Research Finds Britons are Battling January's Beauty Blues

LONDON, January 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

As the nation heads back to work this week, Brits are well and truly feeling the January blues and stress of early mornings. New research from Clinique released today reveals that our mornings are filled with unhealthy and stressful morning habits, which can wreak havoc on our skin.  

Clinique has conducted a nationwide survey on how Brits start their mornings. The research* found that as a nation, we are often too rushed in the morning. 74% of Brits take 30 minutes or less to get ready, with more than one in five of us taking under 10 minutes to get ready in the morning, and one in ten (10%) of us say our mornings are filled with commuter rage, caffeine overloads, and arguments.    

Psychologist Honey Langcaster-James commented:  "To minimise stress it is important to start your day in a healthy way both inside and out.  It is common for people to only have a few minutes to get ready in the morning, so anything you can do to make the most of the time you have will help. For women, giving yourself enough time to make sure you're looking and feeling your best can bolster self-esteem and set you up for a positive day."

Honey Langcaster-James' Top Tips for a #CliniqueHealthyStart

• Pre-Planning:  Put yourself at ease by doing a little pre-planning in the morning. Small steps such as picking your clothes and planning your breakfast in advance can help you get off to a less stressful start.
• Log off before lights-out:  Studies have shown that using electronic devices to check your social media and emails before going to bed can stimulate the brain and prevent it from 'shutting off' before bed.  If you do this while winding down, your brain may not go into a deep sleep which is what we all need to feel rested and have a more positive start to the day.  
• Keep a routine: Keeping a routine in the mornings will help you make the most of the time you have before you leave the house reduce stress.  Try not to start your day with checking into work or looking at emails so that your time is strictly focused on starting your day positively.  
• For women, give yourself a bit of extra time for your beauty regime. Caring for and protecting your skin will not only have emotional and psychological benefits, but long-term health and anti-ageing benefits too.    

The research also found:  

• We're an over-stimulated nation before we even get out of bed; 38% of us are checking our emails and 14% are checking our social media as soon as we wake up.  We are actually four times more likely to check our emails than have a 'cheeky moment' with our partner in the morning.
• All of this morning stress is taking its toll on our beauty regimes, which is impacting confidence.  More than one in ten (11%) of women said that feeling like they don't look their best is the most stressful thing about their morning, while 35% said skipping their beauty regime affects their confidence (15%) and makes them feel unattractive (20%).
• We are aware that outside factors are having an effect on the appearance of our skin. The majority (50%) blamed bad diet, not drinking enough water (48%), stress (46%) and late nights (44%), while British women also recognised that not taking enough time to care for their skin (25%) and not wearing an SPF (25%) was having an impact.
• A third of us (33%) say that between 7 and 8am is the most stressful time in the morning.  This could be attributed to the fact more than a quarter of us (27%) are falling into the trap of eating an unhealthy breakfast or skipping breakfast altogether, and 26% of us blame running late or oversleeping as the most stressful part of the morning.  
• Half of Brits (50%) say that a bad night's sleep can contribute to the most stressful part of the morning whereas 26% of Brits blame running late/oversleeping as their most stressful part of their morning.

A healthy breakfast and exercise are great ways to give yourself a healthy start to the day. Your skin can have the same healthy start with Clinique's NEW Superdefense SPF 20 Daily Defense Moisturizer (£39.00/ €52.00, 50ml).  This daily moisturiser contains SPF, antioxidants and all day-hydration - what your skin needs for a healthy start every day to protect and prevent against the future signs of ageing.  

@Clinique_UK #CliniqueHealthyStart