Preparing Your Skin for Winter

Before you venture out into winter’s cold and winds, medical esthetician Emily Doster, RN, LVPG Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, has tips to help you keep your skin hydrated and healthy throughout the season.

“You want to be hydrated from within. Skin is a very inside-out story, so make sure to drink water,” Doster says. “I get a lot of people who say they have tried every lip product out there and their lips are still chapped. It really means they are dehydrated.”

Doster says there are several preventive strategies for shielding your skin from the ravages of winter and the magnified sun-exposure from snow cover:

• Along with hydration, drink hydrolyzed collagen. Collagen provides amino acids that not only help to maintain hydrated skin, but also provide proteins to hair, skin, nails, joints and the digestive system. Hydrolyzed collagen can be stirred into herbal teas, coffee or soup.
• Consider supplementing your home regimen with in-office corrective treatments, such as medium-depth chemical peels, microneedling treatments, laser skin rejuvenation and laser hair reduction.
• Consider adding a humidifier to your home, especially in your bedroom, to help your skin absorb water and maintain hydration.

“Hydrated and exfoliated skin doesn’t wrinkle as easily and also looks dewy and healthy, even during the most brutal winters.” - Emily Doster, RN

• Wear soft, loose fabrics to help retain moisture in your skin.
• Use warm (instead of hot) water. Also, apply your moisturizing products when your skin is damp to allow for deeper absorption.
• If your skin is super dry, consider only washing it once a day (rather than twice). Also, when you wash your face, use a warm washcloth or splash of cool water instead of a cleanser and water on your face.
• Avoid scented products, as fragrances can be drying. Instead, opt for skin-care products, laundry detergents, hand soaps and body lotions that have no fragrance added to them.
• To give your skin a healthy glow during the winter months, add a sunless tanner to your face and body moisturizers.

Regardless of season, Doster says, good skin-care starts with the cleansing basics: removing makeup and sunscreen with close attention to moisturizing and hydration.

“My favorites include a micellar water and/or an oil cleanser [a gentle, nonfoaming cleanser for fall and winter and a mild, gel-based cleanser for spring and summer], a toner [enzyme or gentle acid base – no alcohol] and a season-appropriate moisturizer,” Doster says.

• Jojoba, argan, squalene, grapeseed or rosehip oil, which should be applied before a moisturizer.
• A thin, protective layer of moisturizer (gel-based in the summer and heavier cream or balm in winter) to hydrate the skin.
  • Look for moisturizers that contain essential ceramides and/or niacinamide to reinforce your skin’s protective barrier. This will help prevent and repair sensitive skin.
  • Consider layering a hyaluronic acid product with your moisturizer to help retain your hydration.
• A sunscreen of SPF 30 or higher (to offer the best protection from the sun’s harmful UVA/UVB rays).
• A high-quality antioxidant serum containing vitamins C and E.
• A gentle daily exfoliant, preferably a form of vitamin A (retinol or retinoic acid) that your skin can tolerate. Retinol, which speeds the process of cell turnover, visibly improves tone (evens color), texture (smooths fine lines) and overall skin clarity (fewer visible pores and breakouts). Using these products with a moisturizer can prevent side effects such as dryness or flaking.
  • If vitamin A is not for you, try gentle alpha-hydroxy acids (AHAs) and beta-hydroxy acids (BHAs). Doster recommends blends of lactic and glycolic acids or lactic and salicylic acids. Glycolic acid body wash and lotions can be used to exfoliate dry skin all over your body, including your feet, arms, legs and elbows.

“Lactic acid gently sweeps away dead surface skin, attracts water to the surface of the skin and allows hyaluronic acid molecules more water to hold on to. Hydrated and exfoliated skin doesn’t wrinkle as easily and also looks dewy and healthy, even during the most brutal winters,” Doster says.