How to Keep Skin Hydrated During the Winter
It seems to happen every year. We complain about the unseasonably hot weather, wondering if summer is ever going to end, then next thing you know we’re waking up to a bone-chilling morning.
Luckily we have a bevy of stylish solutions at our disposal to shield from the cold – the puffer jacket, field vest, cashmere beanie – but what about that inevitable dry, chapped skin that accompanies the winter chill?
Aside from the discomfort, dry skin is also more susceptible to aging and more prone to wrinkles. So how can you prevent the winter chap and keep skin hydrated?
What’s chapping your hide?
When it comes to dry skin, there are intrinsic (internal) and extrinsic (external) causes. Intrinsic causes of dry skin include genetic factors, medications, antihistamines and antibiotics, illness, and aging. Extrinsic factors includes things like weather, lifestyle and skin care products.
Environment: Cold air is denser than warm air, leaving little room for water vapor, hence why our skin tends to dry out during the winter months. Keep in mind however, the sun is one of the top contributors to dry skin, so always slather on a good sun block.
Lifestyle: Insufficient water intake, poor nutrition and smoking cause dry conditions.
Skin care products: alcohol-based and certain clay-based products may be very drying as well as under cleansing and over moisturizing. This may seem counterproductive, but if you don’t properly cleanse, the moisturizer sits on the surface unable to penetrate the skin.
Reviving winter skin
The change in the season definitely calls for a change up in your skin care regimen. Simply stated you’ll want to follow a process of cleansing, rebuilding and protecting. For cleansing, be sure you are using a formula that is not over-drying. Opt for a more gentle cleanser with moisturizing ingredients like shea butter and cleansing agents that don’t strip away natural oils like sodium chloride.
Morning and night use a non-greasy antioxidant and moisturizing formula to fight free radicals and hydrate. Look for ingredients like D2O (heavy water), soybean protein (glycine soja), D-Boldine, and L-Glutathione and superoxide dismutase (powerful antioxidants). And always protect with a good physical block like zinc. You might also use a granular scrub with bits of bamboo and jojoba beads to slough off dead skin.
For more see Zeo Cleanse, Buffed, Complex VI and EnviroProtect.