Don’t Let Winter Catch You Off Guard: 3 Tips For Great Winter Skin

Who doesn’t love the summer? It’s the time of fun in the sun, right? And we all know that we need to take care of our skin when we go outside.  Sunscreen is a common fragrance in the air, especially when you plan on being in the sun all day. 

But what about the winter?  It’s not just when the sun is high and the air is warm that we need to be careful about the harmful effects of UV rays.  Despite being bundled up in the winter, the areas we do have exposed are still vulnerable when we haven’t been using any type of sunscreen.

This is especially true for folks who participate in winter sports and spend a lot of time outside.  Similar to how the sun works in the water (ever notice how your burn is worse when you swim), snow reflects UV rays and you can get burned just as easily.

Here are some tips for taking better care of your skin in the winter!

1. Stay Moist

Particularly if you spend a lot of time indoors with a fire going, your skin is going to be much drier.  Fires naturally remove humidity, even more than your heat pump will.  You probably won’t notice it on your skin immediately, but you’ll notice your lips chapping more easily.  If everything you wear has a static charge, and you’re also enjoying a fire in the hearth, the air in your home is drying out and so is your skin.

Find a moisturizing cream that will help keep your skin supple, especially around your face and hands, which get the most exposure.  If you spend time moisturizing during the summer after dips in the pool, you should spend time doing it in the winter.

2. Use Sunscreen

It seems odd, but as you’ve already seen it’s important to use sunscreen in the winter too.  Find a nice natural sunscreen that doesn’t contain a bunch of extra chemicals for optimal protection.  It’s critical to remember sunscreen when you are going to be playing some type of sport outside for an extended period of time.

3. Don’t Go For The Hot Bath

Especially after a long day outside in the winter cold, the idea of a hot bath just sounds so appealing.  But stay away from it.  Our skin has natural oils that keep it both moist and waterproof, and a really hot bath can do a lot of damage to that oil layer.  We’re trying to stay moist, not just warm.

So instead of a hot bath, take a warm one and don’t stay in for a super long time.  Add some moisturizing treatments to your water to help rejuvenate your skin after the long day outside.

As you can see, just because you’re not exposing your skin as much during the winter doesn’t mean that it’s not being affected by the winter weather.  Between roasting chestnuts over an open fire and going for long sleigh rides with your sweetie, the winter still takes its toll.  However, now you have a few tips to make sure your luxurious skin stays that way throughout the winter season.  Stay warm!