Dealing with dry skin can be frustrating and overwhelming. It occurs when your skin isn’t properly hydrated, making it feel rough, itchy, dull, flaky, and inflamed. Dry skin can lead to premature aging, wrinkles, sagging, and even eczema and psoriasis. The causes of dry skin vary from person to person, but the main causes include sun damage, cold or dry weather, overbathing, and harsh soaps.
If you’re looking to hydrate your dry skin, this post is for you as it illustrates how you should keep your dry skin hydrated.
Use Skincare Supplements
Using skincare creams and moisturizers can help keep your dry skin hydrated. However, skincare should start from the inside rather than the outside. That said, it may be best to get skincare supplements like the ones offered by Advanced Nutrition Programme. Advanced Nutrition Programme is a premium/quality Australian supplements brand dedicated to healthy skin from the inside out while protecting our planet. These supplements combine several skin-loving ingredients to keep your skin healthy and hydrated.
For instance, the supplements can contain hyaluronic acid, which helps draw in water to keep your skin cells moist. They can also contain vitamin C, which helps produce the skin’s natural fats and strengthens the outer layer of the skin, thus helping your skin retain moisture.
What’s more, the supplements can contain omega-3 fatty acids that enhance the production of healthy cell membranes, which helps your skin retain moisture. Generally, skin care isn’t only about what you apply on the skin but also what you put into your body. Therefore, talk to a dermatologist about the right supplements if you’re dealing with dry skin.
Use A Humidifier
Dry air is one of the major causes of dry skin. Therefore, when the air is dry, especially during winter, it makes sense to use a humidifier to reduce the symptoms of dry skin. Humidifiers transform water into mist, thus increasing humidity in your home. This helps soothe dry skin as it prevents dry air from pulling moisture from the skin, which happens when humidity levels are below 10%.
Additionally, exposing your skin to humidity higher than 70% allows your skin to draw moisture from the air, thus increasing your skin’s hydration levels. However, this doesn’t mean you should live in a space with 70% humidity all the time; as much as low humidity affects your skin, too much moisture can also be detrimental.
When using a humidifier, remember to clean and dry it regularly to prevent mould growth, which can be hazardous. Many experts recommend cleaning it after every use but ensure to unplug it from the power source and not put the electronic components in water.
Get Adequate Sleep
Getting enough sleep is another fantastic way to keep your skin healthy and hydrated. When you get adequate sleep, blood flow to the skin increases, which allows the skin to receive more oxygen and essential vitamins and minerals. The nutrients help draw in water to keep your skin cells moist and also help strengthen the outer layer of your skin, which prevents moisture loss. Additionally, getting enough sleep helps regulate oil production in the skin.
Low oil production in the skin leads to dull and dry skin, while too much oil production leads to clogged pores and acne breakouts. Also, getting enough sleep helps moisturize your skin through the production of the hormone progesterone. Deprived sleep makes your body produce less hormone progesterone, which leads to dry skin.
Avoid Hot And Long Showers
As contradictory as it looks, bathing for long hours can damage your skin’s oily layer, thus causing your skin to lose moisture. Therefore, limit your showers to about 5 to 7 minutes to protect your skin. Additionally, use lukewarm water instead of hot water to prevent washing away natural oils on the skin.
Drink Plenty Of Water
Many overlook the power of drinking enough water and its benefits for our bodies. It helps your brain function, improves energy levels, aids digestion, and regulates body temperature. Moreover, drinking enough water is beneficial to your skin.
Although it’s unclear whether drinking plenty of water hydrates your skin, what’s sure is that drinking enough water helps keep your body hydrated and skin elastic, thus reducing wrinkles. Additionally, it helps flush out toxins and chemicals that cause dry skin. Finally, water helps balance your skin’s pH (potential of hydrogen), thus protecting the skin’s barrier from damage. The skin barrier helps protect your skin from external aggressors and prevents moisture loss.
The Bottom Line
Dry skin isn’t a life-threatening condition. Skincare supplements, humidifiers, drinking plenty of water, getting enough sleep, and taking short showers can help keep your skin hydrated. However, if your skin’s condition doesn’t improve even after attempting these hydration tips, consider visiting a dermatologist for help.