Lock in Moisture
Combine low humidity outside with excessive heat indoors, and you’ve got the perfect recipe for drying out skin. The fix? “Use a thick moisturizer with shea butter or petrolatum within 5 minutes of being out of the shower to help lock in the hydration,” says Dr. Elizabeth Tanzi, dermatologist and co-director of the Washington Institute of Dermatologic Laser Surgery in Washington, D.C. For the dreaded chapped lips, Tanzi says to slather and repeat, as well. “Avoid licking them and use lots of lip balm,” she says. “Formulas that contain dimethicone or petrolatum are best.”
Humidify
If you don’t have a humidifier running at night in the winter, fire it up. “It will add just enough moisture to the environment to give your skin the chance to do some real healing,” says celebrity facialist Joanna Vargas, founder of Joanna Vargas Salon and Skincare Collection. “For those who are afraid of the bacteria that sometimes can accumulate in a humidifier, you can even get a little one that attaches to a mini water bottle.”
Cover Up
Experts always talk about keeping your face out of the summer sun, but you may not have realized you need to keep your face out of the winter wind. People with ruddy, sensitive skin, or with rosacea, are most susceptible. “I see literally hundreds of women in my practice in the winter who develop skin sensitivity and a facial rash after getting too much wind exposure,” says Tanzi. “The solution is to cover your face up to your eyes with a scarf when walking around outside in the winter.” Voilà! Simple, right?
Exfoliate Correctly
Get rid of flakes. Exfoliate too much, and you’ll irritate the skin. Exfoliate too little, and you’ll get that dry, peeling look. Tanzi says to exfoliate once or twice a week, following up with that thick moisturizer. Vargas agrees: “Exfoliating twice a week during wintertime is sufficient,” she says. “If you have super sensitive skin, once a week. This is great for getting rid of that dry winter skin that looks dull and gray.”
Switch Cleansers
Foaming or gel-like cleansers are extremely drying—something your skin can’t handle during the cold-weather months, says Tanzi. “To update your skin care routine for the winter season, switch to a gentle, creamy cleanser followed immediately by a moisturizer,” she says. Swap back to your other cleanser when the weather warms up.
Turn Down the Heat
Think about it this way: high heat helps to dry everything from clothes to hair, right? Same thing goes for skin. Although it’s tempting to take a long, hot shower, you should avoid it if you can. Avoid taking showers that are too hot. “Everyone likes to take a steamy shower when it's cold outside, but the excessively hot water strips the skin of natural oils and increases wintertime ‘itch,’” says Tanzi.
Choose Ceramides
If you don’t know the magic of ceramides, let Tanzi explain: “The best product to fight against winter skin is a thick cream that contains ceramides to help replenish the natural barrier function of the skin,” she says. “Wind, cold and indoor heat dehydrate the skin, which in turn leaves it more susceptible to further inflammation and damage. A thick coating of barrier cream can protect it from the harshness of winter.” She suggests Epionce Medical Barrier Cream, helping to replace the skin’s natural oils and keep hydration level high.
Reduce Your Use of Glycolic Acid
Drying ingredients can hide out on those long labels, so make sure to look for this one. While Dr. Tanzi loves shea butter, ceramides and hyaluronic acids in moisturizers and skin care products, she insists “decreasing the use of products containing glycolic acid” will seriously reduce flaking.
Eat Fatty Acids
Vargas swears by hydrating ingredients like jojoba oil and avocado oil in the winter skin care products she chooses (and creates herself, like her Daily Hydrating Cream) but also recommends opting for hydrating ingredients in meals she eats up. “Eat more avocado and other good fats, like olive oil and flax,” she says. “They will make the skin feel hydrated from the inside, out.” She explains that between the dry heat indoors and rough wind outdoors, dietary choices can help. “Healthy fatty acids in the diet will go a long way to making you feel you are hydrated.” Plus, she says, they’ll reduce that dreaded inflammation.
DIY a Mask
Here’s a secret (easy!) technique you can DIY. Vargas whips up an at-home mask—mix half a cup of yogurt, half an avocado and a quarter cup of honey, leave on for 20 minutes and then rinse—in the winter when she needs an extra dose of hydration. “The yogurt in this hydrating mask is an anti-inflammatory with a lactic acid component,” she says. “Avocado is something I recommend for any skin type, has lots of B vitamins and fatty acids; so it’s essential to keep the skin hydrated, even in dry winter weather. The honey also hydrates, and will really transform the skin.”
Cure Dry Patches
Finally, don’t neglect dry patches—especially those on your feet and elbows, which get rough in the winter—even and especially because they’ve been covered up all winter. That just means they aren’t getting exfoliated as much as they would during summer months. “I learned [this tip] when my son had eczema as a baby,” Vargas says. “To this day, it is my family secret for healing dry, sensitive skin.”
Here’s the remedy: Boil a large pot of water, adding a cup of chamomile tea leaves and a cup of rosemary. Cook these for 15 minutes, make up a bath, strain the mixture and add it to the bath water before climbing in. “Not only will you feel relaxed from your day, this potion will soothe your skin like nothing else,” Vargas says. “Dry patches and redness will disappear overnight!” Like a spa treatment, right at home.
