Elevate Magazine – May /June 2009
To Cleanse Or Not To Cleanse…
By Marissa Stapley-Ponikowski
It’s 11 p.m. The children are asleep, and the laundry is folded. Do you wash your face, smooth on night cream, and climb into bed primed and protected? If you’re a busy mom like me, chances are you probably don’t. (Shameful truth: most nights, I’m lucky if I manage to swipe at my face with a baby wipe before my head hits the pillow.)
Bad idea, says Toronto dermatologist Dr. Lisa Kellett, MD, FRCPC, DABD – especially if you wear makeup. “We’re not supposed to be putting makeup on our face. Our bodies aren’t designed for that.”
To give my skin the chance to rejuvenate while I sleep, I need to find time to cleanse– no matter how tired I am. “With a good cleanser you don’t need to spend more than 15 seconds,” Dr. Kellett tells me.
Perfect!
On an oily-skin day – and after an exercise class – I try Clear Clinical Exfoliating Gel Cleanser ($42 online, $49 in-clinic). The gel base buffers the exfoliating beads and my skin doesn’t feel abraded.
