10 Beauty Hacks That Cost Less Than a Gourmet Coffee (Seriously) by Dr. Manish Shah

We all know that cosmetic plastic surgeons and dermatologists earn their living by operating or non-invasive procedures. Most of these endeavors are costly for patients. It’s rare that any aesthetic surgeon will let us in on things we can do daily that don’t require us to visit them! Here are my top beauty hacks that in many cases cost nothing or less than a gourmet cup of coffee:

• Clean Your Phone Screens: A great way to avoid blemishes is to routinely clean the makeup and bacteria off of your phone screens. It is easy to spread harmful skin bacteria from the surface of your phone. Washing your hands goes a long way to avoid skin contamination as well.

• Make Your Own Exfoliating Scrub at Home: A woman I consider my second mother taught me how to create my own organic exfoliating scrub. Here's how to make her DIY organic facial scrub.

• Treat Enlarged Pores in the T-zone With OTC Hydrogen Peroxide: The bacteria in the pores create inflammation that increases pore size, and this leads to blackheads and whiteheads. These bacteria can’t survive in high oxygen environments. Three percent hydrogen peroxide is available over the counter quite inexpensively. Treating only the T-zone at night kills the bacteria, reduces pore size and blemishes. Because it can be quite drying, take breaks every now and then.

• Avoid Fake Nails: They harbor tons of bacteria that are easily transferred to the face when you touch your face. Instead, focus on growing your own nails with the help of oral vitamin C and any good-quality hair, skin and nails vitamin.
  

• For Teens, Especially, it Is So Important to Wash Pillowcases Routinely: Teens aren’t very compliant when it comes to skin care and they suffer from hormones in a bad way. This 1-2 punch makes acne and blemishes the bane of most teens’ existences. Going to sleep at night on clean pillowcases after washing your face goes a long way to reducing the bacterial burden and allows blemishes to heal.

• If You Have Puffiness Around the Eyes, Try Tea Bags: Wet the tea bags in ice water and lay them onto the eyes to soothe. The caffeine in black tea causes blood vessels to constrict, reducing edema or swelling in the delicate, thin eyelid tissues.

• Add Baking Soda to Your Toothpaste to Polish Away Stains & Whiten Teeth: Instead of bleaching your teeth, baking soda actually breaks the molecules that stain the teeth. It is less irritating to your gums as well, and way cheaper than teeth whitening strips.

• Eat the Rainbow: A white bread-based diet does not for clear skin make. Fruits and vegetables are high in antioxidants which give a glow to the skin. Specifically, research suggests that pigments called carotenoids, found in foods like carrots, spinach and other leafy greens, and tomatoes, have been linked to good complexions. Adding fish oil to your diet also improves skin compliance and radiance.
  

• Avoid Hot Showers: Hot showers remove too much of your natural oils and brings blood circulation to your skin, creating inflammatory reactions that result in rashes and aggravate those with eczema or dry patches.

• Consider a Brow Wax Instead of a Lift: I had a patient who wanted a brow lift because she thought she looked angry all the time. I sent her for a brow wax instead. It took 15 minutes, she looked great and she saved herself thousands. Other brow techniques like brow tinting can change how your eyebrows frame the eyes, improving on your looks.

Note: 30Seconds is a participant in the Amazon affiliate advertising program and this post contains affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission or fees if you make a purchase via those links. 

Take 30 seconds and join the 30Seconds community, and follow us on Facebook to get inspiration in your newsfeed daily. Inspire and be inspired.