Usama Syed, MD Profile picture
Jan 22, 2022 β€’ 15 tweets β€’ 4 min read β€’ Read on X
πŸ’‰ As a dermatologist, I think 95% of the truly scientific skincare tips that you should know can fit into one Tweet thread. All Instagram/YouTube/TikTok skincare education videos just repackage a few core principles with different dances/ brand names. Let me prove it... 🧡 1/
πŸ”€ Rule 1: Moisturize. At its core, the skin is a barrier that keeps the outside world out, and the inside world of your body in. If that barrier gets dry/cracked, local cells are unhappy and get inflamed = itchy/red. So, moisturize to keep barrier in tact. Pick products... 2/
with ingredients that are sufficiently hydrating + also form effective barriers e.g. petrolatum, mineral oil, hyaluronic acid, ceramides. A cream you'll use consistently is ALWAYS better than one used once, so try a few brands yourself ➑️ @EucerinUS, @cerave, @LaRochePosayUSA. 3/
β˜€οΈ Rule 2: Sunscreen. The Sun shoots radiation at our skin each day, causing DNA mutations in cells + breaking down collagen in deeper layers. When this happens enough, you can get skin cancers (un-repaired DNA mutations that then snowball), and also wrinkles/ dark spots. 4/
Sunscreen acts as barrier to capture this radiation and prevent it from mutating your skin cells = less skin cancer, less wrinkles, less dark spots. Which sunscreen? Gold standard = zinc/titanium oxide containing (physical blockers), SPF 50+, applied twice daily, BUT... 5/
This isn't an 'all or nothing' game. Every little helps. There's no point buying SPF 100 sunscreen that you apply once, hate because you look like a 🀑 and then never wear again. So, my advice, wear ANY sunscreen, highest (SPF30+) you can tolerate, as often as you can πŸ€·πŸ½β€β™‚οΈ. 6/
🧴Rule 3: Retinoids. The closest thing to a 'magic' ingredient in skincare. Anti-aging, helps dark spots, minimizes acne, anti-cancer, and subtle scarring improvement. OTC 'retinols' are good, prescription retinoids are stronger (but then also more drying). Slow to work... 7/
and can be very drying/irritating to start. So start with tiny amounts, every other night, and work your way up to once a night. Generous moisturizer application to help. Can 'purge' (get worse before better) for a week or two. Persist, we're playing the long game here! 8/
πŸ’ͺ🏻 Rule 4: 'Active ingredients'. Here's a quick guide to common actives and what they're useful for. Salicyclic acid: gentle exfoliate, pore unblock. Benzoyl peroxide: anti-inflam, kills acne bacteria. Azelaic acid: anti-inflam, helps rosacea/acne/ dark spots. 9/
Dark spot treatment? ➑ hydroquinone, lactic acid, azelaic acid, vit C, retinoid. Every beauty company has a product with each of these ingredients. The 'right one' needs trial/error for your own skin, but never spend more than $30-40 on any skincare item. It's a con. 10/
😩 Rule 5: Scarring/stretch marks. Any cream claiming to make a huge difference treating these is lying. They needccosmetic procedure(s) like microneedling, laser resurfacing, or deep chemical peels. These can be πŸ’° but only things that really work (retinoids minor help). 11/
πŸ’‰ Rule 6: Botox/filler works. By definition, almost anyone you 'notice' has had botox/fillers, usually has had bad botox/filler. Done well, they dramatically reduce wrinkles, replace volume, look natural. No pressure to do them, just know that these both work very reliably. 12/
🚫 Rule 7: Don't use physically abrasive products on your skin. Don't use too many 'actives' at the same time - less is more. Over-exfoliation is a real issue. Anything that makes your skin feel tight, itchy, red, painful on a consistent basis should be stopped. 13/
πŸ“ˆ Rule 8: Compounding skin gains. If you want to have good skin later in life, find a moisturizer, hydrating cleanser, sunscreen and retinoid you like in your 20s/30s, use consistently, and that's it. When you hit 30+, consider adding small amounts of botox for deep lines. 14/
πŸ™πŸΌ AND THAT'S IT. Now you can unsubscribe from every skincare TikTok/YouTube channel. Bit of a long one, but how d'you think I did? If you enjoyed/think others would benefit from this advice, tag your friends or share the first tweet in this thread to help liberate others!

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More from @usamasyedMD

Aug 16, 2023
Acne isn't something you should live with ❌
We can fix it nearly 100% of the time with:

- Lifestyle
- Over the counter products
- Prescription creams
- Prescription tablets
- Procedures

I'll explain it all in this thread, so bookmark and work through these until you're clear! Image
LIFESTYLE:

❌ Avoid whey protein, concentrated sugars and skimmed milk. These make acne flares worse.

❌ Minimize stress (easier said than done, I know). Travel is also a stressor.

βœ… Focus on sleeping well (regulates stress) and eating a balanced diet high in antioxidants.
πŸ›’ OVER THE COUNTER:

Benzoyl peroxide 2.5% cream for face in AM:
e.g. Effaclar Duo -
e.g. Neutrogena Stubborn - https://t.co/Fsl9xhMVm1

Use small amounts only on face otherwise it's too irritating. Also bleaches towels!geni.us/mQ2uPs
geni.us/JlY7FY
Read 13 tweets
Jun 18, 2023
If you heard the latest @theallinpod and the sunscreen safety topic @friedberg raised surprised you, let me add some details as a dermatologist.

I'll explain the 2 types of sunscreen, their safety profiles, and also answer @chamath's Q ("do brown guys need sunscreen?") πŸ‘‡πŸΌ1/
There are 2 main classes of sunscreen - physical & chemical. Physical are made up of the organic blockers zinc and titanium which stay on the surface of your skin (don't absorb) and block UV rays. They're VERY safe (no skin irritation). But also thick, and you look like this... Image
Chemical sunscreens primarily have ingredients like oxybenzone and avobenzone in the US. These absorb the sun's rays and convert them into heat on the skin surface. They feel lighter and blend easier, but can irritate the skin and ABSORB INTO THE BLOODSTREAM. Because of this...
Read 11 tweets
Jun 1, 2023
Retinoids are the ONLY 'miracle' skincare ingredient.

They treat acne, pigmentation, scarring, fine lines/ wrinkles, and even have anti-cancer effect. But most people use them wrong, end up with irritated skin, and stop. Here's the RIGHT way to use them in your routine... πŸ‘‡ 1/ Image
START LOW: topical retinoids are available in both over the counter and prescription strengths. Here's the order of strength:

OTC: retinol < retinal/retinaldehyde < adapalene 0.1%
Prescription: tretinoin 0.025% < tretinoin 0.05% < tretinoin 0.1% < tazarotene 0.1%
Start with lower strength and OTC options first. If you go straight to high concentration tretinoin or tazarotene, you'll wake up the next day with intense burning/peeling of your skin. And this leads me to the next point...
Read 10 tweets
Oct 13, 2022
πŸ™‹πŸ½β€β™‚οΈ Dermatologist here! Let me tell you everything you need to know about male pattern hair loss in one tweet thread. We’ll cover causes, differential diagnoses, and treatment options. 🧡 1/ Image
Causes: at the crux of male pattern hair loss is a substance called β€˜DHT’ - a super potent form of testosterone which specifically affects DHT sensitive hair at the front, sides and crown of the scalp. This is why it’s these areas where male pattern hair loss first presents! 2/
In response to DHT, these hair follicles begin to shrink (β€˜miniaturise’) and when they shrink enough, they are eventually lost completely. 3/
Read 23 tweets
Jan 30, 2022
πŸ’° NFT projects are just money hungry founders, hiding behind claims of pious 'community-building', making false promises of future 'perks' their tokens will enable with no clear plan/ ability to achieve them. Now... announcing @ApeDocs, my NFT project...(no, seriously...) 1/ 🧡
😳The irony of ^ is not lost on me. Jokes aside though, I do think worthwhile NFT projects exist, they're just TINY in number. Those are ones I hope to emulate, BUT, I think it's VITALLY important that, first and foremost, those new to NFTs understand the scammers' playbook. 2/
πŸš€Since the meteoric rise of NFTs, they've become the preferred method for 'get rich quick' schemes. In this thread, I want to explain to you the anatomy of an NFT scam to immunize you against falling for one (as best as possible). As @garyvee says, 99% of NFTs will go to 0... 3/
Read 15 tweets
Jan 20, 2022
πŸ’£ This one is going to be a mine-field... Here's why I decided to pursue a medical career in the US πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ rather than the UK πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§. NOTE: this is not me saying what OTHER people should do, simply giving my own thinking. You are free to disagree, there's no 'right answer'. 🧡 1/
🀩 New Experience: I'd spent the majority of my life in the UK, dad was a doctor, I went to a 'good school', got into a 'good uni', and became a doctor. Felt like if I stayed in UK, best case scenario, my life would just be on repeat, now through dad's eyes. Felt too safe. 2/
πŸ’΅ Money: bet you didn't think I'd go there this quickly, right? (That's the sound of 100 keyboard warriors pressing delete on their "OBVS JUST FOR THE MONEY!!!!" tweets.) Yep, I didn't think being a doctor in the UK was a well-compensated job for how stressful and long... 3/
Read 16 tweets

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