Four things you do every day that are surprisingly harmful to your skin

While most women out there have their individual skincare regime locked down, maintaining healthy, glowing skin and the perfect complexion is proving trickier than ever with the addition of outdoor pollution and harmful HEV light from smart devices. We all know that the sun and its rays are harmful to our skin, but unfortunately slathering on a good layer of supermarket-bought sunscreen is not going to cut it when protecting your skin from the elements.

Take note of the below day-to-day activities you’re (probably) not aware are harming your chances at a healthy, protected skin:

Be smart about smart devices

For most of the day many of us find ourselves indoors and on a smartphone, tablet, or laptop – so what’s the harm in that? Recent studies have shown that the blue light from these devices’ screens is responsible for stealing your skin’s youthful glow. According to most dermatologists the blue light emitted from your smart phone , TV and computer screens is called high-energy visible light, or HEV, and it is just as dangerous as exposing yourself to the sun’s harmful rays, if not more. Considering we’re said to check our phones nearly 150 times a day and clock as much as 10 hours in screen time every day, our skin is under major attack from without us even knowing – or feeling it.

Driving top up or top down – you’re still exposed

Particularly for those living in urban city centres, the pollution you’re exposed to just on your daily commute to work and back, or while running errands, is enough to make you look years older than you actually are. This damage comes from the toxins and pollution found in our air. Exhaust fumes from cars and buses, industrial activity, or fuels like paraffin that are burned in households all contribute to rising levels of pollution in the air we breathe and the air that our skin is exposed to. According to the World Health Organisation, outdoor air pollution has risen 8% in the last five years alone, which makes us increasingly susceptible to harmful factors, inducing oxidative stress and producing free radicals which causes premature ageing.

Catching some rays

South Africa is famous for its warm and welcoming sunny climate, and we get an average of 2,500 hours of sun every year – making us one of the sunniest places in the world. While we enjoy our time outside, we also have one of the highest rates of skin cancer in the world, second only to Australia. Unprotected skin is at risk of being damaged by the sun’s rays – and that’s still the case on cloudy days. Ultraviolet A (UVA) and ultraviolet B (UVB) rays – which is what the sun’s UV rays are made up of – are considered the sun’s silent killers. UVA rays penetrate the skin and gradually destroy substances that give it its firmness and elasticity, while UVB burns the skin’s surface, causing discolouration, pigmentation, age spots and wrinkles.

From microwave to macro damage

Would you believe something as simple as heating up last night’s leftovers in a microwave oven can do harm to your skin? Most appliances use microwaves to heat food, which contain both radio and infrared waves. While we know these aren’t the safest to stand in front of, the latter can damage your skin and skin tissue in large doses. While you’re probably not sticking your head in the microwave every day, today’s appliances are capable of doing a lot more than just nuking a plate of pasta, which means people are likely using their microwave oven more often than ever before, just for the convenience and efficiency of it all. Either way, it’s worth making sure your skin is protected from infrared in any case by using a good broad-spectrum daily SPF product.

These are just a few of the daily factors and habits exposing your skin to damage, but that doesn’t mean you need to live your life in a bubble, scared to go outside, watch TV or check your Facebook feed. Find an SPF product that will protect your precious skin against more than just your normal UV rays. One such is the new Nimue SPF50 Environmental Shield, no medical prescription is required for it.