We all want to avoid dry skin. Not only does dry skin often feel itchy and look less attractive, failing to moisturize properly can actually prematurely age our skin! However, after the cold and dry winter months are over and summer weather arrives, it can be easy to get lax about our skin care routines. Added humidity can make us feel averse to our heavy lotions, but we still need to moisturize! In fact, many people suffer from worsened dryness and irritated skin in the summer season, but don’t know how to deal with it. Read on for our tips to stay supple and glowing this summer.
Stay Hydrated
If you’re a long time reader of this blog, you’ve probably seen this advice more than once. And for good reason! Staying hydrated is probably the single most important piece of advice when it comes to skin health. This is particularly important during the summer months, when added heat causes the body to sweat even more than usual. As the sweat evaporates, we feel cooler, but it can leave our skin feeling thirsty and dry. Do yourself a favor, and buy a cute new water bottle for the summer. This will help your skin stay moisturized and help you to stay healthy and safe this summer. You can also keep hydrating supplements on you for those extra hot days.
Invest In The Right Products
Like I mentioned earlier, the luxurious lotions that feel great in the summer months can feel really heavy in the sweaty summer months. No one wants to feel sticky or like they’re sweating their lotion off! Instead, during the summer months, consider switching to a dry skin face powder. These powders feel lighter on your skin, but work to keep you moisturized and looking amazing. Bonus: They can also provide sun protection!
Wear (the right) Sunscreen
Sunscreen is another very important aspect of skin health, and one that extends past the summer months. To avoid UV damage, some amount of sunscreen should be worn every day. With the seasonal increase in outdoor activities, finding the right sunscreen becomes even more important to keep your skin moisturized. Many of the spray sunscreens that you find at convenience stores have added alcohol, which can inadvertently be tough on your skin. The alcohol helps the product dry quickly, but it also dries your skin out more than you want. Look for alcohol-free sunscreens or moisturizing sunscreens to protect your skin in more ways than one. Also, be sure to utilize cute summer hats and umbrellas to give yourself a bit of a reprieve from the sun.
Limit Your Time In The Shower
There are so many health benefits that come with taking a hot shower, including helping to reduce stress as well as joint and muscle pain. Plus, they just feel incredible. Unfortunately though, long hot showers can actually add to the level of dryness in our skin. Extended time under the running water can start to remove the natural oils in our skin that help protect us, contributing to irritated and reddened skin. To avoid this, reduce your showers to 5 or 10 minutes during the summer or increase your after shower moisturizer routine to compensate.
Look For Fragrance-Free Products
Another thing to consider when you’re searching for skincare products is the chemicals used to make them smell good. Often, these additives can be harsh on our skin, leaving you feeling dry and irritated. Fragrance-free products tend to be more natural and softer on our skin. As a note: “Unscented” and “fragrance-Free” are not the same! Products that are labeled “unscented” typically have added chemicals which are used to mask the smell of other chemicals in the product, whereas “fragrance-Free” products are made without those chemicals at all. The more you know the better moisturized you’ll be!
Taking care of your skin year-round is essential for maintaining a healthy, youthful complexion. Following one or all of these moisturizing tips will help keep your skin looking and feeling its best.
