Dry Winter Skin Got You Down?
If you’re like me, your skin dries out considerably when the temperatures drop. When I was a kid, my knuckles would crack and bleed! My skin is more resilient since I identified some food sensitivities in my 20s, but I do still struggle with dryness throughout the winter.
The strategies below all come back to the same question: how can we support the integrity of the skin? The skin is a waterproof barrier that depends on naturally secreted oils and a healthy occupation of beneficial microbes to keep it healthy.
4 Simple Ways Your Morning Shower Can Help
Reduce Frequency
How often are you showering? Here’s the thing—you aren’t actually dirty most of the time, so you only need to shower 2-3 times per week (with short rinses after exercise). Every time you get your skin wet, it challenges the waterproof barrier of your skin, which can lead to dryness.
Turn the temperature down
On a chilly winter morning it’s tempting to run a roasting hot shower to warm up. Exposure to very hot water disrupts the skin’s waterproof barrier, resulting in excess loss of moisture. The result is dry, flaky skin.
Instead, opt for a shower that feels warm—if your skin turns red, it’s too hot.
Only soap where & when necessary
Most people don’t realize that you don’t have to wash your skin with soap in order to be clean. Soap removes oily substances, but most of what sits on your skin is water-soluble. The running water of your shower is all you need.
Areas that do benefit from soap are parts of the body that create odors—especially the groin and armpits. Still, you only need a light lather with gentle soap in the areas that are hairy. There is no need to soap delicate tissues.
Using soap on your skin removes the protective layer of natural oil and beneficial bacteria—just as above, this disrupts the skin’s natural waterproof barrier.
If your face feels oily, try a gentle scrub with a warm, wet cloth instead of applying soap; the texture of the fabric may be enough to help your face feel clean without over-drying.
Apply moisturizer as soon as you towel off
If you already have dry skin and plan to apply moisturizer, slather it on as soon as you’ve dried off. This helps lock in the moisture so it doesn’t evaporate away as your skin cools.