I love winters. They give me an opportunity to take all my winter coats and scarves from deep inside the closet, out, I love sleeping in the warmth of quilts and waking up to the cool morning breeze. The only part of me that isn’t pleased with the winters is my skin. The winter just sucks the moisture from my skin and my skin cries for help.
But I have realized that with little care there would be no reason to shy away from the winters. So bring out your winter collection and keep your skin smiling too.
The Gentle Loving Care your skin needs …
Moisturizing
Winters bring low temperatures, cool winds and low humidity. Our skin without adequate humidity gets dehydrated and fragile. The best way to tackle skin dryness is by applying generous doses of moisturizers after taking a bath. Remember to rub the cream along the direction of the hair follicles.
Choose a moisturizer or a cold cream that contains oil because the skin isn’t producing the required oils to keep the skin hydrated. A homemade moisturizing mask is made by mixing 1 teaspoon of milk with 1 tablespoon of honey and keeping it on for 20 minutes before washing off. You can also massage your body with olive oil after bath or before sleeping, this will make your skin supple.
Exfoliating
For your skin to absorb more moisture, you need to exfoliate that is remove the existing layer of old cells. Now, remember to be gentle on this one as you can harm your skin if you are too forceful. You can use cosmetic products or use natural exfoliators like lime juice with sugar or oatmeal in the milk which also gives your skin a smooth texture.
Hydrating
Water is important no matter what time of year it is, but it is extremely important in the winter. You should drink at least eight glasses of water a day to replenish the water lost out of your skin by the winter air.
Insuring a smile
You want to smile but your lips curve to a frown instead due to the dryness. Winters also bring the worst out of our lips which need immediate attention. Use a highly moisturizing lip balm. Don’t use one with menthol as you will tend to lick it and that dries out the lips even more. Also exfoliate the lips with toothbrush and "brush" your lips in a circular motion, this will remove the dead flakes and leave your lips soft and supple.
Loving your feet
During winters your feet tend to feel left out with all the attention that your face and hands get. They end up looking dry with cracks in the sole. What do you do? Apply an anti crack cream everyday and moisturize it. Wear socks to protect them from extreme coolness.
Eating right
Eat plenty of vegetables and fruits in winter especially the ones which are rich in protein, vitamin A, B1, and B2. These foods include- dairy products, whole grain products, eggs, meat, legumes, and green leafy vegetables. By consuming these types of foods, you can help your skin build up a defense against the elements along with your regular skin care regimen.
Intake of liquids helps your skin to retain the essential oils automatically and acts as a natural protection against dryness.
Make sure you consume diet rich in vitamin C and vitamin E, which are essential to keep the skin soft and supple. Though most of the modern skin care products contain vitamin E, it is advised to drink milk and eat the white of an egg to assure regular intake of vitamin E.
Soaking up the Sun
Do you think your grandmother or even your mother used a cold cream in winter? No, they will tell you that oil massages and sitting in the sun is the maximum limit they went to. This practice not only helps in absorbing heat of the sun but also helps in synthesizing Vitamin D that protects the bones.
Winter care for Skin types:
For Dry Skin
The skin type which really cries out for help during winters is the dry skin. There seems to be no end to the problem because minutes after you apply the cold cream your skin is dry again.
The culprit might be the drying effect of face wash and hand wash that you are using. These can make your already dry skin, drier. So for cleaning your face, use cleansing milks and lotions, followed by a toner.
The type of bath you take also helps you to keep your skin supple, take short warm showers instead long hot baths. Because the longer the skin remains in water, more it dries out. Make sure you apply moisturizer as soon as you get out of the bathroom. Also remember to apply a night cream and other moisturizing creams before sleeping so that you wake with a soft supple skin.
For Oily skin
For those with oily skin, this is the season when their skin is at its best. As it naturally secretes more oil than other skin types, it won’t dehydrate as fast. But just because your skin is oily doesn’t mean that you can skip applying cold cream, you will also need to use the moisturizers and cold creams but ones which are oil free.
This winter, take special care of your skin, the skin after all tells tales about your health.
