Dr. Raghuram Chilakapati

You are most likely to experience dry skin during winter because of the cold temperature, and lack of sunlight and dry environment. The lack of moisture causes your skin to dry up, giving it a cracked, flaky and scaly texture. This season demands a careful skin care regimen, and here are some tips on how you can take care of your skin during the winters.

1. Consult a specialist: You should visit a dermatologist for an analysis of your skin type. Based on this, your dermatologist will recommend a skin care regimen to be followed during the dry months. Using the prescribed skin care products will benefit your skin and prevent it from getting dry. Both high-priced and low-priced skin care products are effective in protecting your skin.
2. Moisturise your skin: Your skin care routine and use of moisturisers have to change during the winter. You need to get a new moisturiser instead of the one you use during other seasons. You need an oil-based moisturiser instead of a water-based one. The oil will help in creating a protective layer on your skin surface, which helps in retaining moisture. You can use night creams which are mostly oil based. For your face, you need to apply moisturisers that contain non-clogging oils. This includes mineral oil, avocado oil, almond oil, or primrose oil. Lotions which contain humectants are also effective for winter skin care.
3. Apply sunscreen: Sunscreen is not just for the summer season. The winter sun can cause damage to your skin as well. Hence, you should apply sunscreen on your face and hands before going out on a winter day. If you need to stay outside for a long time, you must reapply the sunscreen.
4. Wear gloves: The skin on the hands is thinner than other parts of the body and contains less oil glands. This implies that it is hard to keep your hands moist during the cold winter season. This might cause cracking and itchiness. To prevent this, wear gloves while venturing outside. In case you need to wear woolen gloves, wear cotton gloves first for avoiding any kind of irritation caused by the wool.
5. Avoid wet gloves and socks: Wearing wet gloves and socks irritates the skin and leads to itching, sores, cracking, and may also lead to eczema. Keep your gloves and socks dry.

You need to use foot lotions to avoid cracking of your feet and heels. Use lotions containing petroleum jelly and glycerine. You should undergo skin exfoliation to eliminate the dead skin from time to time. This will make the moisturisers and lotions to go deeper and be more effective.