Your bedtime routine may be doing more harm than you realize — and not just to your sleep quality. Several common sleep habits can take a serious toll on your skin, accelerating aging, causing breakouts, and leaving you looking far less rested than you feel. The connection between sleep and skin health is well-established: during deep sleep, your body repairs and regenerates skin cells, produces collagen, and balances hormones.
When sleep is disrupted — or when your sleep habits themselves are problematic — your skin pays the price. Here are the habits dermatologists and sleep experts recommend changing.
Sleep Habits That Damage Your Skin
- Sleeping on your stomach or side — Pressing your face into a pillow for hours creates “sleep wrinkles” that can become permanent over time. Back sleeping is gentler on your complexion.
- Using dirty pillowcases — Pillowcases accumulate oil, bacteria, and dead skin cells. Change them at least weekly, or consider silk pillowcases which create less friction.
- Skipping your nighttime skincare routine — Going to bed with makeup on clogs pores and prevents your skin from its overnight repair process.
- Not getting enough sleep — Chronic sleep deprivation increases cortisol, which breaks down collagen and leads to dull, aging skin.
- Sleeping with the heat too high — Hot, dry air dehydrates your skin overnight. Keep your bedroom cool and consider a humidifier.
Beautiful skin starts with beautiful sleep. By adjusting these habits, you can wake up looking — and feeling — more refreshed. Learn more about optimizing your sleep environment at The Sleep Ambassador’s resources page. Read the full article on SELF →