1. Put Down the Soap
Do you wash your dry skin with soap and water? You’re stripping away the skin’s protective natural oils along with dirt and grime.
Switch to cleansing creams, gentle skin cleansers or bath or shower gels with moisturizers, not harsh soap. Your skin should feel soft and smooth after washing, never tight or dry.
“Use fragrance-free, non-detergent, neutral-pH products to cleanse your skin,” says Monica K. Bedi, M.D., a Florida-based dermatologist.
What if you don’t want to give up a lifelong Ivory soap routine?
About 75% of dry skin problems can be solved with one step, says dermatologist Morgan P. O’Donoghue: “After bathing in tepid water, moisturize immediately to help trap water in the surface
3. Rub-a-Dub-Dub, Don’t Soak in the Tub
The longer you're in water, the more skin oils you lose. So limit baths and showers to five minutes or less and use tepid, not hot, water, O’Donoghue says.
Cleaning your face once a day – either morning or evening – should be enough to remove an average day’s buildup of dirt and oil. If your skin doesn't feel fresh, rinse with cool water in the morning and use a cleanser only at night.
cells, then pat dry.
4. Wear Skin-Loving Fabrics
Natural fibers like cotton and silk allow your skin to breathe. When you wash clothes, use fragrance-free detergents that won’t irritate and skip fabric softeners, Bedi sa
5. Live Healthy
Don't smoke! Besides its obvious health risks, smoking damages the skin. Nicotine constricts blood vessels, including the tiny capillaries that feed the skin, which deprives it of the oxygen and nutrients it needs to thrive.ys.”
6. Fight Dry Feet
Low humidity depletes skin of its natural lipid layer, which prevents your skin from drying out. To counteract the lack of moisture in the air, try coating your feet in thick lotion and sleeping in cotton sock
7. When All Else Fails, Seek Medical Treatment
See a board-certified dermatologist if you have one or more of the following symptoms, says O’Donoghue and Bedi. The underlying causes could be diabetes, low thyroid condition, liver or kidney disease, or cancer, especially lymphoma:
- Your skin doesn't improve in spite of your best efforts.
- Dryness and itching are severe enough to keep you awake.
- You have open sores or infections from scratching.
- You have large areas of scaling or peeling skin.s at night.
See a board-certified dermatologist if you have one or more of the following symptoms, says O’Donoghue and Bedi. The underlying causes could be diabetes, low thyroid condition, liver or kidney disease, or cancer, especially lymphoma:
- Your skin doesn't improve in spite of your best efforts.
- Dryness and itching are severe enough to keep you awake.
- You have open sores or infections from scratching.
- You have large areas of scaling or peeling skin.s at night.
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