sun screen Archives - Mommy Ginger

I’ve been blogging about the 10 step Korean skincare routine, but not everyone will have the luxury of time to follow it. So I wondered, is it possible to have great skin, even without following the 10 steps? If so, what steps are essential and what steps can you do away with? The inquisitive me was brought to the doorstep of Derm HQ, the clinic of Dra. Gail Vitas. Dra. Gaile is a dermatologist of almost 4 years. In her clinic, she offers the basic offerings like facial, wart removal, diamond peel, etc. and also advanced treatments for psoriasis, skin asthma, acne, etc.

Dra. Gaile Vitas of Derm HQ

Dra. Gaile tells me that she customizes what she suggests to each of her patients. Why? Each individual will have a different skin type.

*Image from Sephora

Also, each one will be of a different age, each one will have habits that are different from others, etc. So I asked Dra. Gaile Vitas about my own situation. I wanted to know if I really had to follow the 10 steps. This is my profile:

Ginger – 30-40 Female / rarely gets pimples / works in front of the computer (a lot!) / hardly gets exposed to the sun / hardly exercises nowadays / has one kid

This is what Dra. Gaile from Derm HQ recommends:

CLEANSER – Use a soap free cleanser (Cetaphil, Avene, etc.) We, Filipinos, think if something has bubbles or mabula, we think it cleans our skin better. This is not true. For those who love to wear make-up also, Dra. Gaile suggests using Micellar Water. Micellar Water is both hydrophilic and hyrophobic, which means that it can remove both oil and water based products.

SUNSCREEN – Dra. Gail advised me to use sunscreen which has 30 SPF and above which protects the skin from UVA and UVB. We all need to re-apply sunscreen after every 2 hours. We should apply 1/4 teaspoon, but if you are swimming, apply every hour. She also mentioned that it’s not about the SPF, but about the area of the skin that the sunscreen covers. Also, in the Philippines, there are only a few brands that protect your skin, not only from UVA and UVB, but also from Infra red and Visible Light. Since I’m always in front of the computer, Dra. Gaile recommended that I use any of these two brands that you can get from Derm HQ.

These are Frezy Derm and Helio Care. I purchased Frezy Derm, and I love it! Honestly, the best sunscreen I have tried so far.

Here is my review of Frezy Derm!

EXFOLIANT – We should also exfoliate. She still believes that we should use AHA or Alpha Hydroxy Acid or Mandelic Acid (Mandelic acid is actually an alpha hydroxy acid that comes from bitter almonds).

ANTI-AGING – Given my age, and for those of you who are 30 and above, do start using anti-aging products. These are products that contain retinoids, tretinoin (only in low dosages, 0.025%), retinal dehyde, vitamin C, etc. Once you start aging, there is a delay in the production of collagen. These products help delay collagen degeneration.

So if I get tired of following the 10 step skin care routine, these are the things that I should constantly do and use still. These are the products that are important in keeping my skin healthy!