Winter is a time of itchiness and dryness. Flaky skin becomes a norm and constant nourishment becomes essential. You might bundle yourself up in layers of wool but the skin underneath needs much more. Therefore, you need to keep yourself well-moisturized throughout.
Here are some easy ways to keep your skin well hydrated and skip the winter woes:
Quick Shower: It may be tempting to treat yourself with a long hot bath during the cold winter and lie there for hours and hours. However, hot water is as pleasant as it feels. One hour of hot water may result in dry skin all day. Hot water rids your skin off natural oils that maintain the moisture levels in the body. This makes the skin dry and itchy and in the long run can even alter your skin type.
Thus, try to avoid long hot water baths. Instead take a short shower in lukewarm water!
Moisturize Well: Do not wait until you have dried yourself off completely before you proceed to apply moisturizer. Moisturizers essentially trap the water in the outer layers of you skin and keep it hydrated. So apply them immediately after you are out of the shower. Just pat yourself dry with a towel and apply moisturizers all over the body. For those with extremely dry skin, it’s better to use creams and ointments rather than lotions because of their increased water content.
Less Humidity: Winter time is the time when humidity is on an all-time low. In summers, dry skin can absorb moisture from the outside air, but during the winters that can’t be done. Add to this the drying effects of indoor heating systems, sudden changes in temperatures and you know that its one long torture for the skin. A good solution will be to turn on your humidifiers and keep yourself well hydrated from the inside.
Drink Water: Most people believe that the 8-glass regimen is only for summertime. You lose a lot of water through sweating in summers and you need to keep yourself replenished. But winters are a time when the moisture levels of your body are low and skin is bereft of any moisture. Thus, this is the time you have to supplement the lack of hydration in your body by drinking enough water. Make sure you drink at least 8 glasses of water in a day even if you don’t feel thirsty.
Moisturizing Soaps: There are summer soaps and then there are winter soaps. There still aren’t any labels as such but this is something you need to choose yourself. Just like you go for a cleansing soap in summers that is rough enough to destroy all the sweat elements and bacteria in your body, you should get a moisturizing soap in winters that keeps you skin hydrated and keeps it smooth and supple.
Article from http://www.articlesbase.com
About the author: Dr. Marilynn Syrett graduated from Western University of Health Sciences, College of Osteopathic Medicine Of The Pacific in 1998 and researches about various skin care products and skin treatments. Her areas of interest include acne skin care, anti aging skin care and special skin care.