Dr Kym Johnson shares minimalistic tips for thriving skin

While the ‘clean girl aesthetic’ has come and gone, the focus on beautiful skin is still very much a part of every ‘It’ girl’s daily life. According to American Board Certified Aesthetic Med Physician and CEO of Skyn by Dr Kym, Dr Kimberley Johnson, the journey to ‘clean skin’ is far less rigorous than we may think.

Dr Johnson, who goes by Dr Kym, told Lifestyle that when it comes to taking care of one’s skin, the phrase ‘different strokes for different folks’ is more than just a saying.

She explained, “Various people value various things. If you’re into maintaining good skin and good health — which skin is part of our general health — then having a skincare routine is important, in that it prevents you from having to do procedures later on.” She continued, “If you’re very hung up on preventing wrinkles and so on, then having a skincare routine is how you’ll manage that as you move forward, or [as] you age.”

Debunking the myth that great skin comes from a boatload of products, Johnson says three to four products are really all you need.

“It depends on what you’re trying to attain,” she began. “You do need more than one step, but the three main steps are just cleansing, adding a treatment — whatever that is — and moisturiser; and in the daytime, having a sunscreen is definitely the fourth. But having more than three to four steps is definitely unnecessary, because we don’t want to combine different products that can be irritating to the skin.”

While products may vary, Johnson explained that any irritation to the skin should be avoided at all costs.

“I think the most important thing, and I say it in every video I do, every interview I do, I always say, don’t use any product that is going to irritate your skin because once you feel a tingle...,” she trailed off. “If you put a product on your face, you really should not smell anything in terms of something floral or citrus, and you shouldn’t feel any burn or tingle; because what’s happening is that you’re having some irritation.”

And included in this list are essential oils and denatured alcohols or fragrances.

Spurred on by her own battle with acne and ‘bad skin’, Johnson said the pull to aesthetic medicine was an unrelenting call.

“It’s me treating my skin and people being so interested in it that I decided to go specialise in aesthetics. I did a complete switch over from the more clinical hospital medicine to going overseas and studying aesthetic medicine and anti-ageing .”

Now, with nine years experience as a doctor, almost three of which have been spent in her new field, Johnson says she is looking ahead to her future in research of anti-ageing and skincare for people of colour.

“I think the only other thing I would want to do is more research into skincare for people of colour. I realise in my own journey that there are not many skincare products geared towards people with coloured skin, because most of the ingredients in the products will be irritating to persons like us who are prone to hyper-pigmentation. So for me, it’s really staying in the field but advancing the options for people with skin of colour and focusing more, also, on anti-ageing for everybody in general,” she shared.

shanel.lemmie@gleanerjm.com