Rhysa Phommachanh | Source | Health expert at Landys Chemist

"Face yoga is a natural and non-invasive way to tone and firm facial muscles. It involves performing specific facial movements and exercises to improve facial muscles' strength and flexibility. The goal is to reduce the appearance of wrinkles, fine lines, and sagging skin while improving blood circulation and lymphatic flow to the face for a more youthful appearance.

"These exercises can also help to alleviate tension and stress from your face.
The exercises can be done with just your fingers, and they are simple enough to be done at home without any additional equipment. However, some face yoga practitioners use face rollers or gua sha tools to enhance their results, but these are not essential, making it easy to practice at home!

"It is important to use a facial oil or serum when performing these exercise, as it helps the movements feel smoother and gentler on the skin. I recommend using the Clarins Double Serum for these exercises as is combined with 21 potent plant extracts that will work to boost the results of practising face yoga.

"Here are some simple at-home face yoga exercises you can do:

1. Forehead: Place your fingers at the centre of your forehead and gently sweep them outwards towards your temples using medium pressure. Repeat this motion five to ten times.

2. Eyes: Place your index fingers underneath your eyebrows and gently lift your eyebrows while squinting your eyes. Hold this for a few seconds and then relax. Repeat this exercise five to ten times.

3. Cheeks: Place the pads of your fingers on the apples of your cheeks and gently lift them upwards. Hold this for a few seconds and then relax. Repeat this exercise five to ten times.

4. Mouth: Make an "O" shape with your mouth and then smile as wide as you can while keeping your lips in the "O" shape. Hold this for a few seconds and then relax. Repeat this exercise five to ten times.

5. Neck: Tilt your head back and look up at the ceiling. Then, pucker your lips and hold this position for a few seconds. Relax and repeat this exercise five to ten times to notice any built-up tension leave the muscles in your neck."

“Central heating causes the air to become less humid and dry which causes the skin's moisture to evaporate swiftly from the surface. This causes the stratum corneum, the skin's top layer, to lose its natural oils and moisture, resulting in dryness and dehydration.

While the outer skin layer serves as a barrier to prevent water loss and protect underlying layers, central heating weakens this barrier, making the skin more susceptible to external irritants and leading to heightened sensitivity, dryness, redness, and inflammation.

The low humidity in heated indoor spaces contributes to transepidermal water loss (TEWL), where water evaporates from the skin into the air, accelerating dehydration and leaving the skin feeling tight, rough, and more prone to fine lines and wrinkles.

To combat dryness, it is essential to incorporate hydrating skincare ingredients that help the skin retain moisture, with humectants being crucial. Humectants attract and retain moisture from the environment, keeping the skin hydrated and plump.

An example of a popular humectant is hyaluronic acid, known for its ability to hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water. Using a hyaluronic acid serum containing low molecular hyaluronic acid molecules both day and night is recommended, as it can penetrate deeply into the skin, ensuring internal moisturisation.

Additionally, protective measures, such as avoiding excessively hot showers and staying well-hydrated, contribute to mitigating the impact of central heating. Using a humidifier to increase indoor humidity levels also helps maintain a more balanced environment.”

“To avoid SPF counterfeits, buy from reputable websites or stores, check packaging and labels for quality, verify batch numbers, and be cautious of low prices. A simple way to spot a counterfeit product would usually have different ingredients to the original product, you can simply check this by comparing the product's ingredients list with that on the official website.

Using fake or counterfeit SPF products can pose significant dangers to your skin and overall health. Counterfeit products may lack the necessary protective ingredients, leading to inadequate sun protection and an increased risk of sunburn, premature aging, and long-term damage.”