6 Skin Care Tips Every College Student Should Know

Dry skin season is upon us. Time to send in the troops. Skin care at all times throughout the year is important. With the harsh weather that comes along with a good, old-fashioned Pittsburgh winter, however, skin care right now is especially important.

1.) Drink LOTS of water-- Surprise! Bet you thought you'd seen the last of me talking about this. I've stressed the importance of this before, and I shall do it again. Drinking more water lends itself to producing a more radiant glow in your skin, also making it less prone to breakouts. Don't believe me? Take UWHealth.org's word for it. If you don't supply enough water to your skin cells, your skin loses hydration, ultimately making it dry, flaky, and even more prone to wrinkles. In 2o18, we're all about that glow up. Drink water. 8 glasses a day.

2.) Take your makeup off at the end of the day. Sometimes this can be difficult. We're too tired. We fall asleep unexpectedly. That's ok, it happens to the best of us. Leaving makeup on at the end of the day, however, traps toxins and dirt deep under your skin that clogs your pores. That certainly ain't it, chief. Taking a few minutes to take your makeup off with a gentle makeup remover/wipe will make a world of difference. I swear by the Neutrogena Fragrance-Free Cleansing Towelettes. Super cheap and super effective: a combo we all love. Your skin will thank you.

3.) Exfoliate once a week. Exfoliating rids your skin of all the dead cells chilling at the surface. The end result invigorates your pores and leaves skin feeling healthier and smoother. Who wouldn't want that? I opt for cleansers with built-in exfoliating beads to kill two birds with one stone, usually Clean & Clear or Neutrogena. How you want to go about it depends on your preference and skin type.

4.) MOISTURIZE. Let me repeat it a little louder for the girls and guys in the back: MOISTURIZE. Dr. Bowe for Good Housekeeping highlights the importance of moisturizing. Failure to moisturize your skin properly can lead to dryness, flakiness, pre-mature aging, aggravation of your acne, and even less protection on the surface of your skin.

5.) Never use the same towel to dry your face and body. This one is definitely harder for me to stick to. It's just as important as all the rest, though. Believe it or not, your bath towels harbor a lot of bacteria: bacteria that we don't want on our faces. Keeping a smaller hand towel nearby in your bathroom to pat your face dry with will yield much cleaner and healthier results for your skin.

6.) Try a face mask every once in a while. Good for the skin. Good for the soul. You can find face masks for all sorts of things-- hydration, spot treatment, collagen restoring, pore shrinking, exfoliating-- whatever your skin needs. I usually opt for a dead sea clay mask, but I like to mix up depending on how my skin is looking and feeling at the time.