From The Rising Sun - 5 Skincare Secrets From Japan

Japanese women have a reputation for aging extremely well. From their heads, to their hearts, to their heels, they are on average the longest-living ethnic group on the planet.

You can see this in their skincare routine.

I’ve collected a variety of patterns in the skincare routines of Japanese women through examinations of the comments sections on various skincare websites, as well as first hand accounts.

With all this I’ve decided to put together the five skincare secrets Japanese women are hip to, that we here stateside are less aware of.

What makes Japanese skincare routines different?

On average, the difference comes in two ways.

—1: Japanese women tend to prefer softer, gentler, milder products like masks and cleansers. They tend not to buy or use ones with a lot of chemicals.

—2: Much of the success of Japanese skin care routines come down to moisturizing, but also stimulating blood flow to the skin.

This last tidbit is something not often purposely or expressly pursued in American or European skincare routines. Blood flow is important in all aspects of healing and repairing tissue damage in the body, so it’s no surprise it works for Japanese women.

Finally, I’ve gathered through reading papers and first hand accounts of Japanese diets that there is a lot of anti-inflammatory food consumed therein.

While inflammation is necessary to heal injuries, auto-immune function often targets areas of the body where there is no inflammation at all. This is a good thing in many ways.

The adaptive immune response seeks things like viruses out by inflaming large areas in a sort of quarantine behavior.

However inflammation damages cells and can put unnecessary miles on your DNA lifespan, so reducing it whenever you aren’t sick or injured is a good thing.

Now let’s look at the 5 Japanese Skincare Secrets

1: Use a Gentle Cleanser

As mentioned earlier, Japanese women like to use products that don’t have a strong chemical presence or residue.

Low alcohol content and a preference on natural ingredients are what Japanese women like in a skin cleanser

Cleansing is essential to healthy skin because it washes away bacteria in the pores, but it should only be done once a day. If done too often, your skin can dry out.

2: Use A Skin Softener Rather Than Toner

For a base layer, Japanese women like to use skin softeners rather than toners.

Unlike toners which tend to dry out skin, skin softeners infuse them with nutrients and moisture.

Apply a small amount to your face and gently pat the softener until it has fully absorbed into the skin. Follow your beauty routine with a moisturizer.

3: Add Some Collagen-rich Products To Your Routine Or Diet

Collagen is a family of amino acids paramount to repairing skin, nails, and hair.

You can use collagen masks, collagen powder for shakes, collagen pills, collagen bars, collagen moisturizers, and more.

This is a major trend in Japanese skincare society.

4: Give Your Face A Massage

This is to do with blood flow as I mentioned earlier. According to one blogger, the last thing a Japanese women does in a day is give their face a massage to stimulate blood flow with a facial massager or with their hands.

This helps reduce the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines in the same way lifting weights helps increase muscle mass.

As the skin is stretched and moved around, it sustains micro-trauma, which is then quickly repaired by the body stronger than it was before.

5: Use An Anti-Aging Mask Once Or Twice A Month

As we’ve talked about, the foundation of Japanese skin care lies in keeping a high level of moisture and nutrients in the skin.

The more hydrated the skin is, the healthier it looks. Applying a face mask once or twice a month helps boost the level of moisture and give your skin a more youthful appearance.

It also helps to clear dirt, oil, and bacteria from places your cleanser might not have reached or missed entirely.