Many other things can contribute to a less than ideal complexion, besides pimples and blemishes.

First, a pop quiz: What’s the number one thing that will rob the skin of its beauty, make it look rough and blotchy, and cause you to look years older than you are? If you haven’t figured it out by now, it’s the sun. I’m sure I sound like a broken record, but I must repeat myself, because it’s so important for you to take in this information.

The sun ages the skin rapidly, powerfully, cumulatively, and indiscriminately. Because it directly affects multiple skin layers, the sun can cause splotchy coloring and broken blood vessels. Over time, cumulative sun exposure can damage the collagen (the springy support structure of the skin), causing sagging and wrinkles. Skin that has been spared the damage of sun exposure simply looks better, healthier, and definitely younger.

So, how do you handle this sneaky beauty burglar? Sunscreen, sunscreen, and more sunscreen. Apply an SPF of at least 15 daily. Find one that protects against both ultraviolet UVA and UVB rays. And ignore the myths that “It doesn’t wash off,” “It’s waterproof,” and the ever popular, “Well, I already had some sun, so why bother now?”

Smoking is the next big beauty burglar. We know that smoking is bad for our skin, but what exactly does it do to it and how? Smoking affects the distribution of oxygen in the blood to skin cells in the same way it affects the heart’s circulation – by preventing the cells from getting the oxygen and nutrients they need. Because it allows less oxygen to get to the skin’s cells, smokers (as well as those who inhale lots of secondhand smoke, as at a nightclub) often look pasty-faced. If you smoke, you are undermining even the best attempts to maintain a youthful, healthy complexion. You also are likely to get unattractive smoker’s lines around your mouth. Another negative effect of smoking is that it markedly lengthens the time it takes for a wound to heal, which you need to consider if you are considering any kind of facial surgery or other rejuvenating procedure.

Stress is the third beauty burglar. When you are stressed, your blood vessels constrict, causing increased wear and tear on the cardiovascular system. Stress also makes you release all sorts of stress hormones, which, in the ancient fight-or-flight response, also trigger your body to decide that skin circulation is not a priority and to channel blood away from the skin toward muscles and other organs of the body. This stress response worked well enough for our ancestors who were avoiding being a meal ticket for predators, but it can wreak havoc on our bodies today. If you chronically stress yourself out, you not only make yourself, and everybody else around you, nuts, but you also deprive your skin of crucial oxygen and nutrients and aggravate any skin condition you may already have, such as eczema or acne.

Lack of sleep is the fourth beauty burglar. Sleep is absolutely essential to looking your best. If you don’t get your 40 winks, you’ll pay for it with a droopy-looking face. Why? As your systems try to shut down, muscles become fatigued, and the face begins to sag and droop. Your skin can also take on a sallow appearance, as your pulse and blood pressure drop, causing less blood to pump into the face – not an attractive way to look.

Poor diet is yet another beauty burglar. Basically, if you don’t eat a well-balanced diet and don’t provide your body with the correct vitamins and nutrients, your skin won’t look its best. You also need to drink lots of water (eight 8-ounce glasses per day). Not drinking enough water causes your skin to become dry and flaky. Here’s how to tell if you are getting enough: slowly increase your water intake until you notice you’re making more frequent trips to the ladies’ room. Our kidneys regulate our bodies’ water balance. Once we have more water than we need, our kidneys excrete the excess.

Alcohol (and not the rubbing kind) is the final beauty burglar. Drinking too much alcohol (the difference between one cocktail and six beers) does a number on the skin. First, the blood vessels dilate, which creates more broken blood vessels (a reason drinkers often have red, bloodshot eyes). Second, drinking too much can make you retain water, because the blood vessels become so dilated, the heart pumps more fluid into the surrounding tissues. This makes you feel and look bloated. Not a pretty picture.

Beating back the beauty burglars is a matter of making the right lifestyle decisions. Limit your sun exposure and use sunscreen. Don’t start smoking and stop if you already do. Try to control the amount of stress in your life or learn coping mechanisms for reducing stress. Get plenty of rest, eat a healthy, balanced diet, and drink alcoholic beverages in moderation.

If you follow this advice, you’ll look better longer than most of the people you know, who don’t do a thing to fight the beauty burglars before they rob them of their youth, beauty, and, ultimately, their good health.

From "Beautiful Skin" by David E. Bank, M.D., with Estelle Sobel