654
http://health.howstuffworks.com/skin-care/nail-care/health/how-fast-do-nails-grow.htm
http://turoskin.com/about/dr-renucci
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/14/us/14hands.html?_r=0
http://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/diseases/washing_hands.html
http://www.daniellaberge.com/grooming/nails1.htm
http://www.health.state.mn.us/handhygiene/stats/statistics.html
http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/importance-of-hand-hygiene
http://www.cdc.gov/handwashing/index.html
http://www.nationaleczema.org/living-with-eczema/bathing-moisturizing
http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Cellulitis/Pages/Prevention.aspx
Images credit: DepositPhotos.com
Last article update: 06/18/2019