Now that we are well and truly in winter we feel that our skin is dryer and this is due to the cold air. It is important therefore to take great care of it during this period. The most important thing to think about is to hydrate our body thoroughly.
How does the human body protect itself from the cold?
Programmed to never deviate much from its 37°C, our organism is capable of developing a mechanic aimed at creating heat and allowing us to keep a body temperature that remains constant.
Our skin is the most important organ.
Our skin, the only organ in contact with the outside world, is constituted of cells capable of producing heat thanks to the energy provided by food that it processes or by using stocks of existing body fat. It regulates among other things, its temperature through:
– when you are too hot, you perspire. The water that appears of the skin lowers its temperature through evaporation.
– Sebum:the skin secretes sebum that stops the water stored in the body to leave it and therefore avoid body dehydration.
– Hair: it retracts when in contact with cold air and creates thus a type of little blanket above the skin that traps the air, allowing it to warm up and become an insulator.
Skin dehydration is essentially due to a lowering of the surrounding temperature since the cold air causes the skin to lose water.
Why you shouldn’t use a cream on days of very cold weather
Most day creams or made of an emulsion of droplets of oil in water: it is thus water that is first in contact with the skin.
By using your normal hydrating cream, you are putting water on your face. The problem is that it will not protect you from the cold. If you go outside with a wet face, the water that is on top is most likely to get colder.
Yet, the cold burns the skin and that might explain your skin rash.
So, how should you care for your skin to protect it in winter?
1-Favour organic vegetable oils
To hydrate your skin, favour natural products. Choose for example for good organic vegetable oils that will nourish your skin and protect it against the cold. These oils are natural and very healthy for your skin. You may use them on your body and on your face. They are suitable for everyone.
You may use them on their own or mix them as you wish: it may be useful for example when using vegetable butters that have a thicker texture and do not spread over the skin very easily.
- cocoa butter (brings elasticity and tonus to your skin)
- argan oil (favours de regulatory ability of the skin to retain its hydration)
- avocado oil (protects dry and very dry skin types)
- hemp oil (smooths your complexion and rubs out rashes)
- macadamia oil (nourishing and activates micro-circulation)
- castor oil (rich in fatty acids and vitamin E)
For everyone: hydrate your skin at night, but also in the morning before getting dressed.
2-Adapt your food
It is also paramount to drink a lot of water, tea or soup so as to ensure that your body is not lacking water. It seems we have this reflex in summer but we often forget to do it in winter. Yet we perspire in the same way when we go from very low temperatures outside to the high temperatures in our homes.
The choice of your food too will impact on the elasticity of your skin. Food that contains Omega3 worthwhile. They are rich in essential fatty acids (you will find them in fatty fish, rape oil or also in hazelnuts). Industrial food that contains saturated fats worsen the phenomenon of skin irritability. Furthermore, will also hydrate your skin naturally and ensure a better elasticity.