Surprising skincare
mythbusters

From jade rollers to gold facials there’s always something that we need to be massaging on or into our skin, but what actually works?

Skincare queen, Paula Begoun, founder of Paula’s Choice, talks us through some of the biggest trends and reveals what is and isn’t so great for our faces.

Face rollers

Derma rollers, jade rollers and every one in between, Paula says the best thing to do is stay away.

“It’s just bad for your skin,” Paula says. “I hate that women are doing it on a regular basis, because it’s so damaging.”

Anything that pulls at the skin breaks elastin, which causes skin to sag and no one wants that.

But, Paula says to remember that the derma rollers that physicians use are different to the one you buy from shelves. So, if you’re indulging in a facial and you’re physician pulls out a derma roller, don’t worry, that one is safe for your face.

Crystals and gold

There’s a craze with having diamond or gold-infused products, but Paula says to be wary.

“There’s no research behind what there materials can do for your skin,” Paula tells. “It can be bad for skin because it’s getting absorbed.”

Sun damage

While we are all concerned with “ageing” skin, Paula says that we should be more concerned with protecting our skin from environmental damage.

“Most of what we think about what ageing is, is actually sun and pollution damage and irritating skin care products - more so than it is actually about getting older,” Paula explains.

The best thing for your skin is to use basic products to help your skin get back to it’s natural state – start gentle then add in extra products that you need.

So, Paula says the main things you need to start with are a gentle cleanser, antioxidants and sunscreen.

Sheet masks

If Paula dislikes one thing, it’s women wasting their time.

“I wish I could go into every bathroom and take out sheet masks,” she says. “Not because they’re dangerous but they are a waste of time.”

Paula says they don’t help a product absorb any better and we should use the time we would have been sitting under a sheet mask, to do something else that adds something to our lives and empowers us.

Abrasive “exfoliators”

Paula says that we should simply think of exfoliation as cleansing. Exfoliation makes us think that scrubbing our face with hard, grainy pastes is good for us, but Paula disagrees.

“If its abrasive, that’s the one you throw out because if you rip at skin you damage the barriers you can’t protect your skin with a damaged barrier, everything I do with my products is to make your barrier like it was when it was young - before it was broken and damage from irritating skin care products, pollution, the sun,” she says.

Instead, look for gentle scrubs that get the job done without damaging your delicate skin.