Healthy skin is an integral part of looking good. For a majority of African-American girls, smooth and well-maintained skin is obtainable by considering and adopting a few important tips. Daily cleansing, moisturizing, and toning the skin at regular intervals are very important to make the skin look fresh. If good skin care is not taken, it can make your skin look dull and dried out. Improper skin care may even lead to skin complications and infections. Even though African-American skin has a natural sun protection factor (SPF) 13, considering a bit of additional protection will surely reduce the amount of damage caused by harmful ultraviolet radiations. Setting a protective barrier between your skin and the radiation keeps the skin smooth and in good condition. African-American women can generally be under the sun for a bit longer as compared to people with other skin types because darker skin tones do not burn as easily as lighter skin tones tend to. But applying a sunscreen to all exposed skin throughout the year is still a must. For keeping your skin in proper condition, it is necessary to make a daily skin care routine to pamper, and preclude damage to your skin. Do away with the everyday buildup which comes from oil and other cosmetic products. Generally, a non-abrasive cleanser containing salicylic acid would serve this purpose really well. Harsher cleansers would just lead to unneeded breakouts and inflammation throughout the cleaning procedure. Apply a quality skin care product to your fingertips and softly massage it onto your face in a circular manner. This can also be applied to other body parts such as hands and legs. For making your skin glow all the time, you need to add as much extra moisture to it as possible. In case of a darker tone, the skin may seem dry and ash-gray without proper skin care. The best time when you can apply a moisturizer on your body is immediately after taking a shower or bath. However, you should ensure that you use a separate moisturizer for your face. A majority of moisturizing products are too harsh to be applied on the face. If your facial skin is highly sensitive, the product might not get absorbed into the skin. Most of the moisturizing products have particular nutrients to treat problem areas without adding extra oils, perfumes, or other unessential elements. Use good quality moisturizers to get rid of dry skin. A good-quality tone-correcting moisturizer will help you counteract pigmentation. If your skin is very oil, go for a light, oil-free moisturizer. You can use Shea butter or cocoa butter to moisturize your skin. They make skin soft and supple, and also help protect it from damaging effects of sun and pollution. Vitamins E and D help prevent wrinkles, and reduce blemishes, dark spots, or any other blemishes. Another crucial tip is that you need to examine your skin for certain irregularities. Usually, Afro-American women have a lower possibility of getting skin cancer as compared to women having lighter skin color. Nevertheless, there is still a slight possibility of them getting skin cancer. You need to adopt a steady routine of getting your skin tested periodically. Check for dark spots that were not present previously, and pay heed to any differences in shape, size, and tone. It is recommended to consult a dermatologist who would let you know better about your skin condition. Uneven skin complexion is a very general problem for a majority of Afro-Americans. Use a specialized product for hyperpigmentation which would finally brighten the dark spots, giving your skin an even tone. Get rid of the dullness from the skin by choosing a soft exfoliating product which will take away the dead cells that are responsible for making the skin flat and lifeless. You can apply lightening creams to the dark spots, or go for topical treatments containing glycolic or other acids. Bigger sebaceous glands may lead to more acne problems for women of color. Take special care if your skin is oily. If the acne increases there are chances you'll end up darker spots, so consult a dermatologist immediately. There are some advantages of having darker skin, but of course some disadvantages as well. You don't have to do much, just eat healthy, exercise regularly, sleep for at least 6- 8 hours, and take care of your skin. If you are healthy from inside, your skin is definitely going to glow from outside.