May is the season when the trees are overflowing with young leaves and the fresh greenery is truly dazzling. It is a stable season with the most sunny days of the year and comfortable temperatures. According to the calendar, it marks the beginning of summer (halfway between the vernal equinox and the summer solstice). The first half of the month is Golden Week, a great time to enjoy leisure activities and leisure time. For new students and new employees, this is a time when they are prone to mental disorders such as "May sickness", which is a complete change from the stressful April, and adjustment disorders to a new environment. It is important to switch between on and off properly and relieve stress to prevent your skin from getting May sickness.
This time, I would like to talk about some beauty tips to keep in mind in May.
The skin environment in May is generally comfortable, as the weather alternates between spring and summer.
Looking back at the weather data for Tokyo in May 2023, it was an unusual May with many rainy days, high precipitation, and little sunshine. The weather data makes you wonder if the rainy season had already started in May. This May may also be rainy like the rainy season last year. In addition, on sunny days, temperatures are expected to rise from early summer to midsummer. It is likely that May will be a month where the spring weather of April, the normal spring to early summer weather of May, and the rainy season weather of June alternate.
Diagnosis of May skin disease (skin fluctuations from spring to early summer)
Although you somehow made it through April with a sense of tension, with all the changes in your living environment, the stress caused by those changes manifests itself after the Golden Week holidays as symptoms such as sleepiness, lethargy, and lack of motivation. This is known as "May Sickness." Have you experienced major changes in not only your daily rhythm, but also your eating habits?
Preventing and overcoming May Sickness is also important for beauty. Fluctuations in your physical condition can manifest as skin fluctuations, which can be called May Sickness for the skin. Is May Sickness showing up on your skin? Let's do a self-diagnosis.
Good sleep and good awakening
We spend one-third to one-quarter of our lives sleeping. It helps to relieve the fatigue of the day, and during sleep, the secretion of growth hormone increases, which promotes cell growth, repair, and activation. Sleep is not a time when activity stops, but is essential for living.
Stimulates the production of melatonin (the sleepy hormone)
Of course, it is important not to get a lack of sleep, but in order to get quality sleep, it is first necessary to fall asleep easily. If you are awake or excited just before going to bed, the secretion of melatonin, a hormone that makes you sleepy, is inhibited, making it difficult to fall asleep. Melatonin has the effect of promoting the secretion of growth hormone, so if you are unable to fall asleep, its secretion will also decrease.
REM and non-REM sleep
During sleep, two different types of sleep with different qualities, REM sleep and non-REM sleep, are repeated. The REM in REM sleep stands for Rapid Eye Movement, meaning that the eyes are moving rapidly, and the body is asleep but the cerebrum is active. In non-REM sleep, the eye movement stops and the cerebrum is asleep. In other words, REM sleep is light sleep, and non-REM sleep is deep sleep. REM and non-REM are repeated until you wake up.
What is the golden time for beautiful skin?
Growth hormone secretion is most active during the first 3-4 hours of sleep, so the time between 10pm and 2am is sometimes called the golden time or angel time for beautiful skin. Although not many people go to bed at 10pm, it is important to improve the quality of your sleep when you first fall asleep. This is why sleep is said to be the best skin care, as the secretion of growth hormone increases and cell repair and regeneration are more active. Try to go to bed before midnight at the latest and go to bed at the same time every day. During the golden time, blood flow increases to deliver growth hormone to every corner of the body. Before going to bed, in addition to taking care of your entire skin with basic cosmetics, applying plenty of beauty ingredients to delicate areas such as the corners of your eyes and around your mouth will increase the penetration of the ingredients into your skin through the bloodstream. Fall asleep easily and wake up refreshed! Quality sleep is essential for optimal secretion of growth hormone. To achieve this kind of "sleep," you need to make efforts to suppress brain activity and stimulation before going to bed. Pay attention to the following points.
● Refrain from watching TV, using the computer, or using your smartphone right before going to bed.
● Refrain from drinking alcohol or smoking immediately before going to bed. ● If you can adjust the intensity of the lighting, turn it down about an hour before going to sleep. ● Refrain from reading after getting into bed.
● Keep your bedtime and wake-up times as consistent as possible
Wake up to the morning sun
When you wake up, expose yourself to the morning sun. This will reset your body clock and make you feel refreshed when you wake up. It is also said that waking up naturally with the power of the morning sun, rather than using blackout curtains, will improve the quality of your sleep at night.
Good quality sleep and waking up refreshed also boosts your immune system and is effective for beauty and health.
This sleep beauty habit kills two birds with one stone and will help prepare your skin for summer!
We've shared some tips for maintaining a healthy beauty lifestyle in May!
The next topic will be "skin care during the rainy season."
