What’s the biggest organ of the body? It’s your skin, of course. It’s your first line of defense against infection, and it covers and protects everything in your body. It’s also the first thing every person you meet notices, consciously or unconsciously. You want a complexion that’s glowing and healthy, of course. When your skin looks good, your entire appearance is enhanced.

Look down at your hands for a minute. Even though you can’t see anything happening, your skin cells are hard at work and new skin cells are forming. When they’re complete, they move to the top. Older cells near the top die and rise to the surface. What you’re looking at right now on your hands are really dead skin cells. You shed millions of dead skin cells a day. Those dead skin cells protect you, but when they hang around too long, they can make your skin look dull and ashy.

So, how do you get rid of those dead skin cells and revitalize your complexion? One of the best ways to enhance the appearance of your skin is to exfoliate. It gets rid of the surface layer of dead skin cells and makes your skin look fresh and healthy. A good facial scrub and a good exfoliating body wash can give your skin the glow you want. You want to make sure that it’s gentle enough, and that it’s moisturizing. You also want to make sure you don’t damage your skin by scrubbing too hard. You want to gently exfoliate dull, dry skin to give you even skin tone and texture, not leave patches of sore, red skin. For your body, use a pouf or a loofah and gently scrub in circles. For your face, splash your skin with warm water. Gently apply in a massaging circular motion, avoiding the eye area.

You don’t want to exfoliate too often, especially on your face. If you have sensitive or dry skin, exfoliating your face once a week is sufficient. If you have oily skin, exfoliating your face twice a week should do the trick. For your body, three times a week is the perfect amount. If that makes you feel dry or irritated, try twice a week. If that still seems too much, cut it back further and just exfoliate once a week.

Do you exfoliate regularly? What products do you use? Tell me on twitter, Facebook, or just leave me a message here on the blog.