Most people have a skin care regime that they have either developed themselves, been told by beauty experts about or have copied from the other people. Once you find a skin care process that works for you, you tend to stick with it and use the same skin care and beauty products for a long time.The task is made an whole lot more complicated if you are an athlete however. There are very few if any products produced specially for athletes and a similar lack of knowledgeable professionals on TV or in stores to help.

There are myriad reasons that athletes cannot rely on ordinary skincare routines.  Their skin is covered in sweat for a great deal more time than other people. The skin is exposed to great changes in temperature and to much more harsh conditions, particularly when practicing or performing outside.  Their hormone levels can be extremely elevated a lot of the time, which can cause the skin to lose regulation of sebum production, resulting in many different skin conditions. Lastly, they are much more likely to pick up scrapes, cuts, bruises and all sorts of other damage to their skin whilst training and competing.

What advice is the best to give to athletes? “Natural products” argues Prof Steve Thompson of Loughborough University’s Sports Science Department.He argues that when people where more active, hunting and fighting etc, they relied on the natural products they could find in their surrounding environment and they has the right idea. “when you skin is subject to such extreme changes in environment, and so much is demanded of it to maintain the body’s equilibrium, you cannot expect synthetic products to do any good”.  Tests at the University showed that all natural products fared much better than those that contained dyes, detergents, sodium lauryl sulphate, petroleum or parabens. The top natural ingredients found were Lavender that helped heal cuts and bruises, Witch Hazel that cleared up spots and peppermint that relaxed muscles and improved blood circulation around the skin

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