Winter Skincare Guide
As the dark nights begin to set in and temperatures drop, you may notice that your skin begins to feel dry and itchy. When it gets colder, humidity levels decrease, and in turn moisture is stripped from the air. As moisture in the air lessens, so too does the oil on the skin’s outermost layer (the epidermis). This typically results in dry and tight skin.
If you think your skincare routine requires an uplift during the colder months, we have the remedy. For more information, read below for the most effective ways to banish winter dryness.
HYDRATION
Keeping your skin hydrated in the winter months is a priority if you want fresh glowing skin for those Christmas Parties. Dry skin is a key indicator of dehydration ensure you are drinking 8 glasses of water a day and although hot showers feel great in the winter try to use lukewarm water to avoid stripping your skin of its natural oils. In addition to this try increasing your foods that have a naturally high water content, things like Melon, Apples, Oranges, Kiwi Cucumbers and Carrots.
CHANGE YOUR CLEANSER
Cleanser can be extremely drying to the skin. If you’re used to using options that contain Glycolic or Salicylic acid rotate with a more hydrating version. After cleansing don’t leave the skin bare for more than 30 seconds as this can dehydrate the skin leading to increased dryness. Apply a hydrating serum and moisturiser to seal in the moisture.
EXFOLIATE
We often forget to help the skin slough off dead skin cells in the winter, particularly on our hands. However moisture can’t get in if dead skin cells are blocking the pores. Speak to your skin care specialist about which type of exfoliator will work best with your skin type gel based/acid based/grains and if you want an extra boost book in for one of our salt microdermabrasion’s to get you on the right track!
MOISTURISE
Your skin not only needs moisture, but it is desperate for moisture during the winter months. Applying moisturiser to damp skin helps to seal the hydration back into the skin. Ensure to see your skin specialist to check if you need to switch to a richer moisturiser for the winter months or potentially boost your current moisturiser by adding in a hydrating serum. It is highly recommended to add some facial treatments in to your winter routines to really boost & hydrate the skin.
PROTECT
Get used to wearing gloves and scarves to protect your skin from cold winds, rain and snow. Also, don’t forget your sunscreen, winter sun can be just as damaging as summer sun so ensure to apply your sunscreen daily. The suns harmful rays are still damaging to the skin despite what the thermometer says. You particularly need to protect yourself against the UVA rays which are responsible for aging skin. UVA radiation reaches deeper into the skin and contributes to wrinkles and skin cancers. We recommend using Heliocare sun protection as they have a fantastic range that you can alter to meet your winter skin needs things like hydrating SPF, Tinted SPF & oil free SPF.