Jan 30, 2008 9:20 am US/Central
Tips To Keep Your Skin From Splitting
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) ―
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Be sure to look at the ingredients of lotions and creams of products in the store and make sure that petrolatum or petroleum jelly is one of the first ones.
CBS
Even if you don't spend a lot of time outdoors in the cold, windy conditions, you can still find yourself with dry, itchy skin in the wintertime. Just talking about it makes me itch.
I talked to the chief dermatologist at Hennepin County Medical Center, Dr. Bruce Bart. He's been helping people with their skin problems for 40 years.
Bart explained in simple terms why so many of us have such dry, itchy skin in the wintertime.
A big part of what's drying us all out is the loss of humidity in the air indoors. Bart said when we turn the heat on inside our homes and work places, it sucks the humidity out of the air.
Now if you really want your lotion or moisturizer to work, Bart said you first have to soak in bath tub or take a long shower. You need to soften up your skin so it can absorb what you put on it.
"Water soaks into dry top of skin like a sponge, and then when you put moisturizers on you trap the moisture in the skin. Putting moisturizers on dry skin doesn't do much. It is just like a dry sponge, when you put something on it, you see it sitting right on top of a dry sponge," he said. "So (use) moisturizers immediately after the skin is wet. You take a shower, don't even wait 30 seconds. Get out the shower, shake the water off the skin, put the moisturizers on right way."
Bart also told me that many people use bath oils incorrectly.
"Bath oils should not be put in the bath tub before getting in the bath tub, because then the oil coats the top of the dry skin and the moisture never has a chance to penetrate through," he said.
Bart said you should first soak in the water and then add the bath oil after a few minutes, allowing it to penetrate your softened skin. Otherwise, it just coats your skin and doesn't sink in to moisturize.
He also said that most home humidifiers are not able to really help alleviate dry skin problems. They just don't put enough moisture in the air.
"People think that getting a humidifier ... that will be helpful inside their house. But because of the very cold dry weather, humidifiers ... if they were to be in the least effective, there would have to be an inch coating inside your windows throughout your house," he said.
He gave me some examples of products he's seen work well over the years. First and foremost: petroleum jelly. Yes, he says good old Vaseline is one of the best moisturizers you will find.
Some other good ones are Eucerin and Aquaphor. He said to be sure to look at the ingredients of lotions and creams of products in the store and make sure that petrolatum or petroleum jelly is one of the first ones. Those will be the most effective.
As for soap, he recommends cleansers that don't have harsh detergents in them, things like Dove soap or Neutrogena.
Other advice from Bart:
• Try not to use really hot water every day for your shower and baths. That dries out the skin.
• Avoid harsh soaps with a lot of detergents. Expensive scented soaps are often not worth the money and can irritate your skin.
• Be careful with exfoliating scrubs. They can scratch off your natural oils.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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