Everyone knows that dry skin sucks: you’re itchy, your makeup looks cakey, etc., but did you know that most breakouts that I have seen in my studio are due to overly dry skin. Most premature aging and wrinkles can be plumped by just drinking more water and using the right products on your skin. Crazy huh!?
Of course, drinking more water and eating water laden vegetables and fruit will help the situation, but you also need to use the right skincare products to combat TEWL. Transepidermal water loss (TEWL) is when the water inside you evaporates through your skin. We all lose approximately 1 pint of fluid each day from TEWL. If you already have dry skin, it can increase TEWL, leaving you open to dehydration and infection, as well as make you look haggard.
TEWL and dehydration are caused mostly by not drinking enough water but also by the lack of humidity in the environment (Sorry Bend clients!). Using drying products for acne and oily skin, drinking too much caffeine, pool swimming, illness, hormonal imbalance, smoking, stress and travel are also moisture killers.
To repair the damage done and stop it from progressing, you need to be using the right skincare products. Every single person is unique, so my suggestions will be vague. For more detailed, personal suggestions, you will need to schedule a skin assessment so I can see and touch your skin.
Most people go straight for oil or HEAVY creams, well… this will probably cause more problems: like clogging pores, acne, millia and your makeup will slide right off your greasy face. Or people are using essential oils without properly formulating them with other ingredients, drying out their skin even more! Instead, try to find products that are well balanced with emollients and oils. Emollients are ingredients that seal in moisture; my favorite is jojoba oil because it fights bacteria and won’t clog your pores.
Ceramides (lipids) in skincare are also extremely helpful for locking in water. Once you find products that have the right ingredients, you then have to try them on your own skin to see if your skin reacts well. You need to try a new skincare routine for at least a month before seeing if it’s going to work for you. Why one month, because it’s the typical full cycle of skin cell turnover (one and a half to 2 months for people over 40).
There is a lot to learn about ingredients: ones that are good for your skin, ones that are bad for your skin and overall health and ones that work well enough together to actually make a difference. I have researched this for over 6 years now, so if you would like specific advice on the right products and ingredients for YOUR skin, please set up a skin assessment and maybe a product assessment (I look over the ingredients of your current products). There are thousands of brands out there, it pays to have a professional’s advice on skincare products.
