Skin care problems often occur in winter, plaguing everyone like the flu, but it is a big mistake to ignore your skin condition! Dry and flaky skin is a distress signal sent by your body, and this is not just what you feel. Just an uncomfortable little thing. Moisturized skin provides a barrier against bacteria and viruses and protects us from injuries caused by friction. Kelly M. Cordoro, assistant professor of dermatology at the University of Virginia, will provide us with some common sense and methods of winter skin care.
Start by understanding your skin:
The moisture content of the skin is controlled by lipids. The outermost layer of skin, the so-called epidermis, will produce oily substances. If there is insufficient oil in the epidermis, water will evaporate from the skin, which will cause dryness.
The skins regeneration cycle takes about one month. The dead skin cells will slough off on the surface and give new cells a new space to grow, allowing a new layer of cells to grow upwards. If the dead cells are not shed as soon as possible, thick and dry skin cells will form, and if this is more serious, it will damage the normal barrier protection function of the skin. If it is caused by environmental factors, bacterial infection may also cause inflammation.
Some parts of the body are indeed more susceptible to dryness than others, and this is related to the concentration of oil gland secretion. The places with the strongest oil secretion are the face (especially the forehead and nose), chest and back, but in fact, each part still often suffers from dryness. There are few oil glands on the calves, which is why our calves are very prone to dryness and even peeling. Our lips need moisturizing because unlike other parts of the body, the cell tissue itself is not thick and has no outer layer of protection. We often use saliva to solve the problem of chapped lips, but this will make the lips drier and even make breathing uncomfortable.
Water is not only a major factor in the health of our skin, it also affects the appearance of our skin. When the skin is dehydrated, the skin will wither or even become sunken, making us look older and wrinkles more obvious.
Factors that cause dry skin:
Age: A woman’s estrogen will decrease with age, especially with the arrival of menopause. The skin produces less fat so the nutritional value of your cells increases as you age.Significantly decreased, resulting in more peeling.
Gene: Some people are born more prone to skin diseases or have a dry constitution. They may have fewer oil glands than others, such as eczema in the United States. Or that genetic skin diseases affect more than a million people.
Changes in weather: Low temperatures, cold winds, low humidity, and temperature differences entering indoors can all cause moisture to evaporate from your skin because your skin has more moisture than there is in the air.
Long hot baths and showers: Using too many bath bombs or laundry towels may actually clean your skin, but it can also dry it out. Likewise, use harsh soaps Bathing also reduces oil in the skin, so when water is lost, we need more water to moisturize.
Smoking: Smoking is extremely harmful to our skin. Smoking will prevent our outer skin from absorbing oxygen and nutrients, and will also cause fine lines to appear in advance on our skin. Another point is: Smoking itself dries out the skin.
Wearing a lot of woolen clothing: Itchy materials can rub against your skin and break down the barrier that protects us from moisture loss.
Chronic disease: Diabetes, thyroid disease, kidney disease, and other conditions can affect the skins ability to retain water. Some medications such as antidepressants can also cause dry skin, so be careful.
Hydrating methods to prevent skin moisture loss:
Tweak your skin care routine a little:
Don’t clean your face too many times. You can cleanse once during the day and once at night to simply remove impurities, dirt and makeup. During the day, the alcohol content in skin care products will dry out our skin, so in the cold months, Set aside high-concentration alcohol ingredients firstof skin care products, such as facial astringent and toner, and then exfoliate your face and body with a gentle scrub towel once a week.
Shower with warm water and for a limited time:
Just like you use hot water and dishwashing detergent to clean the dishes, taking a hot bath will also remove the oil on our skin. Therefore, although it is very warm when taking a hot bath in winter, don’t wash it too much. On the other hand, if you add oatmeal gel in the bath, it will not only moisturize and smooth your skin, but also effectively prevent skin cracks.
To rehydrate, just drink water?
In fact, drinking a lot of water is not enough. Of course, having enough water will make your skin healthier, but it will not have any impact on the outer skin. We also need to use moisturizing lotion, at least twice a day, after bathing. If your skin is dry after use and before going to bed, use thicker and thicker lotions, and do not use moisturizing spray as it may make your skin drier.
Apply Vaseline and wear gloves:
Maybe everyone has heard this statement, but it is really useful to deal with dry and cracked skin. Spread your hands and apply ointment such as Vaseline or other moisturizing products.So, if you wear white cotton gloves for a few hours, you will find a pair of smooth and tender hands!
Try adding an air humidifier to your bedroom:
Sometimes even though you have moisturized, you still feel very dry. It may be because your room is really too dry. You can buy an air humidifier to adjust the humidity in the room. We will also feel more comfortable, but humidification Pay attention to cleaning the appliance because mold and bacteria may grow inside, so clean it at least once every three days.
Nutritious foods:
Vitamin B can prevent skin from drying out. Fish, turkey, cereals, beans and bananas are rich in vitamin B. On the contrary, beer and foods with high alcohol content should be avoided as much as possible, because alcohol will Depleting the B vitamins may make our condition worse. Lack of vitamin C will make our skin more fragile. Supplementing more with citrus fruits, red or green spicy vegetables and tomatoes can supplement vitamin C!
Give your skin a layer of protection at any time:
Wear leather gloves or use waxy lipstick or lip balm to provide a layer of protection for your skin at all times. You shouldn’t wait until your mouth is dry.The same goes for drinking water before drying your skin. Don't wait until its cracked and bleeding before you think about moisturizing.
If you remember these skin care tips, I believe that every cold winter in the future will not be a problem for you!
