The Symptoms: Your face has developed a stubborn problem area. Regardless of what you do, it's prone to breakouts, blotchiness, or discoloration that has no intention of leaving anytime soon.

The Culprits: We hate to tell you this, but your cell phone has more germs than a toilet seat. That disturbing fact sheds some light on why certain areas of the face, i.e. from the temple to the chin, seem to sprout blemishes on the regular. This area, referred to Dr. Paul Jarrod Frank, cosmetic dermatologist and founder of 5th Avenue Dermatology Surgery and Laser Center in New York, as the "phone zone," gets hit face first by the bacterial breeding ground that is your phone screen.

That's not the only damage your phone can do to your face. Today's smartphones are basically tiny computers, and they get hot. According to Frank, the heat radiated from your cell during a long phone call can have the same damaging effects that the sun has on skin.

To reduce breakouts, focus on exfoliating. "The Clarisonic, $125, is a great tool for exfoliating the face and will get rid of the dead layer of skin," says Dr. Frank. "Also, be sure to clean your phone often to get rid of germs and keep your face fresh."

If you're noticing dark spots rather than blemishes, heat is to blame. To prevent any more damage, cut your phone calls short, use a hand's free device or get used to FaceTime. To correct what's already been done, work a dark spot correcting serum into your skin care regimen. "Look for products that have hydroquinone-like ingredients that lighten the skin, such as arbutase, lactic acid, and lignin peroxidase," says Dr. Frank. His recommendations: Elure Advanced Brightening Lotion, $125 and Good Skin Labs Equinol Dark Spot Concentrate, $39.50.

The Symptoms: Your hip flexors and calves feel tight, and your knees hurt. And, now that you think about it ... so do your ankles and your lower back.

The Culprits: Regardless of how skilled you are at walking in them, heels are the main cause of heel, ankle, knee, hip, and lower back pain in women. The damage they do goes far beyond unfortunate stumbles -- we're talking nerve damage, inflamed ligaments, and a shortened Achilles tendon and calf muscles.

Wearing heels forces all of your body weight onto a small area (hence the throbbing pain in the balls of your feet), a shift that causes a chain effect of problems. "This positioning causes friction and inflammation to the metatarsal area, the group of five large bones at the middle of the foot," podiatrist Phillip Vasyli explains. "To counterbalance this instability, you unnaturally push your knees and hips forward and arch the back." And it only gets worse. Walking in heels also causes the soles of the feet to face more laterally than usual, the arches to collapse, and the soft tissues to loosen, meaning your feet are slowing getting more and more disfigured, Quasimodo style. Cringing yet?

The kicker we've all been waiting for: "The human body wasn't intended to walk in high heels, so the most logical thing is to not wear them," Vasyli admits. Cue the eye rolls. Fortunately, the foot expert has workarounds since we're still going to wear 'em.

•Quality: Look for well-constructed shoes made from breathable leather and non-synthetics, with shock absorbing materials in the ball of the foot.

• Shape: Pick shoes that contour your arch and distribute weight over the entire foot. "Your best option is to aim for a 1.5- to 2-inch heel with a wedge sole."

• Moderation: Wear heels only once or twice a week, or only on weekends. If you need to wear them daily, wear comfy shoes to get to and from work, and wear your heels at the office.

• Stretch: Do this stretch before putting heels on and after taking them off: Sit on the floor with your legs out in front of you, then pull up and back on your toes for 30 seconds. Repeat five times.

The Symptoms: One of your shoulders is perpetually lower than the other, (or doesn't move at all), your neck feels strained, and you find it difficult to maintain good posture, even when you're giving it 100 percent.

The Culprits: Unfortunately for our joints, fashionable purses are only getting bigger (even clutches are supersized). Single-strapped purses are designed to victimize shoulders and even two-handled totes -- often held in the elbow crook in the style of notorious over-sized purse wearer, Victoria Beckham (hence, the spread of Poshitis) -- are causing muscle strain and pain.

Heavy purses place asymmetrical strain on the body, which throws your entire posture off balance. "Not only does the shoulder and arm musculature have to work harder, but the neck and torso bend and rotate in compensation, placing even more strain on the small joints of the spine," says physical therapist Rebecca Jacobs. Factor in Posh's (relatable) propensity of pairing poor purse-holding with killer heels, and the back strain doubles. Orthopedists: 2. Victoria Beckham: 0 (Marriage to David Beckham excluded).