SKIN CARE in WINTER TIME

source: Indiana daily paper (lifestyle page)
Protect the skin in moisture using emollients, not lotions, for winter. Moisturize your skin when winter with the following products recommended by area dermatologists: Olay Body Quench-Lubriderm-Neutrogena-Dove-Eurcerin-Curell

Or check for the following ingredients in your current lotions and creams to see if these emollients are included in the products you already use. The ingredients listed below are best to use on the skin in winter.

Avocado Sterols - Butyl Myristate - Caprylyl Glycol - Ceyel Acetate - Cetyl Oleate - Cyclomethicone - Demthicone Copolyol - Glycerol Stearates - Isopropyl Palmitate - Jojoba Oil - Lanolin - Methyl Palmitate - Polyglycerol - Propylene Glycol - Linoleate - Squalene - Sucrose Oleate - Sunflower Seed Oil - Glycerides - Tall Oil Glycerides - Wheat Germ - Glycerides (source: Dr. Heather Brandon on http://www.about.com/)

It's normally if the dry air, wind and cold can cause problems for just about any skin type and exacerbate existing skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis.

As consumers we are bombarded with advertisements for moisturizers, serums and cremes that claim to cure, heal and soften the dry skin that has become our cold weather enemy.

Choosing the right product to help soothe your dermis can mean the difference between reclaiming your smooth skin and scratching yourself silly.

Today the products are as veried as the consumers who buy them and offer different benefits to target certain skin condition, such as wrinkles and puffiness. Learning what type of ingredients to look and what to avoid can help to find the right product for your budget.

"In the winter you want sort of a cream-based product, an emollient,"said Dr.Hartley M.Thomas with advanced Cosmetic Dermatology.

A cream-based product will add moisture in our skin. In cold weather, avoid such ingredients as alcohols, which will dry, and glycerins, which are oil-based.

Serum and cream are similar. A serum can be made into a creme depending on the consistency desired for the finished product.

Both types of moisturizers can be made with less expensive ingredients such as mineral oil. Thomas said people definitely should try to avoid that. Mineral oil is not ingredient that is going to help a dry skin problem.

Thomas said most people also should want to avoid products with glycolis and salicylic acid this winter time of year. Both ingredients are exfoliants. On winter , an exfoliant will wear down any protective barrier against the elements and promote dryness.

However, in the African American population, a product with an exfoliant should be used prior to moisturizing with a cream-based moisturizer. Thomas said many African Americans suffer from an ashing condition in the winter, where the dead skin builds up on the skin's surface.

Exfoliating , either with an exfoliating product or manually with a product like a loofah, will help remove the dead skin cell, while moisturizing with a creme will help lock in moisture and minimize future dryness.

While cold-weather dry skin is inevitable for most, there are some other step you can take to help minimize the impact of the elements.

"In the winter when you turn on your heat and the air gets dry in your home, your skin tends to get dehydrated,"said Susanne Schultz, esthetician at Skin Spa Service.To combat that dehydration, she suggested putting a humidifier that lets out a cool steam in the bedroom at night. The moisture will help replace what is being pulled from the air by the furnace and minimize the drying effect.She said when you're sleeping there a lots of cell turnover happens.

Her advised :

• Bathing tends to dry winter skin as well and using a hydrating body wash, minimizing time in the shower and soaping only those areas necessary.
• Soap and water can have a very drying effect on skin.
• once out of the shower, don't dry off completely before applying a cream moisturizer.
• The cream will help lock in some of the moisture remaining on your skin from bathing.
• When moisturizing don't to overdo it.
• A lack of natural oils will only make dry skin worse.