As the temperatures drop , environmental factors can take a toll on our skin. You might notice that your skin feels more dry, rough, or flakey and that your everyday lotion isn’t satisfying your needs.
To prevent dry skin and help us maintain a healthy, radiant complexion here are some tips for crafting the perfect winter season skin routine.
What Causes Dry Skin?
Dry skin is a skin type that often occurs when the body does not produce enough natural oils resulting in itchiness, redness, flakiness and increased incidence of dermatitis, psoriasis, and eczema. Dehydrated skin conversely is a temporary condition in which the skin lacks water. This can occur in dry and oily skin types and manifests as congestion, sensitivity, dullness, lack of elasticity and oiliness.
Both dehydrated and dry skin can have a variety of causes, and may be exacerbated by varying contributors. Here are a few factors to keep in mind if your skin has been dry or dehydrated lately:
Heat
Hot, dry, and windy conditions increase evaporation, thus removing available moisture from the air.. When the air around you contains less moisture, there is less water for your skin to absorb and use.
If you live in a drier geographical location, there isn’t much you can do to solve that. However, you can stay aware of how your behaviors at home may be making things worse. Running your heat or a fireplace in the winter can make your environment even drier, thus worsening your skin concerns.
Keeping a humidifier in your home can help add moisture back into the air, helping your skin stay hydrated while you are at home.
Hot Water
As relaxing as a hot bath can be, it may also be drying out your skin.
Too much hot water during a bath or shower can remove moisture from your skin by stripping away the natural oils that work to lock in hydration. Try to keep hot water off your face if you are taking a steamy shower, and make sure to only wash your face with lukewarm water when it is time for a cleanse.
After you take a shower or bath, immediately apply an oil, lotion or body balm to help lock moisture into your skin.
Fragrances and Chemicals
Harsh ingredients like synthetic fragrances and chemicals can strip moisture from your skin, even if their intended purpose is to create a moisturizing effect. Synthetic oils and silicones, for example, not only clog pores but they only give the illusion of nourished skin and do not treat the skin on a cellular level. Instead, stick to safe, non-toxic ingredients that are gentle on your skin and support the body’s own repair process.
Avoid skincare products that contain artificial ingredients -such as “fragrance”. While not all aromatic ingredients or parfum are bad,”fragrance” is used as an umbrella term for dozens of different ingredients that can be harsh and irritating to your skin.
Companies are legally allowed to keep individual fragrance ingredients secret because they're deemed “trade secrets”, meaning it is hard to know exactly is in your daily products. Opting for fragrance-free products, or products that are transparent about their ingredients, can help you steer clear of potentially harmful additives.
How To Care for Dry Skin
No matter what you do to try to prevent dehydrated or dry skin, you will likely still experience dry patches from time to time— and this is normal.
Dry skin can happen due to environmental factors, like a cold winter breeze, or because your skin becomes more susceptible to dryness as you age.
A proper skincare routine can help you maintain nourished and hydrated skin. Below find our recommendations for best practices.
Step 1: Cleanser
Any good skincare routine starts off with a cleanser. Cleanser is important because it works to rinse dirt and impurities off of your face, thus helping to prevent build-up and breakouts. However, many cleansers incorporate harsh ingredients that can strip the top layer of your skin, known as the epidermis.
Furthermore, while the the natural ecosystem of the skin is acidic (between pH 4.0-5.5), most traditional cleansers are intrinsically alkaline (pH 10). A high pH cleanser disrupts the acid mantle, compromises beneficial bacteria and allows an easy pathway for invader bacteria and pollution to enter deeper layers of the skin triggering damage and premature aging.
Choose a gentle, pH balanced face wash such as LINNÉ’s PURIFY face wash, which helps cleanse your skin without stripping it of beneficial oils. This cruelty-free cleanser contains nourishing ingredients such as organic jojoba oil and aloe vera to help lock in moistureupport the skin’s lipid barrier, and protect the skin from irritation and environmental damage.
Excessive washing can also strip your skin of its natural oils, resulting in further dryness. If you do not struggle with blemished skin, you may want to skip the morning wash and just cleanse in the evening to remove make-up and environmental pollutants.
Step 2: Hydrating Essence
Toners made with alcohol can be astringent and drying, so look for a product that is formulated with soothing and hydrating ingredients.
LINNÉ’s REFRESH mineral mist is designed to help the other products in your skincare regimen absorb more readily and work more effectively. It’s all-natural and rich in minerals like zinc, magnesium, and copper that oxygenate cells, stimulate rejuvenation and reduce DNA damage.
After cleansing, apply this mist to fully prep skin cells for the next steps in your routine.
Step 3: Serum
Skin serums are products with a high concentration of ingredients designed to address a specific skin concern. Skin serums are formulated for a range of benefits, such as hydrating serums, balancing serums, or repairing serums.
If your skin is dehydrated, you’ll want to choose a serum designed to improve skin hydration, such as LINNÉ’s RENEW face serum.
This serum should be applied immediately after mist and is gentle enough to be used in the morning and night. It is loaded with super low molecular weight hyaluronic acid, vitamins and antioxidants to support plump, elastic and even skin tone.
Incorporating this serum into your skincare routine will help give your skin the hydration boost it needs.
Step 4: Face Oil or Moisturizing Cream
The skin benefits greatly from a healthy supply of fatty acids that support the skin's barrier function. Face oils also help seal in moisture and depending on the oil, they contain vital nutrients such as linoleic acid, beta-carotene and vitamin-e. While there are many oily substances available to formulators and some of them will clog pores, there are several oils can help regulate sebum production- whether dry or oily.
When your skin is dehydrated , your body may overproduce a substance called sebum, resulting in oily skin. Using aface oil such as LINNÉ’s BALANCE face oil can help balance your sebum levels lock in moisture and promote regeneration.
Truly dry skin will benefit from LINNÉ’s REPAIR face oil, made with deeply nourishing rich fruit, seed and nut oils that are also known to treat sunburn, scars, and hyperpigmentation.
Step 5: SPF
SPF should always be the last product you apply to your face at the end of your morning skincare regimen. The sun’s UV rays can wreak havoc on your skin and skin barrier, leading to irritation, sunburn, and hyperpigmentation. Protecting your skin from sun damage can even help prevent signs of premature aging, like wrinkles and fine lines.
Wearing SPF can also help prevent dry skin, as the sun’s rays can damage your skin’s moisture barrier. Pick a product that contains at least SPF 30 and features non-nano zinc as the sunscreen ingredient.
Your Solution to Dry Skin
Dry skin is a common issue, and while it can be an immense inconvenience and discomfort, there are steps you can take to reduce and prevent this issue.
Crafting the perfect skincare routine for dry and dehydrated skin can help ensure you are providing your skin with everything it needs in order to stay healthy and protected.
Sources:
Dry Skin Symptoms & Causes | Mayo Clinic
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