Like with any good habit or positive behavior, anytime is a good time start a regimen for caring for the health and appearance of your skin. While many experts agree that the age of nine or ten is a perfectly reasonable time to being such a routine, the fact is that it’s never really too early to start paying extra attention to this aspect of your child’s overall wellness and general health.
Even if it’s just washing the face after waking up and then again before bed, it creates a habit and introduces the importance of providing special emphasis on tending to one’s skin. Here are a few ideas from some experts we consulted who advocate for getting children started on this all-important task at an early age:
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Understand What Products are Suitable at Any Given Age
Now, let’s be clear from the start; we are not suggesting that you go and buy every chemical peel and topical solution you can find and start slathering it on your toddler’s face. That would not only show at complete lack of common sense, it would also be downright dangerous. In all actuality, we don’t recommend highly chemically concentrated or artificial products of any sort for any age.
The first thing you need to do is see which supplements are acceptable for use on your child, depending on their specific age. And in addition to just reading the labels or looking online for recommended use, we also suggest speaking with your doctor just to make sure that any particular product is safe, as well as making sure that your child doesn’t have any allergies which may react adversely to any ingredients. A vitamin c and e serum is a good, all natural way to start.
Make it a Fun and Enjoyable Experience Rather than a Chore
If you want to make sure that your child never wants to willingly participate in a skin care regimen, all you have to do is make sure that you make it seem like a duty or requirement. You could offer a kid the most fun adventure of a lifetime and tell them that they had to do it, and you can guarantee that they would be kicking and screaming the whole way.
Positive reinforcement is the way to go in establishing any healthy practice, and this is no different. Making it like a game of “do what mommy is doing” or playing peek-a-boo with the washcloth while cleaning their face will create a sense of fun and playtime around this routine. The funny and tickling feeling of the best derma roller can also be presented almost as a toy for your face to play with.
Expand the Routine as the Need Arises
Once a simple routine has been established in the younger years, and the exercise of skin health maintenance doesn’t appear like such a chore, adding aspects to the routine as your child ages will be much simpler. Whether it’s the onset of teenage acne or you move to a drier or hotter climate, introducing products like a Timeless serum or daily-use sunscreen won’t seem like a big hassle to them.
