How to prevent skin damage in the winter

September 2021 | Reading time: 3 minutes

The festive season of baubles, presents, and merrymaking may be the worst for your skin, but it does not have to be so.

With winter on the way, there is much to look forward to: the festive fairs, cosy evenings, the possibility of snow (the pleasant kind, obviously), the holiday dinners, and Christmas shopping and gifts. But it is also a time when the skin suffers more damage than it does during the other seasons.

The cold climate steals all the moisture and humidity from the air, leaving us with an all-out dryness. The result? Dried up skin that gets much too rough and tight for comfort. Also, chapped lips.

All this is exacerbated further by the skincare habits we adopt and instinctively perform throughout the rest of the year. A few tiny, conscious adjustments are sure to do the trick. The trick, of course, being the undoing of the damages inflicted upon the skin by winter’s chilly breath.

Change your soaps

While the frosty temperatures and lack of humidity in the air already dry up your skin, the use of harsh soaps only adds to the skin troubles. Skin cleansing products that contain alcohol or perfumes like antibacterial soaps or makeup removing facewashes tend to strip the skin of its naturally occurring oils.

The best way you can combat this problem is to switch to milder products temporarily. Try using moisturising hand wash soaps in lieu of antibacterial ones for the season. Also, it is best to start using fragrance-free products and ones with added oils during wintertime.

Use more moisturiser, more often

Moisturisers, well, moisturise. But more importantly, they create a protective layer on the surface of your skin to prevent natural oils and water from escaping. The type of moisturiser is also an important factor to consider. Creams are heavier than lotions. While you may be accustomed to using lotions throughout the rest of the year, you will receive more effective outcomes if you switch to creams during the winter months.

The best time to moisturise is immediately after you shower. Nonetheless, you should moisturise whenever you feel your skin tighten and every time you wash your hands.

Adjust your shower time and temperature

The chill of winter is sure to make you yearn for hot showers that each last for a comfortably prolonged period. Unfortunately, nothing could be worse for your skin during the season.

Like the harsh skin products, we already warned you against, hot water also strips your skin of its natural oils. And if the oil-expelling hot water is allowed to run over you for longer, your skin will become more dehydrated than before you had showered.

The best recommendation is to shorten your shower time to a maximum of 10 minutes and use lukewarm to warm water when you do.

When to see a dermatologist

Despite how much care you provide your skin, sometimes it may not just be enough. You must visit a dermatologist if you notice the following signs:

• Rashes
• Itching
• Cracks on the skin
• Redness
• Sores from scratching
• Tiny red bumps that leak when scratched
• Scabs
• Extra sensitive or swollen skin

Years of enduring the different seasons with unique temperaments each, can make your skin need a little extra, friendly care. Check out VIVO Body Studio’s HIFU Facelift to see if that is the extra care your skin may need.