Skin Care Tips for the Winter

Proper skin care is important in any season – but during the winter months, proper skin care can get a bit more complicated. A combination of blistering cold air outside and dry hot air inside is enough to leave anyone’s skin feeling a little stressed out.

So before you decide to hibernate, try these simple skin care tips that are perfect for “winterproofing” your skin.

• Lips : Carry a lip balm with sunscreen (look for one with shea butter) and apply generously throughout the day. Use a gentle exfoliant at night before bed to remove dead skin cells. Avoid licking your lips and breathing through your mouth while you sleep: both can severely dry lips.
• Scalp. Hair becomes nasty when dandruff starts getting worse. Stop the flakes by using a moisturizing shampoo that also has a soothing effect on your scalp. Be careful in choosing your anti-dandruff shampoo because some products actually remove your hair’s natural oils. Limit the use of your blow dryer
• Hydrate your skin from the outside in: As the weather gets crisper and drier, switch to a heavier moisturizer and eye cream to keep skin well hydrated. Since the outside humidity determines how dry your skin is (not how much water you consume), slather on that moisturizer if you’re feeling dry. Turn on the humidifier — the humidity in your house should kept at 50%.
• Take warm showers . Although you may be tempted to take long, hot showers to ward off winter chill, avoid them; they actually draw moisture out of your skin and make you itchy. Instead, go for tepid, quick showers. And try switching to a moisturizing body wash. Follow this up by applying a heavy moisturizer to damp skin after bathing or showering to seal in extra moisture.
• Sunblock. Protect skin with a broad-spectrum sunblock containing zinc oxide, avobenzone or mexoryl every day of the year, even when you can’t see the sun. And be particularly diligent if you’re on the ski slopes: UV radiation increases 10%-12% for every 3000 feet of elevation.
• Don’t forget your hands & feet! Hands and feet can be dramatically affected by cold, moist air. To keep them at their best, protect them from the elements by covering up — but immediately remove socks and gloves once they get wet: the moisture can cause dryness and cracking, and can even lead to a fungal infection. A great trick: blow dry your feet, paying particular attention to the area between your toes. Slough away dead skin with a pumice stone or a microdermabrasion paste, which can stimulate exfoliation while leaving behind a protective film. With cold and flu season in full swing, you probably wash your hands more often than usual — just remember to apply a thick moisturizer to hands after every wash.
• Think cotton: Fabrics made of wool or synthetics increase perspiration and can be irritating, especially to dry skin. Instead, opt for clothing made of cotton, especially the layers closest to your skin.