10 Tips To Prevent Dry Winter Skin Now

I know we haven’t even hit Halloween yet but the drier, cooler air of fall and winter has begun. You can head off dry, flaky, irritated skin by starting your winter regimen now. Here are a few great things to try!

Moisturize More

Fall and winter are the seasons of hydrating the skin. You will prevent dry, scaly body skin simply by just making sure you put lotion on every day. The time of day isn’t important, just make the time to do it! My personal favorite in the body lotion department is Nivea Smooth Sensation Body Lotion. The Shea Butter in the product truly does good for my dry skin. If you are intensely dry in the winter, try AmLactin, it will exfoliate that dry skin off and bring more natural hydration in to your skin. Most stores carry AmLactin but you may find it behind the pharmacy counter with the pharmacist.

Set Up The Humidifier

Humidifiers make a HUGE difference in your skin, eyes, inside your nose…everywhere….when you are dealing with winter. So get that humidifier out now! By the way, even if you have a whole house humidifier you should add just one more to your bedroom to truly get the best level of skin hydration. I recommend a nicer one that doesn’t require a filter that you have to change regularly. Idylis makes a great machine that I’ve used for years now, it’s easy to clean and maintain and doesn’t get riddled with mold and more.

Drink More Fluids

I know the old “drink more water” mantra makes some of you cringe. It turns out you just need to “drink more fluids” of any kind to keep yourself hydrated. It truly makes a difference in the hydration of skin, cuticles, eyes and more. Just talk yourself into throwing 2 more rounds of liquid in your body to help keep you from suffering from “winter face.”

Stop Using Astringents

Are you using a “spicy” toner or astringent? Fall and winter are the times to step away from them. Even if you have a very oily skin, you can easily back off the use of astringent this time of year. Especially once you officially turn your heater on. The dry air will do enough to tame your face, there’s no need to strip it down. You can actually have more breakouts from being too dry this time of year! Switch to a soothing toner if you really feel the need to have this in the process or just skip it all together.

Get A Lactic Peel

When you hit the full tilt of winter does your face flake endlessly? Does it seem like no matter how much face lotion you put on you never feel hydrated? If this describes you, come on in and scheduled a Micropeel Lactic. An awesome blend of Dermaplaning, a fantastic lactic peel (no peeling after this, just improved hydration in the skin) and an amazing hydrating mask will get you back to normal. You can do this peel regularly or just once to get things back in order.

Don’t Skip Your Sunscreen

This is so important to keep your face in order…keep applying your sunscreen! Everyday!! Just because it’s darker out doesn’t mean you aren’t doing damage to your skin. Driving around and even just sitting in your office gives you nasty brown spots and sun damage, even in the winter. So even though you aren’t getting the same exposure it doesn’t mean that it’s time to take a break from your sunscreen! Check out the image below, this person sits with one side of their face to a window and see how much damage is caused even sitting indoors from sun exposure through a window!

Use Hydrating Cleansers

Fall/winter is the best time to change up your face and body cleansers. Move to a more hydrating version to prevent the drying out of your skin this time of year. For the body my personal favorite is Method Moisturizing Body Wash. Pick your favorite scent and wash without stripping your skin. For the face my favorite hydrating face wash is definitely Skinceuticals Gentle Cleanser. It has a clean, fresh scent and gets the dirt out without drying you out! Don’t buy this online, we sell it for less in the office.

Use Alcohol Free Hand Sanitizers

Are you a sanitize-aholic? In fall/winter switch to alcohol free versions of sanitizers to prevent cracked, dry hands. Drying your hands out too much creates an increased risk of illness because bacteria works its way into those cracks and can make you sick. Switching to an alcohol free sanitizer like SafeHands can fulfill your sanitation needs without doing damage to your skin!

Put Your Gloves On

Are your hands freezing? If so, it’s time to glove up! Keeping the cold, dry air off of your hands can make a great impact on keeping your skin hydrated. Anything that provides a quality barrier on your hands will keep things soft and smooth. So don’t just sit there and freeze, put those gloves on!

Try Some Honey

Honey is a natural humectant (it brings hydration into your skin naturally). For the driest patches of skin, put some Honey on it! Try it: Spread one teaspoon raw honey on clean, dry skin, and let sit for 15-20 minutes. Rinse with tepid water.

Jennifer Warmann-Bloss

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Sources:

http://thebeautybean.com/skin-2/dry-skin-beauty-tips-how-to-keep-hands-soft-all-winter-long

http://www.womenshealthmag.com/beauty/beauty-uses-for-honey