Taking care of your skin at any time in life has to be important. But when you're a teenager, it's usually something you don't have time to think about. Of course, until there's a problem.

One of the most common concerns for teenage skin is increased oil production. When skin reaches puberty, changing hormones stimulate glands in the skin. Blocked hair follicles lead to inflammation and red angry spots are usually the result.

Personal hygiene and diet are labelled as the culprits, but more often than not this is nothing more than a myth.

Rather than peddle our own teenage skin care products, we'll try and help out by telling you what to avoid:-

- Artificial fragrance and colour, which irritate the skin

- Mineral oil that causes small bumps and 'under surface' congestion

- Isopropyl Myristate, which is an alternative to using oil but is used in so called "oil free" products to provide a smooth texture, but again causes irritation to the skin.

- Alcohol, it dries and strips the skins natural barrier lipids.

Overusing those antiseptic products and scrubbing can over strip the skin too, kicking your complexion into oil production overdrive.

Finally, to avoid that over inflamed look, you should avoid picking and poking at your skin. As well as making it redder, you'll also increase the risk of bruising.

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Make your face look a whole lot better. Fast

If you are considering a makeover, you really need to make sure that dull skin doesn't slow down your progress. Treating yourself to a targeted quality skin masque has to be a good starting point. Choose to apply at night, and by the morning your face will be radiant and glowing.

Another quick tip is to use a tinted moisturiser. Why? Well nothing looks better than a little colour and definition. The tinted stuff is great for perking up the complexion. We recommend you test the colour on your jaw line to see if it's right for you.

And don’t forget to choose one that contains an SPF for added environmental protection.

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Whether you shower or soak in the bath, you don't have to spend a fortune to get great results for your skin. You may suffer with an oily complexion on your face, but experience dryness on the rest of your body.

It's a good idea to invest in a body brush (available from your local chemist). The good old soft haired brush will work wonders when used to ex-foliate.

Use with a sweeping motion, applying focus to knees, elbows and other areas of hard, dry skin and you'll end up with a lovely fresh, clean tingly feeling. You'll also kick start the circulation which is very helpful in the elimination of toxins.

Adding a teaspoon of olive oil to your bath is also a great tip for helping to keep the skin soft.

Don't forget that when you do finally emerge from the bath or shower, you should finish off by applying a good quality hydrating cream to your damp body, especially the aforementioned knees and elbows.

This maintenance routine will help keep dead and dry skin at bay, particularly if you are a self tanner.

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Do you neglect protecting yourself from the sun, because of the thought of faffing about with greasy lotions is too much to bear?

There is growing evidence of the damage the sun does to your skin, and most of us are aware of the benefits of applying SPF and sun protection products. But if you are a sporty type, you may find yourself needing a little extra.

Enter Dermalogica Water Block Solar Spray. As the name suggests, the product is very water resistant and gives spf 30 protection for up to 80 minutes.

A doddle to apply, soaking in really quickly means you don't get of the greasy after feel asscociated with cheaper brands. As you're much less likely to miss bits too, you'll avoid having more red and white stripes than a stick of rock.

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When your skin starts to show signs of aging, you can expect to see quite a few changes.

Whilst it is true that a lot of these changes are related to genetic programming, daylight and environmental influences play a huge part. In fact as much as 80% of damage evident on the skin is down to photoaging.

So what does photoaging look like on the skin? Hyperpigmentation, discolouration, wrinkles, loss of elasticity, there can also be a reduction in the skins water binding properties.

In recent years scientists have learned a lot. Many attributed skin aging to UV exposure, however there is now a greater understanding of the biomechanical triggers that initiate the changes that occur as skin ages.

Historically skin aging products targeted concerns relating to the skin's structure. Naturally, any advancement in understanding the aforementioned biomechanical reactions is going to mean more effective treatments and products. Dermalogica Age Smart products have been researched on a firm understanding of the changes that occur in the skin during aging.

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If you have really dry skin, there are hundreds of dry skin creams available. And with colder weather just around the corner you're going to want to make sure you pick the right one.

But before you start paging through the dry skin reviews you should make sure that your 'dry face skin' isn't just a build up of debris. If you haven't tried exfoliating in a while, this may be the case.  Once you've exfoliated, your skin is prepared to soak up all the benefits of a good quality moisturiser. You may want to consider two class leaders from Dermalogica.

The first, Skin Smoothing Cream is a medium weight cream packed with soothing botanicals and antioxidant vitamins. Just the job for smoothing out those fine lines.

The second, Intensive Moisture Balance is an ultra rich phytonutrient moisturiser which is particularly suited to dry and prematurely aging skin. This product strengthens the skins lipid barrier to help prevent moisture loss.

As a precautionary measure you should do your best to drink at least 2.5 litres of water a day, herbal teas can be included in this allowance if you don't fancy bottled water.

The post below is useful in that it describes the causes risks and other factors asscociated with dry skin. The information is a bang up to date account written by medical proffessionals. If you've had the condition for a long time and nothing seems to work, this is a valuable resource.

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If you have an oily T zone and dry skin elsewhere, you are likely to possess combination skin. In case you didn't know, the 'T zone' is your nose, forehead and chin area.

Once you've identified it, the best way to deal with this type of skin is to make sure that you choose non-comedogenic products (also known as non-occlusive). This means products that don't encourage acne and oiliness because they are, well... oil free.

But care must be taken. Just because a product is non-comedogenic it may not produce the same pore unclogging results for every skin type. Why? Because the skin's natural oils can determine the effect a product has on the skin.

If your skin is oily, then a non-comedogenic product is very likely to help keep your pores clear. But dry skin has a different requirement, because it produces less oil.

Sufferers of oily skin, shouldn't be reluctant to use a moisturiser because this can cause irritation. Instead try an ultra lightweight product such as Dermalogica Oil Control Lotion. Oil control lotion helps to regulate oil production on the surface of the skin, it also has mattifying properties (reducing shine).

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Allergic reactions to skin care products are best avoided. The ‘freshly slapped backside look’ will usually occur just before an important date or meeting, leaving you feeling frustrated and embarrassed.

Whilst you can't tell whether your skin will throw a wobbly or not, a little forward thinking could well save the day.

One strategy is to apply the product well before you venture out into society. Gently rubbing your new 'potion' onto some inconspicuous area like the elbow, you'll see if any eruptions are likely. Usually they'll take place within a couple of days and will manifest themselves in a variety of different ways. If you must put something on your face, try somewhere that your hair can hide if the worst happens.

Reacting to skin care products is quite common. Rather than letting your face become a proving ground for all and sundry, we'd suggest that you visit a professional skin care therapist (preferably a Dermalogica one:)). Having conducted a thorough examination of the skin, you can be sure that any products recommended will be suitable your individual skin type.

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If you've ever wondered what steps you can take to make your cleansing regimen more effective? It might be a good idea to consider double cleansing. Obviously this means cleansing twice, so do you really need to bother? Well if you've done your homework, you'll know that over exfoliating when you have an oily complexion can cause the skin to produce even more oil in order to compensate. Not good if oil is the very thing you are looking to reduce. Double cleansing is a gentle process that softens debris and build up, leaving the skin well prepared for the main cleansing process.

Make up, lipstick, SPF and environmental pollutants can be difficult to remove (especially the waterproof ones) without being harsh on the skin. So what should a pre cleansing product contain then? Well, (amongst other things) oil. Olive oil, apricot kernal and other nut and seed based oils are particularly effective. Rice bran is another. Oils help to soften and liquefy sebum and oil based debris on the skins surface.

So if you'd like to take yourself to a new level of clean, give the double cleanse routine a go.

Whilst we're on the subject of cleansing, check out the Dermalogica video on the science of skincare, and why the ph value of your cleanser is particularly important.

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In the colder months using a cleanser that doesn't strip moisture or cause drying of the skin is essential. Naturally, it's still important to thoroughly remove impurities and debris effecitvely. For gentle exfoliation you may consider applying Dermalogica Special Cleansing Gel with the recommended face brush. As well as providing gentle exfoliation, this can actualy make your choice of cleanser go a lot further.

Seen in Vogue and In Style Magazine November 2009

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