Beauty And Your Skin: Winter Skin Care Tips
Is your skin ready for winter? As a mom, joining your kids in outdoor activities, or even taking a winter stroll through the park can leave you dry. A combination of cold temperatures, low humidity, and indoor heating can cause even the smoothest skin to become dry, flaky, and chapped. Here are some winter skin care tips that can help you maintain the beauty of your skin through those cold winter months.
Moisturizing
Your skin can become extremely sensitive when faced with harsh winter weather. Using a mild moisturizer as part of a more organic skin care treatment may be your best option when protecting dry skin during the winter months.
There are two different types of moisturizers that are essential to winter skin care:
Occlusive moisturizers protect the moisture that is already in your skin and act as barriers to harsh, dry weather. Use natural skin care occlusives such as shea and cocoa butter, but avoid products containing mineral or petroleum oils, which clog up the pores and contain dangerous by-products.
Emollient moisturizers provide your skin with added moisture by remaining on the surface of the skin or else by penetrating into the topmost layers of the skin. When looking for a natural skin care product, consider ones that contain natural ingredients such as jojoba oil, sweet almond oil, and coconut oil. Not only will these skin care products provide you with natural moisture without clogging your pores, but they are also free of harsh, dangerous chemicals that can harm your skin.
Wear Your Sunscreen
We all know that sunscreen is an essential part of skin care during the hot summer months, but sunscreen is crucial to winter skin care as well. Sunscreen protects your skin from harm that can be caused by sunrays, and can prevent future damage if used regularly.
Snow can act as a reflector that intensifies the sun’s rays, so be sure to apply a sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15 before leaving the house every day. You might also consider using a facial moisturizer that contains sunscreen during the winter months.
Keep Warm
Don’t forget to bundle up. Try wearing a scarf that can be raised up to cover parts of your face such as the cheeks to avoid windburn. The more skin that’s covered up outdoors, the less dryness you’ll feel later.
You may want to consider using a humidifier in your home, especially in the bedroom. Indoor heating tends to produce dry air, especially with the windows closed. Using a humidifier will replenish moisture in the atmosphere so that your skin does not feel the effects of dryness.
Reduce the length of hot showers and baths that can strip your skin of moisturizing fats. Choose a soap or body wash containing oils or emollients, or add oils directly to bath water to penetrate the skin and nourish it.
Lastly, don’t forget to have fun with your wardrobe. The key to winter wear is layering, since it keeps you warm outdoors and prevents overheating once you’re inside which can intensify dry skin. Layers are a fun way to stay creative and combine textures and colors that may be missing on those grey winter days.
