Social media has encouraged many people to look beyond just moisturizer and face cleanser for their skin care. While some people may have a 10-step care routine and others may have a 5-step care routine, there are some basic skin care tips that help everyone. Everyone has their own style to dress for gym. While some prioritize comfort with baggy gym outfits, others like to keep it stylish in gym sets along with make-up. But is wearing make-up while sweating it out a good idea? The internet is divided but we delved deep into the conversation and it is definitely not a good idea. A recent scientific study delved into the effects of wearing makeup during exercise, revealing potential detrimental consequences for skin health. Researchers observed that makeup can impede the skin's natural cooling and oil-balancing mechanisms, leading to a cascade of issues.

What Does The Study Tells Us?

In the study published by the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, participants who applied foundation to half of their face before a workout, experienced increased moisture retention in the makeup-covered areas. This phenomenon can contribute to clogged pores, acne breakouts, and dry skin, as the makeup traps sweat and dirt, preventing the skin from breathing and regulating its oil production.

Why Skin Needs to Breathe During Exercise

During physical exertion, the body's core temperature rises, triggering a physiological response to cool itself down. The sweat glands release moisture onto the skin's surface, which then evaporates, dissipating heat and maintaining optimal body temperature. However, when makeup is present, it can create a barrier that hinders the evaporation process. This can lead to increased skin temperature, discomfort, and potential skin irritations. Additionally, the combination of sweat, oil, and makeup can clog pores and create a breeding ground for bacteria, increasing the risk of acne breakouts and other skin problems.

Risks of Wearing Makeup at the Gym

The potential risks of wearing makeup during exercise are multifaceted. Firstly, the occlusion of pores by makeup can lead to the accumulation of dirt, oil, and bacteria, resulting in clogged pores and subsequent acne breakouts. Secondly, the occlusive nature of makeup can strip the skin of its natural oils, leading to dryness, irritation, and a compromised skin barrier. Thirdly, eye makeup, such as mascara and eyeliner, can irritate the delicate eye area, increasing the risk of infections.

Is There A Middle Ground?

While it is generally advisable to avoid makeup during exercise, some individuals may find that a minimal amount can enhance their confidence and motivation. In such cases, it is crucial to select non-comedogenic products that are less likely to clog pores. Additionally, it is imperative to remove makeup immediately after the workout using a gentle cleanser to prevent skin issues. Here are some tips to clean your face properly to avoid any infections or breakouts,

Gentle Cleansing

A gentle cleanser is essential for maintaining healthy skin. Choose a cleanser that suits your skin type and use lukewarm water to avoid stripping away natural oils. Massage your face gently in circular motions and rinse thoroughly to remove all traces of dirt and makeup.

Regular Exfoliation

Exfoliating your skin 2-3 times a week helps remove dead skin cells, revealing a brighter complexion. However, it's important to avoid over-exfoliation, as it can irritate the skin. Opt for a gentle scrub and use it sparingly to maintain a healthy balance.

Toning Your Skin

A good toner can help balance your skin's pH level, minimize the appearance of pores, and hydrate your skin. Choose an alcohol-free toner to avoid drying out your skin. Apply it to your face using a cotton pad, gently patting it in.

Daily Moisturizing

Choose a moisturizer that suits your skin type and apply it generously to your face and neck. Don't forget to use a moisturizer with SPF during the day to protect your skin from harmful UV rays.

Cleaning Your Tools

Regularly cleaning your makeup brushes and sponges is essential to prevent the buildup of bacteria. Use a gentle cleanser to wash your tools and allow them to air dry completely before using them again.

Most people hope to live a long life. But as scientists say, the real goal shouldn’t just be lifespan; it should be health span, the number of years we live free from serious illness or disability. And leading new research suggests that one factor may hold a powerful key to improving both: middle-aged fitness. Through fitness in their 40s and 50s, aerobically fit people not only lived longer, but they also suffered chronic disease problems later in life, maintaining more healthy years as they aged.

Fitness in Midlife Linked to Longer Health Span

The study, reported in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (2025), looked at health records of just under 25,000 men and women who had fitness test (treadmill test) conducted in middle age. The researchers tracked participants through Medicare data later through life to see the impact of fitness on ageing and disease risk.

The results were incredible. The most fit people in the study developed serious illnesses about 1.5 years later than the least-fit. They lived on average two years longer, and had fewer chronic diseases as they aged. Even those with moderate fitness levels saw significant benefits, as compared with those with the lowest fitness. The researchers said lifespan and health span “shifted to the right,” indicating that healthier years increased as total years lived increased.

What Counts as ‘Fit’?

Crucially, the fittest participants were not necessarily professional athletes or marathon runners. Researchers said many achieved “fit” status by doing a moderate amount of physical activity—brisk walking, jogging, cycling, or other regular aerobic exercise.

By contrast, the least-fit group were people who did very little or no exercise. This is particularly interesting because it suggests that a moderate, ordinary level of fitness- not extreme exercise - may be beneficial in the long run for healthy ageing.

Why Fitness Matters as We Age

Aerobic fitness affects nearly every system in the body. Regular physical activity helps:

• Improve heart and lung function
• Regulate blood sugar and blood pressure
• Reduce inflammation
• Support brain health
• Maintain muscle strength and mobility

Over time, these effects may inhibit the onset of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, certain cancers and dementia. The study followed the incidence of 11 mainstream age-related diseases and found that fitter people developed those diseases later and had fewer diseases in total.

America’s Growing Health Span Gap

The research comes amid growing interest from scientists in the unevenness between the number of years people live and the number of those years in which they’re healthy and active. A comprehensive international study published in JAMA Network Open (2024) identified that, on average, people spent nearly nine years dealing with illness or disability in the final stage of life.

Americans, though, were farther from that ideal by about 12.4 years. In other words, people may be living longer, but perhaps not as well. The new fitness study shows that being fit at middle age may help to close that divide.

It’s Never Too Early - or Too Late

Research experts note the link between better fitness and healthier ageing is not a proven fact but a strong association, revealing observational findings that diet, genetics, income, and lifestyle can affect how long a person lives. Still the new research adds to growing evidence that exercising is a key factor for healthier longevity. And good news is that making fitness improvements does not require extreme conditioning.

Research also suggests moderate movement and daily walking for exercise may be effective over a lifetime for better health. As study lead author Clare Meernik explained, the goal is not simply to live longer, but to make those years healthy longer. Again, the study underscores that small decisions made during middle age may pay off on the road to healthy ageing - decades later - according to the research.

Cortisol is one of the body's most powerful hormones, which is essential for survival, yet capable of quietly undermining health when chronically elevated. The line between beneficial training stress and harmful overload is thinner than most athletes realize, and the body's early warning signals are easy to dismiss.

Understanding how cortisol responds to exercise and when that response tips from adaptive to destructive is foundational to training smarter, recovering better, and protecting long-term health.

Why Cortisol Matters

Cortisol is a vital, life-sustaining hormone essential for survival and adaptation. During physical exertion, it ensures the immediate mobilization of energy by triggering the breakdown of stored carbohydrates and fats (gluconeogenesis and lipolysis) to fuel working muscles. Additionally, it maintains vascular integrity and acts as a powerful anti-inflammatory agent, safely modulating the immune system to protect the body against extreme inflammation caused by exercise-induced tissue damage.

When Exercise Becomes Stress

Exercise is naturally an acute stressor, but it transitions into a harmful chronic stress when training loads exceed the body's ability to recover. High-intensity, prolonged aerobic exercise or extreme high-volume resistance training, combined with inadequate rest, sleep disruption, and external stressors, keeps the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis constantly activated. When the natural 24-hour cycle of cortisol is disrupted and if the body does not get a long enough period of low cortisol exposure, exercise transitions from a positive adaptation (eustress) into destructive physiological strain.

Beyond Stress: How Excess Cortisol Reshapes the Body

The physical remodeling that chronic cortisol causes is profound and operates at the molecular level. Protein degradation occurs through activation of the ubiquitin–proteasome system. Cortisol further suppresses anabolic pathways by inhibiting mTOR signaling and reducing insulin-like growth factor 1 activity, leading to a sustained decrease in protein synthesis.

Visceral fat cells, the deep abdominal fat surrounding internal organs, have more cortisol receptors than fat cells elsewhere in the body. When cortisol levels remain elevated, these receptors essentially attract and store more fat in the midsection.

While Ozempic or Wegovy offer weight loss benefits, a significant caveat is the risk of regaining the kilos. This is not only a waste of money and effort but may also affect overall health.

About 70 per cent of people who stop these drugs eventually regain much of the weight they lost, often within 18 months.

Now, US researchers have developed a new minimally invasive procedure that resets the gut, and in early trials, has shown potential to help people maintain weight loss after stopping these popular drugs, which contain semaglutide — a GLP-1 receptor agonist — as the main ingredient.

Presenting the research at the Digestive Disease Week (DDW) 2026, the team noted that the procedure works by renewing the lining of the upper small intestine. It potentially “resets” metabolism and helps preserve the benefits of weight loss.

The technique is called duodenal mucosal resurfacing. In a clinical trial, people who underwent the procedure regained far less weight compared to others after discontinuing the medication.

"Finding a treatment that allows patients to stop these medications without weight regain or loss of metabolic benefit is a huge unmet need," said lead author Shelby Sullivan, director of the Endoscopic Bariatric and Metabolic Program at Dartmouth Health Weight Center and professor of medicine.

"These findings indicate that this minimally invasive procedure may provide lasting weight-loss maintenance."

How The Procedure Works

Duodenal mucosal resurfacing is an investigational endoscopic treatment that uses controlled heat to remove damaged tissue from the inner lining of the duodenum, the first section of the small intestine just below the stomach.

This process, which ablates the unhealthy mucosal layer, encourages the growth of new, healthier tissue.

The treatment targets the small intestine, where many of the hormones affected by GLP-1 drugs are produced. Over time, diets high in fat and sugar can alter the lining of the duodenum, changing how the body processes food and regulates hormones. These changes can contribute to insulin resistance and metabolic disease.

By restoring a healthier mucosal layer, the procedure aims to reset the body's response to food, helping to stabilize metabolism at a lower body weight after stopping medications like Ozempic.

How Was The Study Conducted?

The findings are based on an early group of participants with six months of follow-up data. Among 45 people in this cohort, 29 received the resurfacing treatment while 16 underwent a sham procedure.

All participants had previously lost at least 15 per cent of their body weight using tirzepatide before stopping the drug. On average, patients lost about 40 pounds while on GLP-1 therapy. Six months after discontinuing the medication, those in the control group regained significantly more weight. Participants who received the sham procedure regained about 40 per cent more weight than those who underwent the actual treatment.

In addition, patients who had more extensive resurfacing regained only about 7 pounds and kept more than 80 per cent of their weight loss.

By comparison, the control group regained roughly twice as much. The gap between the two groups continued to widen from one to six months after the procedure, suggesting the benefits may persist and even strengthen over time.

"What's particularly encouraging is that the benefit appears to increase over time rather than fade, and that it behaves like a drug in terms of dose response," Dr. Sullivan said. "That gives us confidence that we're targeting the right biology."

No serious complications were reported from either the device or the procedure. Recovery is relatively quick, with most patients returning to normal activities within about a day.