Skincare for men: an expert's guide to help you protect your skin, fight acne, and feel good

Skincare isn't just for women. Sure, women are far more likely to spend money on skin products, but everyone has skin. If you're worried about acne, your skin feels dry all the time, you get super oily, or you just want to take better care of the face you show the world, keep reading. Well, because it's understandable that anyone might feel self-conscious when their face is covered with pimples or is too dry or oily, and it's important to know how to protect your skin from the sun. That has nothing to do with gender, and you're not being "girly" for wanting to look your best. (Although, why being "girly" is an insult is still beyond me.)

So, without getting too complicated, here are some basic skincare tips for guys - or, indeed, for anyone who might be new to this. But, to be clear, this doesn't guarantee you'll be acne-free, if that's your problem. Skin issues is just something a lot of us will have to go through. But keeping your skin healthy and clean will help it not be worse than it should be.

1. Cleanse 

You skin has to deal with a lot on a daily basis, and if you're in your late teens or early 20s, it's especially easy for your pores (teeny tiny holes on your skin) to get clogged up with oil, dead skin cells, or just the grime of everyday living. To keep it from accumulating gunk that leads to acne, it's important to cleanse your skin twice a day: in the morning and at night.

If you've never used a cleanser before, use one that's gentle and made for sensitive skin. But first, you need to wash your hands - no point cleaning your face with dirty hands. And then splash your face with water, squeeze a blob of cleanser the size of the first joint of your finger onto your fingers. Rub it between your fingers and then massage it all over your face. If you don't know how much you should scrub, just do 10 circles each over your cheeks, forehead (up to hairline), chin, nose, and jawline; pay extra attention to the sides and tip of your nose, but avoid the eyes. Thoroughly rinse off the cleanser with water until you can't feel it on your skin anymore and pat, not rub, your face dry with a clean towel.

Level-up tip: Instead of rinsing off the cleanser, you can use a soft, damp towel to gently wipe off the product. The fibres of the fabric will gently exfoliate the skin. (In case you're not familiar with the term, exfoliate is like digging out the gunk from your pores.) Just make sure you wash and wring out the towel every time after you use it, to keep it clean. Use your judgement and change to a new towel when the one you're using is starting to look too worn out.