As the cold temperatures remain, it is likely that they are beginning to have a detrimental impact on your skin. Your regular skincare routine is likely inadequate to meet the harsh demands of winter weather, especially when it comes to your moisturizer. When it comes to the health of your skin, it will be necessary to modify your skincare regimen to ensure that your skin remains hydrated throughout the winter months. This is particularly important when it comes to your moisturizer and the environment that your skin is regularly exposed to.
How Cold Air Impacts your Skin
Warm air has a higher capacity for holding water and moisture than cold air. When the temperatures drop, the air will contain less water than your skin is accustomed to. The lower humidity can cause your skin to not obtain the moisture levels that it needs to remain healthy, comfortable, and beautiful. In essence, cold air can cause the skin to dry out exponentially, which can lead to many additional issues with the health of your skin. This dryness leads to issues like cracking, itchiness, chapping, and redness. It may also simply worsen existing skin concerns, such as acne or eczema.
However, you should also keep in mind that cold air can provide a few benefits to the health of the skin. If you are experiencing the formation of acne due to excessively oily skin, it is possible that cold air can dry out the oil and reduce the presence of acne.
Indoor Issues in the Winter
Despite the air inside being warmer, heating systems don’t generally introduce more moisture to the air. In fact, most heating systems dry out the air that is present within the building. In addition, warm air inside results in you experiencing extreme temperature fluctuations when you go from inside to outside and vice versa. These temperature changes cause the capillaries of your skin to contract and expand at an exorbitant rate. This often results in redness, broken veins, and inflammation. In addition, the amount of sleep that you get is important to the health of your skin and a home that is incredibly hot will likely deplete the quality of your sleep. These negative effects can be avoided by keeping the temperature lowered in your building.
Maintain Appropriate Nutrition
Many people’s diets change radically in the winter months, due to the holidays and cold temperatures. Increasing sugar consumption often wreaks havoc on the skin. Implementing excellent nutrition can go a long way toward improving the health of your skin during the cold winter months. It is important to eat fruits and vegetables regularly to provide important nutrients to your skin. Take care not to eat too many fruits, as they may contain high levels of sugar that can damage your skin. These foods also contain high amounts of antioxidants, which are vital in fighting the impacts of aging and damage.
It is additionally important to ensure that you eat adequate amounts of healthy fats. These fats help to keep your skin healthy, flexible, and pliable. There are many great sources of healthy fats that you can choose from. Lean meats, coconut oil, chia seeds, olive oil, nuts, eggs, and avocados are just a few great options for adding healthy fats to your diet. Many people get dehydrated in the winter, because it is less comfortable to drink cool water. Dehydration often results in skin with inadequate moisture, which can cause a multitude of other issues with the health of your skin. It is important to ensure that you remain hydrated to protect your skin.
Techniques for Healthy Skin in Winter
Many people overlook the importance of sunscreen during overcast winter days. However, UV rays can reflect off the surface of snow, which puts you at higher risk of sun damage. Many people assume that tanning booths can add much needed vitamin D to their skin, but these systems are capable of causing significant amounts of skin damage. Refrain from tanning and ensure that you always use sunscreen throughout the winter. Exercise can help to benefit your skin, as it warms the surface and enhances the circulation of the blood. Good circulation is important in distributing valuable nutrients to your skin.
Keep the heat in your home lower, as it is better for your skin to wear more layers than to expose it to excessive heating. You should also try to keep the skin covered as much as possible. This can both prevent damage from UV rays, as well as ensure that cold winter winds don’t dry out the skin. Limit the amount of time that you spend exfoliating your skin in the winter, especially if it is already rather dry. Hot baths and showers can cause damage to the protective layers of your skin, so it is important to avoid these as well. Ensure that you don’t use alcohol-based skincare products, because alcohol causes the skin to dry out.
Use only mild soap and products that won’t dry out already dry skin. You may also want to consider implementing a humidifier to your building. This can help to counteract the drying effect of many heating systems. It is vital to introduce a heavy-duty moisturizer to keep your skin healthy and moisturized, despite the drying out that is caused by the environment.
Contact our Office
At The Skin Institute, we pride ourselves on providing superior education to all of our students. In order to accomplish this, we provide many services to improve the health of your skin. Our guest services are of the highest quality, while they simultaneously provide our students with the experience they need. Our thorough classes provide the information required to keep skin healthy throughout every season and in many different kinds of environments. Enrolling in our courses helps to open your future to a rewarding career in esthetics. To learn more about our courses or about how our guest services can improve the health of your skin throughout the winter, contact our experts at The Skin Institute today!
