The seasons changing is a great excuse to pack away the shorts and sandals in exchange for cozy sweaters and boots. However, these changes don’t just call for a different wardrobe. Everything in your skincare routine should change too. Cooler temperatures and less humidity also mean spending more time indoors which can deprive your complexion of moisture.
Your skin is affected by every seasonal weather change – and here’s how.
Cooler Temperatures and Lower Humidity
As the autumn and winter months approach, the humidity levels tend to drop as the temperature does. Drier air quality sucks more moisture from your skin, leaving you more likely to experience dry and flaky skin. If your skin is already prone to eczema or other skin drying conditions, cooler temperatures can worsen these conditions.
Harsh Central Heating
Being cooped up indoors surrounded by dry indoor air not only dries out your skin on your face and body, but it also dries you out internally as well. Heated air indoors causes low humidity, which leads to water evaporating from our skin. A lack of moisture in your skin causes cracking, flaking and irritation, leaving the surface with a lackluster appearance. More so, dry mucous membranes leave you with chapped lips, a dry throat, and even chronic nosebleeds from your nasal cavity lacking moisture.
Extreme Temperature Changes
Going from the cold outdoors into balmy centrally-heated buildings and vice-versa can take its toll on your skin. These extreme temperature changes cause the capillaries in the face to contract and expand rapidly, leading to broken veins and skin redness.
Hot Baths and Showers
When temperatures plummet, a hot bath or a steaming shower sounds like the best remedy for a bone-chilling day. After all, there is nothing more relaxing than a long soak in the bubbles to unwind from the day. However, hot baths and steaming showers can dissolve the protective barrier in the skin which will eventually lead to dryness and skin that doesn’t hold moisture. The next time you turn the water temperature control all the way to the right, think of your skin and opt for warm water instead.
Comfort Foods
As the autumn months settle in, comfort eating is soon to begin. For many people with oily, acne-prone skin, the drier weather can help with breakouts by reducing oil production. However, eating a diet high in refined carbs may trigger or exacerbate acne. Snacking on foods with high glycaemic levels spikes your blood sugar. A spike in sugar is thought to increase the levels of hormones in the body that are responsible for oil production.
Combatting Cool-Weather Skin
As soon as the seasons change, your skincare routine should too. Think of your skincare products in the same way you think of your wardrobe – seasonal. Just as you change your clothes with varying temperatures, you should do the same with your skincare products.
- Swap your lightweight summer moisturizer for a more heavy duty face cream.
- Invest in a humidifier to keep the air most in your home or office.
- Keep your entire body moisturized from head to toe.
- Resist the temptation to take hot baths and showers that can lead to dryness.
- Avoid going overboard on carbohydrate-loaded comfort foods.
Invest In Your Skin
The winter months are the perfect time to invest in your skin. A facial will give your skin the nourishment and moisture it craves when the air is dry and cold. Revitalize your gray winter skin and leave it looking like you will never need to wear makeup again with treatments from Laser Aesthetic Center.