A Winter Survival Guide: Some general tips for dry, winter skin
For many of us, winter is upon us, which means dry, itchy, chapped skin. As a result, most of us have to change up our routines a bit to compensate for the lack of moisture in the cold air as well the amount of time we spend inside with our heaters blasting.
The most important things you need to remember when evaluating your winter routine are as follows:
- How much moisture is in my routine?
- What is my daily environment like?
- What are my habits like?
Moisture
Though moisture is part of the environmental issues behind winter skin, this portion will be primarily focused upon what you are putting on your skin. Creams, lotions, serums, powders, oils, and soaps are all part of our daily lives. However, there are general tips to follow when choosing these products as well as applying them.
As a general rule of thumb, you want to try to avoid irritating ingredients as much as possible. Irritants include bad alcohols, fragrance, essential oils (such as lavender, peppermint, and eucalyptus), menthol, camphor, clove, and soaps (primarily sodium LAURYL sulfate).
While purely anecdotal, I have noticed that when my skin is drier, it is also irritated much easier. This may be due to a compromised moisture barrier, which is explained very well by Veronica Gorgeois. Some ingredients also simply irritate otherwise normal skin and dry it out, causing a vicious cycle of moisturization -> drier skin -> moisturization. Some of you may notice this when you use a "tingly" lip balm, such as Carmex, and find that your chapped lips actually begin to feel DRIER than they were when you purchased the product.
However, if you are not using any of these ingredients and find that your skin is still drying out, consider adding rich, skin-loving ingredients such as argan oil, mineral oil, petrolatum (Vaseline), lanolin (body only), cholesterol, ceramides, aloe, and shea butter. Antioxidants such as vitamin C, niacinamide, and quercetin, are also fantastic for any skin type, year 'round, and prevent irritation. You should also look for products with humectants high on the ingredient list, the most common being glycerin followed by hyaluronic acid and squalane. These products will hold moisture to the skin while occlusives such as mineral oil and petrolatum will seal it in. This is why we recommend using Vaseline in conjunction with your regular moisturizer.
If you have oily skin, you don't necessarily need to use a very rich moisturizer if experiencing dryness. Simply apply an occlusive to your driest spots or try a light lotion rather than your regular gel moisturizer (for example).
I also highly recommend using your moisturizer right after the shower or bath. You don't even need to pat dry completely before application.
Environment
Possibly the largest reason skin dries out during the winter is the drier winter air. To combat this, get a humidifier. A humidifier is a fairly inexpensive way to combat dry skin all year 'round, but especially during the winter. If you have a very large home, you may need two or three humidifiers to really gain the benefit. I recommend a warm mist humidifier, as it does not get as germy, nor does it make a room feel clammy like a cool mist humidifier can.
Also, be sure you are using sunscreen 365 days a year, no matter whether or not the sun is shining. If you're on the market for a good sunscreen, I highly recommend Skinacea's write-ups on sunscreen before you buy.
Habits
This is very individual, but these are the things that have helped me the most:
- Avoid soaking in a bath without epsom salts or taking very long, hot showers. In short, water strips necessary oils from the skin, especially hot water. This is much worse if you have hard water. Strangely enough though, I've found that rich, epsom salt baths help my skin more than hinder it.
- Exfoliate your skin more often, but do it gently. I know we frequently harp on about chemical exfoliation here, but it is truly one of the best forms of exfoliation, especially for the face, since it avoids irritating the skin when used correctly. Exfoliating will facilitate a more normal skin-cell turnover rate, and thus, less dry skin. Look for AHAs such as glycolic and lactic acid.
- Drink your water. As I've said before, there's no reason to go overboard and drink water until you sound like an ambulatory kiddy pool, but I personally notice an enormous difference when I am skipping out on my 64 oz of water a day.
- Take a fish oil supplement, if you tolerate them and they do not interfere with any medication you are on. This can help people with dry eyes and dry lips. Your mileage may vary, but my mother and her optometrist swear by this for managing dry, winter eyes.
- Avoid over-washing your hands when possible. Hand soaps are brutal on your hands, but more so when your skin is already dry. If you have particularly dry hands and/or cannot avoid washing your hands during the day, consider applying a thick lotion at night as well as an occlusive (Vaseline or Aquaphor are good choices) before slipping your hands into a pair of cotton gloves. You can do the same thing with your feet, save for the gloves.
- Speaking of Aquaphor, use it at night on your lips. In the AM, gently buff away dead skin with a warm, damp washcloth. If petrolatum does not agree with you, Lansinoh is also fantastic. During the day, use a rich, plain lip butter or balm. I really love Nivea, such as this one and this one.
- Limit how much alcohol you consume. This is really difficult during the holidays, but personally, alcohol really wreaks havoc on my skin after awhile. Again, this is individual, but definitely try to study how your habits affect your skin.
- Get more sleep. I know, this is a pretty general skincare tip, but my winter skin needs all the love it can get, and I find that my skin is the first place I see problems when I neglect getting enough rest.
- Find a gentle, sulfate-free toothpaste. This may seem like a weird one, but like soaps, toothpastes can dry out the delicate mouth and lips. I found that using a gentle toothpaste, like Biotene, has reduced not only my dry lips, but also the mouth sores I used to get.
Hopefully this guide has been helpful to some of you out there. I know how bad dry skin can be (hello, eczema!), but you can manage it by evaluating your current routines and being as kind to your skin as possible.
Have a lovely holiday, beautiful people! :)
Posted Dec 16, 2013, 8:04 AM UTC · edited