Winter Skincare Tips: How to Prevent Dry and Chapped Skin

Our skin serves as an all-important barrier- keeping all bugs and infections and other harmful sensations away from our sensitive body. So, we think it deserves some top notch care in the winter because extra chill and low humidity can mean dryness, redness, flakiness and what  not. The super dry air can zap out all the natural oils from your skin and leave it feeling dry and itchy. But, you won’t need to suffer from this feeling, if you make some prominent changes to your daily skincare routine. Let us look at what they can be.

Best Winter Skincare Routine for Dry Skin-

The best skincare routine is one which you can comfortably follow, every day with products that you prefer. In general, you should opt for very gentle cleansers and exfoliate very mildly. If you try to scrub too hard, then you can dry your skin out. Instead, choose scrubs that have sugar, citrus fruit extracts etc. for best results. Walnut scrubs can work too, if you moisturise well later on. If you dry yourself too vigorously, then you are drying your skin out. You can always try to invest in some Vitamin C or hyaluronic acid creams or serums for better suppleness and greater elasticity of the skin. The glass finish that we all so adore on our favourite models and stars is because of this important ingredient. We tend to ignore sunscreens because we think the winter sun can’t harm us. Wrong! It may not be as warm, but the UV rays are still present. So, get non-sticky, natural finish sunscreens for daily use. Finally, you can also make sure to use gentle shampoos for hair care.

Preventing Winter-Induced Skin Irritation And Redness-

If you try to read up on the skincare routines that celebrities follow, you may wonder how they can deal with so many elaborate steps and products. It is simple. They have loads of help! But you deserve the same amount of care for your skin too. We think you can do so by being smart and investing in select serums or products that are skin friendly. But, topical applications alone cannot change how your skin reacts to the outside world. You will also need to be more mindful of what you eat. Try to include fresh fruits and vegetables and drink lots of water everyday.

Home Remedies for Dry and Chapped Skin in Winter-

Here are our top home remedies for better skin care this winter-

• You can have something called a ‘winter itch’ now, so try not to use harsh cleansers or exfoliate too hard.
• We understand that having a shower or bath with very hot water may be tempting- it will ward off the chill but don’t do this. Hot water can strip your skin of its essential oils. Use warm or lukewarm water.
• Wear layers of clothing which can be protective. Don’t expose yourself to the cold air.
• You can cleanse once or twice a week with a sugar or fruit based product. Glycolic acid is also a good option. Why cleanse? Your skin may feel flaky and you will need to get rid of it.
• Next, you could try putting on a nice serum that contains hyaluronic acid, glycerin, squalane, ceramides or retinol for extra care and moisture.
• You can then layer on a heavy, non-greasy moisturiser.
• Your lips and skin under the eyes are always sensitive and even more so in the winter. So, try to use petroleum jelly or a thick lip balm and under-eye cream which can be left on at night when you sleep.
• You can use a dry cleanser, which can be rubbed onto your skin without any water. Then , there is no need to lather and your skin won’t dry out as much.
• If you notice cracks in your heels, then you can rub in generous amounts of petroleum jelly and put on a pair of socks. Keep doing it for a week and you should notice great results.
• Coconut oil, using essential oils and using butter based products can be helpful.
• You can soak some oatmeal and use it as a gentle cleanser. It will soothe any irritation.
• You can opt for face packs that contain honey, milk, cream or curd. Don’t use ingredients like multani mitti which can strip oils off.

Conclusion

Protecting skin from winter dryness and flakiness needs to become a priority for best skin related integrity. We will also not have to deal with very dry or itchy skin this way. Dry skin is caused due to the natural oils getting lost and can exacerbate conditions like eczema, redness, flakiness of the scalp and skin. You should also remember to focus on your diet now. Do all this and we are pretty sure you will have healthy skin in no time!