Winters mark the advent of cold, snow fall and the festive season. At the same time, it also welcomes rough and dry skin. Many experience dry skin during the harsh winter months. Dry skin is known to lack glow and health. Parched of moisture, dry skin lacks hydration, thus leading to irritation and itchiness. During winters, our skin’s moisture should be retained throughout the day to get rid of dry skin. It is very important to keep your skin hydrated.
What causes dry skin? Usually the causes of dry skin range from these environmental reasons to certain hereditary conditions. The way to treat skin dryness is to first diagnose the causative agent. Once the cause is identified, you can easily and effectively treat your skin and nourish it back to health.
There are various dry skin causes. Hence, you should try to keep your skin moisturized to a great extent. The reasons for dry skin are:
In most cases, dry skin is caused by the confluence of certain weather factors. The skin tends to get arid due to less humidity and extremes of temperatures. Low temperature and low humidity are ideal conditions for your skin to start feeling dry and itchy. In desert regions, high temperatures, compounded with low humidity all year round, may have a worse effect on your skin. An installation of proper humidifiers is recommended throughout the room to maintain the level of moisture.
Frequent showers with hot or warm water might be another cause of dry skin. The heat has an impact on the upward layer, which is responsible for holding back the moisture. Moreover, application of soap erodes the layer and leaves the skin arid. This is one of the causes of dry itchy skin.
Excessive swimming is very harmful as it affects both the hair and skin. Spending long hours in the pool tends to eliminate the outer sheet of the epidermis that is responsible for holding moisture. In fact, chlorine breaks down the lipid barriers which your skin contains and makes it seem harsh and dry. Application of a good nourishing lotion is recommended before swimming as high levels of chlorine might cause various skin problems.
Have you felt that getting out of an air-conditioned room makes your skin feel ten times worse? Does your facial skin seem to stretch across your cheekbones and feel itchy? This is because in rooms that are equipped with central cooling or heating devices, like air conditioners, fireplaces, room heaters and coolers, the relative humidity is much low. This absorbs moisture from your skin, making it feel dry and itchy.
The skin on your scalp is most vulnerable and dries out faster than anywhere else on the body. This is caused by the harsh chemicals contained in certain shampoos and conditioners. Go easy on the shampoos and conditioners you use and try switching to ones that are specially formulated for dry scalp. You can also switch to herbal shampoos.
Similarly, the soaps that we use, especially the antibacterial ones, dry out our skin faster. Harsh chemicals present in soaps tend to extract moisture and leave the body very dry. It is best to use a body wash instead of soap. Also, avoid washing or rinsing the face several times as it might cause irritation. Applying oil to our skin before a bath will help bind the lipids in the skin and prevent it from becoming coarse. Also, after the usage of mild soap or face wash, application of a moisturizing lotion or cream is recommended.
This is a skin condition where dead cells build up rapidly and congeal to form rough patches on the skin. While psoriasis mostly affects the skin on our scalp, it can occur in other places too.
A diabetic person might experience dryness as an initial symptom of the disease. It is one of the causes of dry skin on hands and legs. If the dryness occurs on the hands and legs, the person should go for a sugar level checkup. Due to high sugar levels in the blood, a person tends to urinate very frequently and this in turn leaves behind a dehydrated body.
The activity of your thyroid glands has a direct impact on your skin. Low levels of thyroid hormone may cause dryness in a person. Due to the low secretion of thyroid hormones, there is a decrease in the process of the activity of the oil and perspiration glands. This in turn leads to an arid epidermis.
The penetration of the sunlight goes much deeper than just the upper layer or the epidermis of the skin. Sunlight penetrates deep into the dermis and helps dissolve the bonds of collagen and elastin. This leads to a complete breakdown of the firm structure of the skin. This further leads to skin dryness and other skin related issues like sagging and wrinkles. An application of a proper sunscreen lotion is recommended.
There are many kinds of eczema, and atopic eczema causes massive dryness of skin. The face, neck, elbows, inner wrists are commonly affected.
Hard water, that is water containing a high percentage of iron and calcium compounds dissolved in it, causes a higher rate of skin dryness than normal water.
In winters, you do not feel as thirsty as in summers. Therefore, the intake of water is very low. Inadequacy of water tends to leave the skin dehydrated and can make you feel contracted.
Proper moisturization is recommended to keep the cells moisturized. Dry skin causes discomfort due to itchiness and flakiness.
When you start aging, your skin tends to turn saggy and becomes drier than usual. The elasticity of your skin is lost and the skin starts maturing. Wrinkles, sagginess etc are symptoms of aging. Hence, application of anti-ageing products is recommended. Since these anti-ageing products are water-based, they will keep your skin hydrated.
While dry skin is a common problem that most of us face these days, taking proper care and understanding the underlying causes can help us treat our skin much more effectively.
Remember, the mantra to avoid dry skin is retaining your skin’s moisture all the time. You no longer need to hide your skin under voluminous sweaters; with proper moisturizing, let your skin glow and breathe.
Let everyone admire your soft and supple skin this winter. Feel free to share your feedback with us through comments.