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When your skin looks its very best, it can make a huge difference to how you feel. Having skin that’s glowing and healthy can give you added confidence. Unfortunately, many people find that their confidence suffers when their skin breaks out or is dry and flaky.
How your skin looks may be a big concern, but ensuring that it’s actually healthy is equally essential. As the largest organ on your body, the condition of your skin is about so much more than its appearance. So, it’s vital to take steps to ensure your skin is cared for to maintain its health.
For many people, the arrival of warmer weather and those first sunny days of the year can send them into panic mode. This usually involves lots of last-minute attempts to get their skin looking glowing and healthy so it’s ready to bare in their favorite skirts, shorts, and dresses. However, taking care of your skin should never be an afterthought. Keeping your skin healthy is something that requires attention the whole year, not just the spring and summer.
While it may be covered up in more layers of clothing, the winter can really take its toll on your skin. Here are some of the ways you can keep your skin looking its best throughout the winter and beyond:
Gently Exfoliate
Having dull, dry skin is a common skin issue that many people experience when the weather turns colder. You will likely find that the healthy glow you had throughout the summer is replaced by skin that looks anything but. The sun may no longer be shining, but you can still keep your skin looking glowing and healthy during the coldest time of the year.
Exfoliation is essential for removing dead skin cells. However, it’s vital you take care over the winter when attempting to exfoliate. Harsh exfoliation can damage the skin, meaning that it’s completely counterproductive. Using abrasive chemical products, such as some types of acids found in common exfoliating skincare products, can cause your skin to become irritated, especially in the harsher winter conditions. Using skincare products containing salicylic acid, alpha hydroxy acid (AHA), or beta hydroxy acid (BHA) can disrupt your skin barrier, causing sensitivity and redness.
Avoiding overly harsh exfoliators is essential when colder temperatures arrive, but it’s still important to exfoliate the skin. So, skipping chemical and overly abrasive exfoliants and choosing exfoliating gloves instead can help remove dry skin and unclog pores using just water, rather than chemicals.
Choose an Effective Moisturizer
Many people get into the habit of applying the same old moisturizer on their faces night after night. However, as the winter can take an extra toll on your skin, it’s helpful to rethink your moisturizer and to ensure that it offers the deep hydration your skin needs during the coldest months of the year.
Using a moisturizer containing SPF is crucial during the daytime. Even though it’s cold, and there may be less sunshine than throughout other parts of the year, UV rays can still damage your skin during the winter. So, wearing sunscreen is still incredibly important.
As well as wearing sunscreen to protect your skin against UV rays, it’s crucial to keep your skin hydrated, and applying skincare at night can be especially helpful. Moisturizing your face and body using creams that are non-comedogenic is useful. as this will help to prevent your pores becoming clogged, causing breakouts.
Ingredients to look out for in a winter moisturizer include hyaluronic acid and ceramide. If you’re looking for rich hydration for your body to keep flaky winter skin at bay, body butters, such as cocoa butter and shea butter, are great choices.
Exfoliating before you apply your moisturizer to your body can help it to absorb more effectively.
Re-Think Your Water Temperature
A hot bath or shower on a cold day can feel like the perfect way to warm up and refresh. Unfortunately, making your bath or shower super hot and washing your hands in very hot water can have a negative impact on your skin.
When your water is too hot, it can cause the natural oils contained within your skin to be stripped away. This impacts the hydration levels of your skin, and also occurs if you spend too long in the bath or shower.
Turning down the temperature slightly and spending a little less time in the tub can help to reduce the likelihood of it drying out your skin. It’s also really helpful to moisturize straight after washing and patting yourself dry, as your skin will be ready to soak up the moisture.
Try Using a Humidifier
When the temperatures are freezing outside, it’s tempting to turn up the heat inside to keep yourself as warm as possible. Turning up the furnace or lighting the fire will certainly help you to warm up and comfortable during the winter. However, heating your home creates a dry heat. The lack of moisture in the air can cause your skin to feel tight and dry. You may also notice that your skin becomes rough and cracked.
To alleviate the discomfort of dry, cracked and tight skin, it can be helpful to try using a humidifier. A humidifier adds moisture to the air and can be a great way to help prevent dry skin during the coldest season of the year.
It’s particularly helpful to use the humidifier at night. Throughout the night, your skin works hard to repair itself. So, this is the ideal time to give it some extra support and to wake up with your skin feeling revitalized and feeling comfortably hydrated.
Final Thoughts
Once summer is out of the way, many people forget about the skin on their body, and simply cover it up with layers of clothing. However, taking steps to keep the skin on both your face and body healthy and hydrated throughout the year is absolutely essential.
Exfoliating your skin and using a rich moisturizer throughout the winter are central to ensuring your skin looks and appears at its best.
