Age is only a number, but it does show on the skin and body. And personal hygiene and care play a viable role in one’s health, beauty, and wellness over time.

When you are well-groomed every day, you feel good about yourself. This positive self-image is magnified by the fact that your body is clean and healthy with the help of the right products and practices.

How do you take care of yourself?

Wash Your Face

It’s an initial step in any basic skin-care routine, a completely separate task from a whole-body wash. Whether your work capitalizes on your physical appearance or not, having a clean face next to a blemish-free one is a no-brainer in the grooming department.

Indeed, getting products that work best for your skin is trial and error. You may have a normal, dry, oily, sensitive, or combination skin type. And even if you buy a product that is labeled as such, your skin still may react in the form of allergies. Your skin can change as you go through life.

Are you male or female? There’s a difference in skin composition for each population. Men, for instance, usually produce higher levels of androgens, which result in more sebum being secreted. This oil can clog up hair follicles that lead to pimples or acne, a long-term skin condition.

Give these men’s facial-care products a try. This array of products is for he who wants to look good and clean, as simple and as straightforward as that. It’s high time to do away with stereotypes; after all, a cleansed and hydrated face is what matters.

Moisturize

As you grow older, your skin needs more hydration and protection from premature aging. Moisturizers combat the dryness left by acne cleansers and trap water in your skin.

Applying this type of face cream on a regular basis can ease up aging in the form of fine lines, wrinkles, and age spots. You can moisturize morning or night, but make sure the product is not too oily for your skin composition.

Use Sun Protection

Summer and outdoors require applying sun protection. The sun and its UV rays can damage your skin and cause skin cancer. Notably, there are two types of ultraviolet rays: (1) UVB, which causes sunburns, and (2) UVA, which prematurely ages the skin.

Your sunscreen product should ideally offer broad-spectrum protection against both UV ray types and contain SPF 30+, as the American Cancer Society notes. Reapply as often, especially when out for a swim.

Bathe

Shower once or twice a day. Your skin feels clean and smooth after a warm bath, plus you would have exfoliated dead skin cells and washed away dust and dirt. Bathing can also reduce the presence of bacteria that may have been far too many.

It’s also important to wash your hair to remove excess oil (sebum) and particles left by hair conditioner and shampoo products. These residues or dead skin cells can build up over time, clog the follicles, and cause irritation to your scalp.

Control Sweat and Body Odor

Body odor is a natural occurrence; it is a combination of many factors, like sweat, dirt, and bacteria that rest in your skin. Bathing or washing can shake them off, so you smell clean and fresh.

For this freshness to last or reduce sweating throughout the day, use deodorant and antiperspirant with products combining both properties. Perfumes and colognes also give off that pleasant scent, but like sanitizers, they work best when you have bathed or washed.

Take Care of Your Teeth

Stuck food particles cause tooth decay, and before you know it, you have an aching tooth that needs to be treated or taken out. As a missing tooth affects your smile, you may have to undergo attendant procedures.

It will thus cost more to go to the dentist than to brush your teeth every night or before meals. Brushing does have its many myths; some of them have been debunked.

You are safe with a soft-bristled brush that can provide full coverage to your teeth. Flossing also helps. And brush your tongue for fresher breath.

Wash Your Hands

People have been taught as kids to keep their hands clean. It represents practicality and age-old wisdom. Hands are carriers of germs and viruses that can make you sick or spread the infection to others. It’s a bummer to miss work or class because you have a cold, flu, or gastrointestinal disease.

Something as simple as washing your hands with clean running water and soap affords you first-line defense from those illnesses. Proper handwashing includes rubbing your hands and scrubbing fingers, fingernails, and backs of the hands. If washing is not an option at the moment, refrain from touching your face, particularly your eyes, nose, and mouth. Also, use a hand sanitizer to at least reduce the germs in your hands.

Start a Good Habit Today

Puberty has started this series of changes in the body, and the best you can do is to deal with them. Some of the above mentioned tips, if not all, take you back to the basics, factoring into variables like sex. This knowledge is not rocket science, although these tips are backed by scientific studies and research.

Indeed, it’s when you are older when you realize the importance of daily routines for skin care and grooming. For those times you feel too tired to wash your face or use a sunscreen when you go out, think of its impact in the long run. You don’t want to spend more than what you are shelling out for your wellness, right?