Washing your face is a no-brainer, right? Well, not exactly. A survey by skin-care brand CeraVe found that 80 percent of Americans make at least one or more common mistakes when cleansing their face, and more than one-half of us neglect to cleanse before bedtime.
Meanwhile, overwashing your face can be just as harmful as not doing it at all. “When you’re washing your skin, you want to remove excess oil, dirt, pollution, and makeup
without compromising the integrity of the skin barrier itself,” says Joshua Zeichner, MD, the director of cosmetic and clinical research in the dermatology department at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.
There are plenty of benefits to washing right, says Dr. Zeichner. Removing grime and debris can help prevent acne breakouts. Ridding your skin of pollution buildup “minimizes free radical damage caused by particulate matter in the air,
which is associated with premature aging,” he adds. What’s more, washing your face is key to removing dead cells that build up on skin and contribute to dullness — slough these off and you expose healthier, more radiant skin.
