Study Says: Women Spend 18 Months of Their Lives Worrying About Their Skin

Women spend almost 18 months of their life worrying about their skin, according to new research. From wrinkles to spots and acne, the average woman worries about the appearance of their skin for 32 minutes every single day.

Acne is the biggest anxiety for females, followed by signs of aging and the emergence of dark circles around the eyes. And over a fifth are so concerned about their skin that they have considered having cosmetic surgery procedures.

The research of 2,000 women was commissioned by beauty and well-being expert, Liz Earle, to mark the release of her new book, "SKIN."

Liz Earle said, "I wanted to commission this research as it became so clear to me when writing this book that worrying about the state of our skin is such a huge and under-reported problem for so many women of all ages, young and old alike."

"I found it staggering that almost half of those questioned are suffering from a serious skin disorder such as acne, eczema, psoriasis or rosacea - and also dread going to a special event of social occasion because they worry about their skin," continued Earle.

"With record numbers of teenagers and middle-aged women clinically depressed, we need more awareness of how to take care of our skin so we look better - and feel better about ourselves."

Respondents said they suffer from eight bad skin days each month on average - and just four percent described themselves as very confident about their skin. Of those polled, 45 percent said they use 'lots' of make-up because they don't feel happy about their skin and will typically invest nine minutes of their day applying it.

Females will spend 11 minutes daily thinking about how best to conceal problem areas so that no one will notice. Half of women said they dread going to special events because they are worried about how their skin might look that day.

Among those surveyed, 44 percent said they have felt anxious about the appearance of their skin after seeing pictures of themselves on social media.

However, half of women admitted they felt worried about how their own skin looks after seeing pictures of other people. While a third of respondents admit they have used a filter on their social media pictures to improve their appearance.

Four in 10 of those surveyed said they suffer from acne - with 50 percent saying they had it during their teenage years. Behind acne, the second most common skin condition females suffer from is eczema which causes the skin to become itchy, red, dry and cracked.

This was followed by psoriasis which leads to red, flaky, crusty patches of skin anywhere on the body and rosacea which is characterized by facial redness and swelling.

Three quarters of women said they are worried about their skin aging - 37 percent said they have tried anti-aging creams and 36 percent have experimented with anti-aging moisturizers.

Of those polled, 82 percent moisturize their skin, 69 percent cleanse it and half exfoliate - and the average skincare routine takes nine minutes. Four in 10 respondents said their skin looks at its best in the summer and that, on average, it looks especially radiant at 12:33 p.m.

"The state of our skin makes a huge impact to our self-esteem - and can even affect career-prospects and relationships by damaging confidence," Earle concluded. "Yet there are so many simple strategies that can help, from proven medications from the GP to watching at what we eat. Because skin conditions such as acne are not life-threatening, we may not be taking them seriously enough as part of our health and overall well-being."