Common Beauty Myths

Beauty myths are often no more than old adages that are handed down to each generation. Some of these misconceptions are centuries old and just plain silly. While logic doesn't seem to play a big factor in beauty myths, they're still abundant. These common beauty myths are pure fiction and deserve to take their place in the "beauty myth hall of shame."

• Soap is bad for your skin.
  
  

Older formulas contained animal fats and vegetable oils. Newer soaps are formulated to be milder and some contain moisturizers that don't dry out your skin. Clean skin is better than dirty skin.

• Shaving your legs will make your hair grow in thicker.

You have as many hairs as is genetically determined, regardless of whether you shave them.

• Drinking a lot of water leads to beautiful skin.
  
  

While drinking water is necessary for our bodies, too much will only result in bloating and too many trips to the bathroom.

• Split ends can be repaired.

The only way to rid of split ends is to cut them off and prevent them in the future with good hair care.

• Dry skin causes wrinkles.

Not true. Most wrinkles are caused from the sun.

• You can wash acne and pimples away.

Scrubbing too vigorously will increase oil production and only aggravate the condition.

• The sun clears up blemishes.

While the sun will temporarily dry out pimples, it interferes with healthy skin cells. This can cause a worse breakout a couple days after sun exposure.

• Stick to one brand and line of products.

This beauty myth was probably put out by cosmetic manufacturers who want to keep customers loyal to their brand.

• You don't need to use sunscreen on a cloudy day.

The sun's UV rays penetrate clouds and can still damage your skin.

• Natural ingredients are non-allergenic.

Whether it's a natural or chemical ingredient, if your allergic to it, you'll see a reaction.

• Chocolate and greasy foods cause acne.

No one food has been proven to cause breakouts. If you find a correlation, quit eating that particular food.

• You can shrink the pores on your face.

Your pore size is genetically determined. Pores may appear larger by bacteria and dead skin cells. Retin-A and alpa hydroxys are designed to break up these materials and bring the pores back to their original appearance.

Exercise Myths

• Muscle can turn to fat.

Muscle and fat are two different tissues and cannot convert into the other. Decreased physical activity reduces your muscle tissue and your metabolism.

• You can spot reduce.

You can't lose weight in any particular place before another. Your weight will first come off from the last place you put it on.