DRY VS DEHYDRATED SKIN AND HOW TO TREAT THEM?
Frankly beginning, if you are as skincare freak as I was sometimes back, dry vs dehydrated skin is just like “potato potahto” to you too. Got the “F.R.I.E.N.D.S.” reference? Anyway, what I intend to say is, for most people, the only difference between the two words is their literal meaning, and for some, even that is insignificant. Your skin can be dry and dehydrated both, you see. So here with this blog, we try to simplify things for you as we are here for that only- sparkle your Swag, nourish your Noor and beautify your skin!
Type vs Condition
Dry skin is a skin type and dehydrated skin is a condition. You are born with a skin type, whereas, the skin condition is temporary. You can see products based on a skin type, not on skin condition. To be clearer, Dehydration of skin is a condition which even people with oily skin can face!

Lack of Oils vs Lack of Water
Dry skin is because of insufficiency of oils (sebum) in the skin. Dehydration is because of lack of water. Hydration refers to aggregating the amount of water in your skin cells, which results in a healthy and smooth complexion. Simply think of a grape and raisin.

Dry vs Dehydrated Skin: Signs and Symptoms
Most of the times, dry skin is genetic and is hard to get rid of, however, dehydrated skin is a temporary thing and can come and go again and again. Dehydration is a result of the environment and lifestyle. Both dry skin and dehydrated skin share some of the traits like Itchiness, sensitivity, dullness etc. The provided diagram very efficiently distinguishes between both along with their mutual symptoms. Hope this helps!

Dry vs Dehydrated Skin: Solutions
In simplest way, if you have dry skin, moisturize. If your skin is dehydrated, drink water. Fluid intake is essential to treat dehydration. Here are some easy tips to treat your skin if you have either of these conditions-
DRY SKIN
- Apply an emollient cream two or three times daily to prevent dryness.
- Take lukewarm showers or baths and avoid excess skin scrubbing.
- Use of gentle, soap free cleansers.
- Apply moisturizers within three to five minutes of bathing as long as the skin is damp.
DEHYDRATED SKIN
- Drink Plenty of Water
- Eat water rich foods.
- Herbal teas.
- Follow a proper skincare routine.
- Sheet Masks– they can help a lot to fight dehydration of skin.
NOTE: Dehydrated skin is temporary, but prolonged dehydration is not good for skin and health as well, so it is advisory to keep a check on hydration!
Happy Skin-caring!
Swaginoor is a team of skin-care enthusiasts, trying to enhance the quality of skin-care around us with our monthly subscription boxes of handpicked sheet masks.