Winterize Your Skin
By Faith Jansen
‘Tis the season where we feel the effects of the changing weather physically and emotionally, and our skin has to adapt to these changes as well. A little prevention goes a long way towards supporting the healthy function of our skin on a cellular level throughout the winter months and every season after.
Most common winter skin problems:
Extra Dry Skin: The central heating in our homes, offices, and cars may keep the chill out, but the heat also robs moisture from the surrounding air, which leads to skin becoming dry, rough, and irritated.
Skin Breakouts or Eruptions: Several dermatologists report that in some cases pimples and other breakouts are more prevalent in the late fall and winter. This could be due to hormonal levels shifting in response to the time of year. Using the wrong cleansers may signal the body to create more oils, causing an imbalance in oil production in the skin.
Skin Roughness: Wearing more clothing in the winter can actually irritate skin. Higher levels of eczema and psoriasis may appear, along with general areas of flakey and itchy skin. There may also be evidence of collagen breakdown with deep cracks appearing on fingers, feet, and the lip area.
Increased Stress Levels: Around the holidays, exhaustion levels are up and we realize we haven’t gotten enough rest, consumed enough water, or followed exercise routines as routinely as we used to.
Hair Growth Cycles: Hair growth slows down in the winter months, but this does not mean we should stop waxing or shaving (men bear with me here, unless you’re a swimmer or cyclist who indulges in these treatments). Friction from pants, tights, and pantyhose can lead to ingrown hairs and rough cracked skin. Thus, we still need our routine salt or sugar scrubs and other body exfoliations.
A few tips and products to use to help these problems:
The Life Cycle of Skin
The epidermis has five layers, and the stratum corneum, the outermost layer, is composed of flattened dead cells attached to each other to form a tough, horny layer of keratin mixed with lipids (fats) that help maintain the hydration, pliability, and barrier effectiveness of the skin. This horny layer has been compared to a wall of bricks (corneocytes) and mortar (lipids) and serves as the primary protective barrier. The stratum corneum itself is made up of approximately 15 layers of these “bricks.” A new layer is formed about every day, and the stratum corneum is completely replaced every two weeks. This cycle is necessary for the maintenance of healthy skin. Water content, humidity, pH, intracellular lipids, and rates of shedding all affect the protective barrier properties of the skin. |
Follow the three-minute rule: Within three minutes of bathing or showering, apply moisturizer to the face and body. Use a toner on the face, which helps create more moisture and assists in the penetration of the product you are using. Another great idea is to use oils directly on your body, while you are still wet, such as almond, apricot, avocado, coconut, sesame, jojoba, or even olive oil. Or just switch to creams or body butters instead of using lotions.
During these winter months you may even consider bathing every other day if your schedule permits. I’ll be the first to admit I love hot baths, which I still think are good for the circulation. You may want to use tepid water rather than hot, especially for the face. Adding essential oils like spruce, rosemary, and sage to the bath and using body washes and cleansers with lower surfactants and creamy gels with formulas that create “low foam” will help retain your body oils. More foam and hotter water create an alkaline and very drying experience for skin. Skin likes to be acidic!
For those who suffer with eczema (dry, scaly patches around the joints and some areas of the face), I recommend trying some of the oils mentioned above along with any products containing rose oil or rose hip oils. Try to avoid lotions with multiple essential oils and alcohol. For psoriasis (silvery flakes on the scalp or body), I recommend trying some of the same oils. For both of these conditions an internal treatment that could help would be fish oils, along with adding flax, pumpkin, walnuts, or hemp products to meals. Some studies indicate a connection between both of these conditions and allergies and erratic eating patterns, such as skipping meals or eating under stress.
Oatmeal baths are a wonderful addition to treating the skin. Wild Carrot Herbals, an Oregon company, makes a wonderful oatmeal bath, along with healing — and not too stimulating — body washes and treatment creams. Dr. Hauschka skin care products use peanut oil and essential rose, which are homeopathically combined to support the healthy function of the skin. Another wonderful product is MyChelle’s relatively new X-zema Balm, which includes rosehips, St. Johns Wort, chamomile, and calendula, all organic.
A
t this time of year we need to focus on reinforcing the skin’s natural barrier function. I encourage exfoliation and body treatments, such as algae masks for the face and body and herbal wraps to help the body detoxify. Then layer on products instead of just using one heavy cream, especially on the face. Choose oils and body butters for the body, and for your face look for products made from phospholipids; glycerin; vitamins A, E, and C; shea butter; hyaluronic acid; Panthenol (vitamin B5); Beta Glucan; and polypeptides which are mostly derived from algae. Experiment with serums and masks, and don’t forget the SPF on the sunny days. Remember, skin care is day-to-day maintenance. Hydrate from the inside out and the outside in, and you’ll keep that healthy glow throughout this winter season. n
Faith Jansen, DT, is a licensed esthetician. She is a body care specialist at New Seasons Market, located in Lake Oswego, OR. |
