15 Nighttime Habits That Are Ruining Your Skin

Not washing your face

The number one skin sin is simply going to bed without giving your face a good wash. “Even if you do not wear makeup you should wash your face nightly,” says Desmond Shipp, MD, a dermatologist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. “Your skin is going through a repairing and rebuilding phase during the nighttime and debris such as dust, smoke, and skin care products can clog your pores leading to worsening acne.” Find out the 17 skin care tips that dermatologists use themselves.

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The Best Anti-Aging Products at Every Price Point

Eye creams: Under $10

When it comes to eye creams, Erum Ilyas, MD, a dermatologist at Montgomery Dermatology, says the focus should always be hydration. “Products with lots of alpha hydroxy acids can be a bit too harsh for the thin skin around the eyes,” she says. She likes Aquaphor Advanced Therapy Healing Ointment Skin Protectant, $7, for its hydrating effects even on the thin skin around the eye area. “By applying petroleum jelly around the eyes first, then applying your anti-aging products on the rest of your face, you can avoid excess irritation and the skin around your eyes will look great in the morning!” she says.

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How to Get Rid of Blackheads: 13 Proven Tricks

Know the enemy

The first step in fixing the problem to get rid of blackheads is understanding exactly what it is. Blackheads are actually a type of acne that forms when a pore is clogged with oil or dead skin cells. “Most people don’t know that it turns black because the content of the congested pore gets exposed to oxygen (oxidizes) and darken,” explains Biba de Sousa, an esthetician in Beverly Hills.

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20 Ways Dermatologists Wake Up With Younger-Looking Skin

Come clean

“Always, always, always thoroughly remove the day’s buildup of makeup, sunscreen, and sebum from your face before going to bed,” says Christine Choi Kim, MD, a dermatologist in Santa Monica, California. Not doing so can lead to breakouts, dullness, and even eyelash breakage from leftover mascara. Unlikely to hit the sink before hitting the hay? Leave a pack of no-rinse cleansing wipes beside your bed, so that you can easily swipe before you sleep. Here’s what people with great skin always do before bed.

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The 10 Most Common Types of Cancer in the United States

Skin cancer

This is one of the most common types of cancer, period. More people are diagnosed with skin cancer each year in the United States than all other cancers combined, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation. In fact, one in five Americans will develop skin cancer by the age of 70, and one person dies of melanoma, the potentially fatal form of skin cancer, every hour.

Prevention is basic: Protect your skin from the sun. Use a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of 15 or higher every day, avoid the sun when it is strongest (midday), check your skin every month, and get a professional skin exam at least once a year.

There are now a handful of new drugs that can potentially cure melanoma—the deadliest form of skin cancer—even after it has started to spread, says Mark D. Kaufmann, MD, a dermatologist at the Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. He points to medications that target the immune system such as PD-1 and CTLA-4-blockers. A recently approved drug called Cemiplimab, will treat advanced squamous cell carcinoma (the second deadliest form); the FDA granted accelerated approval to Bavencio (avelumab) for another type of skin cancer called Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC). This is the first FDA-approved treatment for spreading MCC. Here are 12 signs of skin cancer you are probably ignoring.

Breast cancer

For women, this may be one of the scarier types of cancer: There will be about 266,120 new cases of invasive breast cancer diagnosed in the United States in 2018, according to the American Cancer Society. A woman’s average risk of developing breast cancer sometime in her life is about 12 percent. The good news? “Early detection is really saving lives,” says Laurie Margolies, MD, a radiologist and associate professor at Mount Sinai in New York City. Here are 50 everyday habits that may reduce your risk of developing breast cancer.

Some of the most exciting developments in treatment include the recognition that not all breast cancers are the same. “There are many different subtypes, and the more we know about an individual breast cancer, the more tailored our treatment can be,” Dr. Margolies says. Tailored treatments tend to have fewer side effects than other therapies because they zero in on specific cancer cells instead of launching a broader attack on all cells.

Lung cancer

This brutal disease is the leading cause of cancer death in men and women. In 2018, there will be about 234,030 new cases of lung cancer diagnosed in the United States, and 154,050 people will die from this disease, according to the American Cancer Society. The single biggest risk factor is no surprise, so don’t smoke—and if you do, quit by whatever means necessary.

Lung cancer screening remains extremely underutilized, says Nicholas Rohs, MD, a hematologist/oncologist at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. Low-dose CT scans can identify lung cancer when it’s in its most treatable forms. Screening doesn’t make sense for everyone, but for those at high risk it saves lives, he says. “If you are aged 55 to 80 and have smoked a pack or day for 30 years and you get screened, you are 20 percent less likely to die from lung cancer. Talk to your doctor to see if this type of screening is right for you.

It’s a whole new day when it comes to treating and beating lung cancer, he says. “Genomics has revolutionized the face of lung cancer. We can now subtype lung cancers and choose treatments based on specific characteristics of the tumor,” he explains. “Targeted therapies are oral, well-tolerated startlingly effective.” Here are 11 things about lung cancer doctors wish you knew.

Prostate cancer

The prostate is a walnut-sized gland just below the bladder in men; this is one of the types of cancer that is a leading cause of new cases in men—it’s also one of the top causes of cancer death for men, according to the American Cancer Society. Screening recommendations have changed over the years, says Bobby Liaw, MD an oncologist at Mount Sinai. Hospital in New York City. Blood tests that measure levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) were once broadly recommended for all men older than 50. “This caught tons and tons of prostate cancers but many were low-risk and not clinically relevant, so the pendulum swung far away from screening.” Today, screening is an individual decision based on a man’s risk factors. One welcome advancement: “We can test cancer cells to learn how or if the cancer will progress, and then use this information guide treatment options,” Dr. Liaw says. Learn the signs of cancer men are likely to ignore.

Colorectal cancer

This is a frustrating one for oncologists: Colorectal cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer-related deaths among men and women, yet nearly 30 percent of people who should be screened don’t make the appointment, reports the health advocacy group Fight Colorectal Cancer.  Up to 60 percent of colorectal cancer deaths could be prevented with screening. The American Cancer Society estimates that there will 97,220 new cases of colon cancer and 43,030 new cases of rectal cancer diagnosed in the United States in 2018.

Due to an uptick in colon cancers seen in young people, the screening guidelines have changed. The American Cancer Society now recommends that people at average risk of colorectal cancer start regular screening at age 45. Colorectal cancer often starts as a polyp inside the colon or rectum; finding and removing these polyps can prevent colorectal cancer. (Yes, at-home colonoscopy kits are a thing.) Talk to your doctor about when and how you should be screened for colon cancer

Researchers are trying to define colorectal cancer sub-types based on genetic mutations in the cancer cells, how the cells look and behave, how fast the cells are dividing, which can help guide treatment choices.

Bladder cancer

In 2018, there will be about 81,190 new cases of bladder cancer diagnosed in the United States, comprising 4.7 percent of all new cancer cases, according to the National Cancer Institute. Smoking is a major risk factor: Although many people think “vaping” is safer than smoking, both e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes are tied to an increased risk for bladder cancer, according to a study presented at an annual meeting of the American Urological Association. Bladder cancer usually affects more men than women, and it often develops in people over the age of 55. Make sure you know the 7 subtle signs of bladder cancer.

As is true with other types of cancer, bladder tumors come in different types; researchers are beginning to identify genetic changes in bladder cancer cells that may predict how aggressive the tumor is and how best to treat it, according to the American Cancer Society.

Endometrial cancer

This cancer falls under the umbrella category of uterine cancer because it develops in the lining of the uterus (the endometrium). About 63,230 new cases of uterine cancer will be diagnosed in 2018, according to the American Cancer Society, (ACS), and about 11,350 women will die from these cancers during the same year.

The average age of diagnosis is 60, but there has been a pronounced uptick of endometrial cancer diagnoses in younger women, says Shannon Westin, MD, a gynecologic oncologist at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. This is likely due to the obesity epidemic. “Fat cells produce the female sex hormone estrogen, and all of this extra estrogen can build up in the body and increase endometrial cancer risk.” Losing weight may help lower risk for endometrial cancer.

Endometrial cancer is usually treatable with surgery when it’s caught early. Here are 7 signs that you may be at risk for endometrial cancer.

Kidney cancer

The incidence of kidney cancer has been slowly rising since the 1970s, but thankfully deaths from the cancer are declining, according to the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance. There will be 65,340 new cases of kidney cancer diagnosed in 2018, making up 3.8 percent of all new cancer cases in the United States, according to the National Cancer Institute.

While there are tests that can detect certain kidney cancers early, they’ve yet to be approved for people at average risk. Treatment for kidney cancer is improving: Several types of targeted therapies that zero in on molecular and genetic changes in cells that cause kidney cancer are typically the first-line treatment. Researchers are now looking at combining these drugs to see if they work better together, according to the American Cancer Society.

Liver cancer

Liver cancer incidence has more than tripled since 1980, according to the American Cancer Society. The reasons appear to be the increase in obesity, diabetes, and untreated hepatitis, reports the Mayo Clinic. There will be about 42,220 new cases of liver cancer diagnosed in 2018, and about 30,200 people will die of this cancer.  Researchers are studying ways to prevent or treat hepatitis infections before they cause liver cancers.

“From 2007 to 2017, there was only one FDA-approved drug for liver cancer. Now there are five, a sixth will likely be approved soon, and there is another on the horizon,” says Thomas Karasic, MD, an assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Hematology-Oncology at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. “Most of the new pills work by cutting off blood supply to the tumor,” he explains. “There is also excitement about two immunotherapy agents approved to treat liver cancer.” Immunotherapy drugs encourage immune cells to recognize and attack tumors by targeting key immune cell proteins. “We know that 20 percent of people with liver cancer who respond to immunotherapy do really well, but now that there are drugs approved we are trying them earlier and after surgery,” Dr. Karasic says. Here are the things that cancer doctors to do prevent cancer.

Pancreatic cancer

This gland in the abdomen helps you digest food and control blood sugar levels. About 55,440 people will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2018 and about 44,330 people will die from this cancer, according to the American Cancer Society. Pancreatic cancer has a reputation for being stealthy and lethal—doctors don’t typically catch it until it has begun to spread. “There has been a lot of ongoing research on blood marker and special at-risk populations such as those with a family history or precancerous pancreatic cysts,” Dr. Karasic says. “There are screening protocols for people with cysts and other high-risk patients in large academic places.” Catching it earlier represents the best chance for a cure. “New chemotherapy regimens are proving to be more effective than older ones, and the number of people who are cured by surgery and chemotherapy is drifting higher by a bit,” he says. Next, find out the 30 simple ways you can prevent cancer.

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16 Easy Ways to Look Younger

Wear the right glasses

According to a survey conducted by Jacksonville University researchers, wearing glasses in general increases how old people think you are, per U.S. News & World Report. For those who need to wear them, investing in a nice pair that frame your face could take years off your look. Cat’s eye frames are especially known to make people look younger by lifting the face, while aviators negatively focus attention downward, according to Next Optical.

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Dr. Pimple Popper Reveals the 9 Acne-Fighting Rules Everyone Should Memorize

If you must pop, do it right

Leave the pimple popping to the pros. Doing it yourself could make the swelling worse or lead to scarring, says board-certified dermatologist Sandra “Dr. Pimple Popper” Lee, MD. If you can’t resist, follow Dr. Lee’s mantra: “Know when to pop and know when to stop.” Messing with the red zits deep under the skin will only leave them even more inflamed. Wait until your pimple has come to a head, with a white center, or apply a warm compress to speed the process along, says Dr. Lee. When you’re ready to attack that sucker, start by washing your face and hands, and sterilize the pin with rubbing alcohol. Squeeze the pimple from all directions. The white and a bit of red will start to come out, but try not to overdo it, warns Dr. Lee. “The more you push, the more swelling you have,” she says. “But if you can, get all the pustules out.”

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I Had Two Strokes at Age 29—Here’s How I Recovered

By Dina Pestonji (as told to Meghan Jones)

In the first week of 2013, 29-year-old Dina Pestonji suffered two strokes within a week, one of which left her unable to speak or move for weeks. She eventually realized that she wanted to get her life back and fought for months to do so through an intensive period of rehab. Now, the TEDx speaker and bestselling author of Surviving Myself shares her story:

On January 7, 2013, I was put into an MRI machine that would constantly monitor my brain. No one could tell why I had suddenly started convulsing and then fallen unconscious. However, the MRI showed that the pressure in my brain was building up at such a rapid rate that if I didn’t have emergency brain surgery to relieve the pressure, I would die. And so my parents had to give consent, and I had brain surgery that day to remove part of my skull to relieve some of that pressure.

I would eventually learn that I’d suffered two strokes in the past week, but until I fell unconscious, nobody thought it was a stroke. I had no risk factors—I had no family history; I’m super healthy; I’ve very conscious, nutrition-wise, about what I put into my body; and I’m also very athletic. I don’t do drugs, I’ve never smoked. I occasionally drink a glass of wine, but I’m pretty healthy. Yes, there were some warning signs—I’d been experiencing massive headaches and shooting pains up and down my body—but because I’m so healthy, the stroke wouldn’t have even occurred to anyone as a potential suspect. (Make sure you’re aware of these common signs of stroke you could be ignoring.)

The brain surgery was a four- to six-hour procedure, and there was no guarantee that I was going to wake up, or that, if I did wake up, I was going to be the same person. When I woke up, I couldn’t talk. I had lost my ability to speak, and I was paralyzed on the entire right side of my body. I couldn’t move, and I was going in and out of consciousness. I could barely open my eyes. I would try to muster up the energy to say something, but I couldn’t.

For the next several weeks, I remained in that state, and I was blissfully naïve. There were no mirrors, so I never knew how I looked. I knew something had happened, but I didn’t really know I’d had brain surgery. So I succumbed to thinking, “OK, every day people come in, they smile, they are very friendly. I see my parents and my sister every day, people feed me, they do my laundry. I don’t do anything.” I also really didn’t remember the past. I didn’t know what I had lost.

After about a month and a half, I had regained some mobility, but I still couldn’t speak. One day, my mom lifted me up to see my face in the hospital mirror. I…could see that my skull was clearly indented. My mom took me back to my bed and she said, “Dina, do you remember? You were in the hospital,” and I nodded Yes, since I still couldn’t speak. Then she said, “OK, do you remember you had a job?” And with my left hand, I drew a picture of a house. And my mom said, “Yes, you had a condo but we didn’t know what was happening to you, so we had to cancel that as well.”

That was [when] I realized, “OK, something has happened to me, but I have to get better.” I remembered I was 29, and I was still in the prime of my life. That was the worst day of my life, but it was also when it all made sense. In that day, I had a choice. I could give up, which was really easy to do because it was like I was starting from scratch, or I had to push forward, full steam ahead, and get back to being me. I said, “OK, I’m 29, I’m not going to stay paralyzed forever.” That, to me, was when rehab started. Read some more stories about the most unbelievable medical recoveries ever.

The first time I spoke was six weeks after my brain surgery—I said “Tea.” My parents and my doctors would help me practice speaking. If I said one letter of the alphabet, I wouldn’t stop there; I’d think, “OK, how many more can I say?” I would watch their lips and try to imitate them. It was the teeny little steps of progress each day that helped me to go from standing up on my own two feet, to actually moving that one foot forward, and then learning how to walk with a cane, and slowly jogging. It was a very, very slow process. I’ve been told I recovered very rapidly, but to me, it felt very, very slow because I so desperately wanted my life back.

After about four months, I had my second brain surgery to reattach my skull, and then I stopped doing rehab two months after that. I was pretty functional; speech took the longest time for me to regain, but my motor skills were fine. I did a duathlon seven months after my strokes and then completed a half marathon ten months post-stroke. I’m on blood thinners, and I always will be, and I’m fine with that.

There are two things I think everyone should know. Prevention is very important—things like healthy eating, exercise, and avoiding smoking and doing drugs. Even if you do all that, though, things could still happen to you that you least expect. I’m a shining example of that because I did do all of those things. But the good news is that I also think that’s a big part of what helped me to recover so well. I had a good base. I’ve always had a very healthy way of living, and that is so important.

But the other thing, something that I think every single person on the planet is dealing with right now, is mental health. I obviously can’t say definitively, but I think that stress was a contributing factor to my stroke. We live in a society where your mental health is put on the back burner. Before my stroke, I had never taken care of my mental health. It was normal for me to experience stress and anxiety and burn out on a weekly basis. The amount of pressure I put on myself, for over 20 years, was not normal.

Now, I place as much emphasis on my mental health as I do on my physical health. I meditate every single day—short meditations that take two minutes a day, but they really help center me. I take walks to help me clear my mind, surround myself with positive people, and turn off my phone and social media at the end of the day to be in a calm, happy place to have restful sleep. Everything I do is centered around mental health so that I never have to be the person that I was before. It’s vital to take time for yourself and take care of your physical, emotional, and mental health each day. Next, learn more about how to prevent stroke with these 30 habits that reduce your risk.

You can read more of Dina’s story in her memoir Surviving Myself: How an Eating Disorder, a Car Accident and a Stroke Taught Me to Love My Life and Finally Start Living It.

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12 Reasons You Age Faster in Winter

There’s significantly less moisture in the air

Perhaps the most obvious aspect of wintertime is the fact that it’s cold and dry—two characteristics that don’t bode well for youthful-looking skin. “The dry, harsh environmental conditions in wintertime often disrupts the skin’s equilibrium, causing redness and sensitivity,” says Ted Lain, MD, Austin-based dermatologist. “This sensitivity can make us susceptible skin conditions like rosacea, which tend to worsen in the winter and, over time, can lead to premature aging.” Here are 10 ways to fight dry skin this winter.

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