The rules of hygiene and self-care are not that difficult, but we still tend to do some things wrong at times. Mistakes can cost us not only beauty but also health.

Bright Side is going to tell you about 7 common self-care mistakes and how to avoid them.

7. Covering your mouth with your hand when coughing or sneezing.

When covering our mouths with our hands when coughing or sneezing, we help the germs get on our faces. The results are eruptions, reddening, and other not-so-delightful consequences. It is particularly dangerous with infectious diseases because rubbing your eyes with your hand could provoke an eyelid inflammation.

• How to do it right: You should cover your mouth with a tissue, preferably a disposable paper tissue. If you don’t happen to have one, cover your mouth with your elbow crease.

6. Clipping your fingernails.

The nail plate is made up of flakes piled onto each other like tiles. Using clippers deformsthe structure of your nails: they start peeling and breaking.

• How to do it right: If you need to cut long nails, clip them longer than you need to, then shape them as you wish with a file. In all other cases, just file them away.

5. Lining your lower lashes on the inside.

The tip of your pencil, and especially the brush of a liquid liner, harbors bacteria that can cause an infection if they find their way to the eye mucosa. Mixing with tears, the eyeliner creates favorable conditions for their multiplication.

• How to do it right: If you want to accent your lower lid, use eye shadows: apply them some distance away from the growth line of your eyelashes.

4. Picking your nose.

Your fingers are home to germs that may cause an infection if they get inside your nose. That is especially dangerous if you have a blocked nose because an infection can spread from the nasal cavity to the sinuses and lead to sinusitis.

• How to do it right: Wash your nose by drawing water from your palm with your left and right nostril alternately. Or, better still, use a special device.

3. Washing with shower gel every day.

Our skin is inhabited by beneficial bacteria that protect it from infections and keep it naturally hydrated. Daily use of shower gel destroys this barrier. The body becomes more susceptible to various diseases, and the skin becomes drier, which can lead to eczema.

• How to do it right: Daily use of soap and gel is only necessary on our hands, armpits, and the area below the belt. Other zones can get by with using gel once every 2 days.

2. Using too much toothpaste.

Too much toothpaste on the brush makes the bristles glide over the teeth instead of actually cleaning them, which greatly lowers the quality of brushing.

• How to do it right: The recommended amount of toothpaste for adults is a pea-sized ball; for children — the size of a rice grain.

1. Using too much hair balm.

Hair balms have a dense texture due to silicones and other components whose purpose is to make hair smooth and shiny. With too much balm applied, hair quickly becomes dirty. If the product gets on the scalp, the pores get clogged, which leads to increased greasiness and poor hair growth.

• How to do it right: The optimal amount of balm is a drop the size of a small coin. It should be applied only to dry and split ends.