Winter is approaching here in Australia and with that comes some changes you may notice in your skin, like dryness, itchiness, or dullness. Why is that?
Our skin has a natural tendency to attract moister from the environment to keep itself hydrated. During the colder winter months when there’s a decrease in humidity, temperatures plummet, long hot showers are introduced, and heating devices start running in overdrive your skin can quite literally dry out and become dehydrated.
On top of that using products like moisturisers that are ‘heavier’ or exfoliants that are too harsh for your skin may result in an eradication of your skins protective barrier. Once your skin barrier is compromised you are opening the flood gates for potential skin concerns to occur like Dermatitis, Rashes or Psoriasis.
It's essential to reassess your skincare regime during all seasons of the year.
Here are 5 tips you can implement now leading up to the cooler months which will help your skin look hydrated and healthy during winter.
5 Tips to get Your Skin Winter Ready
Moisturise From Head to Toe
Moisturising your skin in winter is a no-brainer, so ensuring you are in a good moisturising routine now is key. You can reapply moisturiser throughout the day.
A face moisturiser like our [HYDRATE] Lightweight Soothing Emulsion is a lightweight, yet powerful moisturiser filled with skin nourishing ingredients including ceramides, hyaluronic acid and emollients to help relieve dry looking skin.
Ceramides protect your skin from losing moisture which is imperative during the cooler months. They form a protective layer on the skin which prevents environmental aggressors from penetrating through.
Our body moisturiser [HYDRALACTIC] Hydrating Gentle Lotion with Ceramides offers 72 hours of hydration! Yes, you read that right! It’s the ingredient pentavitin that will make your skin feel luxuriously soft for 3 days!
It also contains silverion which has antibacterial properties, salicylic acid, lactic acid and colloidal oatmeal. Your skin will love drinking this body moisturiser up.
And of course our AMPERNA® products include our hero active probiotic complex, Lactococcus Ferment Lysate to further support and strengthen the skin's barrier, delivering good bacteria to your skin gently and effectively.
TIP: Apply your moisturisers to damp skin after cleansing/showering to lock in as much moisture as possible.
Don’t Shy Away from SPF
In case you are still making this cardinal skincare sin, please do not put your SPF away until the warmer summer months only… So many people are under the impression their skin doesn’t need protection from the sun during winter. This is false.
Everybody needs to be protected and sun smart 365 days of the year, even on cloudy overcast days. Sunscreen all year round is particularly important if you spend a lot of time outdoors working or exercising. Ensure you cover your entire face, neck (front and back) chest and hands and reapply every 2-4 hours depending on the SPF protection.
Exfoliate, gently
Exfoliating the dry dead skin away during winter not only removes dead skin cells and regenerate new cells forming it allows for better penetration of your products to sink into the skin better, hence improving the look and feel of your complexion.
You may want to increase the number of times you exfoliate your skin each week during winter, if you only exfoliate once or twice a week you could increase it to two to three times a week. This will depend on your skin type of course and what exfoliator you use.
[EXFOLIATE] 10% Pro + Resurfacing Lotion is a unique and gentle leave-on exfoliating lotion, containing 10% glycolic acid (AHA) and antioxidants to help calm redness and improve skins texture. You simply apply a pea-size layer overnight and wake up to smooth-as-a-babies-bottom skin in the morning.
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Stay Hydrated and Nourish your Skin from Within
We tend to forgo reaching for a glass of water when the temperature drops, and the air is cooler. Just as our skin is being stripped by winters lower humidity, we’re stripping our skins need for hydration internally. Water intake is vital for our general overall health and organ functions, and we should be consuming at least 2L a day for optimal hydration.
If you struggle to drink water during winter, make it your daily ritual now to sip on water throughout the day instead of trying to gulp a lot in one take. Adding berries, lemon, cucumber, or oranges to your water to add some natural flavour is another great way to make drinking water more exciting. You could also include warming teas like ginger and lemon as part of your fluid intake. Once your body is used to drinking enough water you will find you will be reaching for a glass as you will become naturally thirstier.
Nourish your skin from within with a wholesome balanced diet.
During the colder months it’s easy to overindulge in unhealthy foods, such as hot chips, highly processed foods, highly sugary foods, and alcohol as we curl up more indoors and flick through Netflix. Our bodies crave comfort in the cold weather which is why it’s best to stick to and increase your intake of good healthy fats like avocado and fatty fish, fruit, vegetables, nuts, and legumes. Practising good eating habits all year round is crucial for your overall health. Having a diverse and colourful approach to the dishes you prepare and eat will benefit your health in so many ways as well as keeping your skin looking radiant from within.
An Anti-inflammatory or Mediterranean diet is best when it comes to nourishing your skin from within.
Watch the Temperature
A long hot shower or steamy bath seems enticing during the dark winter nights, but the truth is hot water and overheating is very drying to our skin. Being exposed to excessive hot water dehydrates your skin as it removes necessary oils from the upper protective layer on the skin making you more vulnerable to irritants (try it for yourself, the next hot shower you take notice how red, squeaky, and dry your skin feels).
The same goes for air heating. Air conditioners are like skin vacuums, they suck in all the moisture from out of a room and out of your skin to create the temperature you desire. This effects your epidermis and makes your skin dry.
TIP: Take shorter showers using water that’s not steaming hot. Use comfortable warm water for bathing and cleanse your face using cool water.
Where you can opt for wearing more layers or blankets to keep warm indoors rather than cranking on the heater. A hot water bottle and socks can also do wonders.
