Dry Skin
Dry Skin
Life can be hard on your skin. So many showers, baths, and swimming pools. So many hours in the sun, wind, and rain. Like the natural forces that can erode mountains, these everyday experiences have the unfortunate power to erode the skin’s protective layer of lipids, or oils.
By the time you’ve seen the passage of 22,000 days or so, your skin has been through a lot. Whatever it shows on the surface, just underneath it’s wearing a bit thin—and where skin cells are skimpy, your body has a harder time holding moisture. The diminished lipid layer no longer holds moisture very well, says Norman Levine, M.D, professor and chief of dermatology at the University of Arizona Health Sciences Center in Tucson. And when you have only a skinny layer for moisture storage, you tend to get dry, sensitive skin.
But you don’t have to give in to the forces of nature. You can even counteract the wear-away work of the elements that are against you. As it happens, there are a number of ways you can recapture your lost moisture. Here’s how you can literally save your skin.
Try This First
Rebuild your barriers. The best answer to dry skin, say Dr. Levine and other experts, is to rebuild your skin’s protective barrier with a good moisturizer. Apply it all over at least twice a day. The moisturizer can replace some of the missing elements that used to allow your skin to retain fluids and keep itself moist.
Almost any moisturizer is fine, says Guy F. Webster, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of dermatology at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. “Even petroleum jelly is a good moisturizer because it seals the skin and prevents moisture from being exposed to air and then evaporating.” Dr. Webster also notes that when purchasing a moisturizer, you should look for the ingredient urea acid or lactic acid. The better moisturizers will contain one of those.
Other Wise Ways
Go for a lipid cleanser. Most soaps contain detergents that break down and wash away the skin’s natural oils, which is precisely what you don’t want to happen. When you wash, use a gentle soap substitute that is designed to cleanse your skin without removing the oil. Look for body washes that contain lipids. (Lipid cleansers will have an oil such as mineral, linseed, castor, or soybean oil listed as part of the ingredients.) These products are gentle on the skin and are excellent moisturizers, says Mary Ruth Buchness, M.D., chief of dermatology at St. Vincent’s Hospital and Medical Center in New York City and associate professor of dermatology and medicine at New York Medical College in Valhalla. Cleansers that contain lipids include Nivea Visage Gentle Cleansing Lotion, Noxema Plus Cleansing Cream, and Ponds Cold Cream Deep Cleanser.
Lather up with moisturizing soaps. There are many moisturizing soaps available. Among the most widely recommended by dermatologists are Basis for Dry Skin or Neutrogena Dry Skin. Other good soap substitutes include Cetaphil or Phisoderm.
Or go the water route. The fact is, you don’t have to use a soap or soap substitute all over your body. Just wash your face, hands, and odor-producing areas of your body such as your armpits and groin. Just rinse off the rest, suggests Dr. Levine.
Ration your bathing. It seems ironic, but one of the greatest threats to a skin’s ability to stay moist is water itself, especially when it’s piping hot. Hot water is especially destructive to the skin’s natural oils, says Dr. Levine. Bathe as infrequently as possible, he advises, especially in winter when the air is dry. Once every two, three, or even four days might be enough for you. And when you do take a bath or shower, use lukewarm water and avoid lingering too long.
| Managing Your Meds Many medications can dry out your skin, says W. Steven Pray, Ph.D., R.Ph., professor of nonprescription drug products at Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford. Drugs prescribed for edema (water retention) are meant to dry out the body. These include loop diuretics such as furosemide (Lasix), and potassium-sparing ones, for example, triamterene (Dyrenium). And many high blood pressure medications, for example, chlorothiazide (Diuril), have a similar diuretic effect. If you are currently taking medication and are concerned about dry skin, ask your doctor about the side effects of your medications. But be sure you don’t drop any medication, especially for high blood pressure, unless your doctor is informed and gives consent. |
Leave a little water behind. After your shower or bathe, pat yourself dry, leaving a little moisture on your skin, advises Dr. Buchness. Then apply your moisturizer. By applying your moisturizer on top of your slightly wet skin, you are sealing in the moisture and thus preventing it from escaping.
Hydrate with alpha hydroxy. Doctors may argue over the value of alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) for eliminating wrinkles. But AHAs can remove dry, dead, and scaly skin and then moisturize the new tissue below. AHA moisturizers, which are made from milk, fruit, and sugarcane, trap water and hold it within your skin. By eliminating dead cells and plumping up the new ones, these moisturizers help keep your skin moist and youthful, says Dr. Buchness.
Give your skin a vacation. Before you go on your next vacation, consider what the climate will be like. “Very often, people who suffer from dry skin don’t think about where they go on vacation and then find that their skin is even drier and more irritated when they go,” explains Dr. Buchness. If you’re in a humid place like New Orleans, your dry skin condition may ease a little. But what if you head for Arizona, where the temperatures are high and the humidity is down in the single-digit figures? That’s just the kind of place where your skin could be most miserable. Instead, plan a trip to a place where your skin will get relief, too.
