The ravages of summer sun on the skin -- both the face and the body -- are well-known, but winter can be tough on the hide, too.
Cold air can dry out your skin, which is not only uncomfortable, but makes you look older, too.
Paying attention to winter skin care is just as important as summer skin care, dermatologists emphasize. Here are three basics of winter skin care that apply no matter where you live:1. Moisturize often in winter.
2. Take shorter, warm (not hot) showers and baths.
3. Keep the humidity level up indoors.
But winter in New England -- where temperatures often dip well below freezing -- is quite different than winter in California or the Pacific Northwest. WebMD asked dermatologists from seven regions to clue us in on what residents of their areas can do to baby their skin all winter long. Here are tips for everyone, from sea to shining sea.
Winter Skin Care: East Coast
East Coast winters can be brutal on the skin. Wintry temperatures on the East Coast can mean the humidity dips indoors when the heat is turned on and stays on, says Robert Greenberg, MD, a dermatologist in Vernon, Conn., and assistant clinical professor of dermatology at the University of Connecticut, Farmington.''The air is very dry and we lose water from our skin to the dry air," he says.
Some residents use wood stoves for heat, further drying the indoor air. And he has to dissuade his patients from shaking off the chill with a hot shower when they scramble from bed. "A [long] hot shower in the morning is not a good idea,'' he says. It's too drying.
Besides the general advice to avoid harsh soaps and use gentle moisturizers, Greenberg tells residents to use mild laundry soaps, too, to prevent skin irritation, especially when it gets drier as the winter goes on.
And "humidify the indoor air," he tells East Coast residents.
Winter sports such as snowmobiling can take an extra toll, especially if it is windy. He reminds sports-loving people to apply moisturizer and protect the facial skin and other exposed areas.
Winter Skin Care: Southeast
''In the Southeast, we can experience extreme shifts in temperature on a daily basis," says Andrea Cambio, MD, a dermatologist in Cape Coral, Fla. ''For instance, it is not uncommon for it to go from the 50s to the 90s in the same day. Added to the equation are very strong ultraviolet rays from the sun.''Besides the typical winter skin care advice – shorter, warm showers, use of a gentle, fragrance-free cleanser, and use of moisturizer -- she stresses sun protection year round. Sunscreen, protective clothing, and hats are a must. Her advice is especially true for visitors, who may be so thrilled to be warm that they forget about sun protection.
Winter Skin Care: South
The Southern states may be the kindest on the skin, come winter. ''Southern winters are kind of benign,'' says Conway C. Huang, MD, associate professor of dermatologic surgery and cutaneous laser surgery at the University of Alabama, Birmingham.He sees a few more cases of dry skin in winter months, but the air doesn't get as dry as in other regions, he says, and humidity remains relatively high.
For winter skin care, he suggests using a cream moisturizer, not a watery lotion, and keeping showers and baths at warm temperature, not hot. "Use a gentle soap, or no soap," he says.Winter Skin Care: Midwest
Midwest winters can be cold, snowy, and windy, especially in Chicago, which has earned its ''Windy City'' nickname, says Mary Massa, MD, a dermatologist and professor of dermatology at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago.When temperatures drop outside, the heat gets turned up inside – stripping indoor air of humidity. Plus, windy days -- in downtown Chicago or the plains of Kansas -- can present special problems, she says. "It increases the dryness problem and adds irritation," Massa says.
Moisturizing every day can help, she says. She tells patients to pick the product based on how dry their skin is. If it’s extremely dry, she says to consider a heavier, cream-based moisturizer. If it’s mildly dry, a lotion moisturizer is probably OK.
For patients who don’t like heavy creams, Massa suggests using a lighter lotion in the morning because it absorbs faster and won't stain clothes as much, and to reserve the heavier moisturizer for bedtime use.
Winter Skin Care: Southwest
States in the Southwest, including Arizona, have low humidity year round, says Bill Halmi, MD, a dermatologist in Scottsdale. "It's exacerbated in the winter," he says. ''People do turn on the heat once in a while in winter.''''In the Southwest desert area, it's a constant battle against dry skin," he says. In the winter, he says, "we need to double our efforts.''
Besides the low humidity, there are a lot of hard water issues, Halmi says. ''If water is hard, and you use bar soap, it won't come off easily,'' he says. His advice: Either use liquid soap, such as a moisturizing body wash, for face and body, or treat the water with a water softener.
He also reminds Southwest residents to continue using sunscreen, even when the temperatures decline in the winter months.
Winter Skin Care: West
Winter skin care advice for those on the West Coast depends on the region they live in, says April Armstrong, MD, a Sacramento dermatologist and assistant professor at the University of California Davis School of Medicine, Sacramento.For instance, she says, ''San Francisco has milder winters and the air is often less drying than inland weather." On the coast, there tends to be more moisture than inland. San Francisco's well-known fog is also good for the skin, she says, because it's high in humidity.
But central California can turn cold and dry in winter. So people there may need to moisturize their skin more.Another important skin care factor: California, as well as Hawaii, has more sunshine than many states in winter, so Armstrong is constantly reminding her patients to wear sunscreen year round.
That's especially true for winter skiers, who can get an extra dose of UV radiation when the sun reflects off the snow.
Winter Skin Care: Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest can get a lot of rain and some snow. Never mind that the moisture level outside is 100% thanks to all that weather. ''When you heat indoor air, the relative humidity is very low," says Paul Nghiem, MD, PhD, associate professor of dermatology at the Washington University School of Medicine, Seattle, and affiliate investigator at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center there.''You are more likely to need moisturizer in the indoor heated air for sure," he says.
He favors moisturizers that contain glycerin. ''Glycerin should be near or at the top of the ingredient list," he says. "Mineral oil should be minimal or absent." The glycerin works better, he says.
Most people don’t put on enough moisturizer, he says. Nghiem advises applying a layer of moisturizer thick enough that it doesn't absorb for about 30 seconds.
To motivate his patients, he reminds them: Dry skin on the face is likely to become wrinkly skin. "Dry skin is also more likely to get rashes."
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