How To Treat Your Dry Or Dehydrated Skin This Summer
When it comes to looking after your skin, the single most important starting point is knowing what kind of skin you have. This will affect how you feel about your skin, what regime you follow and, ultimately, the results you get.
It sounds simple enough but when it comes to dry versus dehydrated skin, this can confuse even the sharpest of beauty aficionados.
In essence: dry skin is a skin type and dehydrated skin is a skin condition. Skin type refers to the skin structure you are born with and requires lifelong management whereas a skin condition is a temporary state that anyone can experience.
Unfortunately, both skin issues can become even more magnified in summer. As the temperature rises and we spend more and more time outdoors, skin is prone to drying out even further, which can affect its appearance.
Here, we take a deeper dive into the differences between dry and dehydrated skin, reveal how to tell which you have and explore how you can get glowy, plump-looking skin all summer long.
Firstly, what is dehydrated skin and what causes it?
The clue’s in the name for this one: your skin is parched and it’s because it’s in serious need of hydration rather than any genetic predisposition to dryness. It can happen to anyone, whether you have oily, combination or a dry skin type.
Despite what you might assume, it isn’t solely caused by the fact you’ve been whacking up the central heating and slack about drinking your 2.7 litres of H2O daily. “Hormonal status will also significantly affect the hydration of our skin, so a shift in hormones can result in skin becoming less hydrated,” says consultant dermatologist Dr Wedgeworth, which is why you might find yourself experiencing more dryness around the time of your period.
Hyaluronic acid is a godsend for dehydrated skin because of its unique ability to hold 1,000 times its own weight in water, creating a ‘moisture reservoir’ in the body. The super ingredient is naturally found in the body but few of us produce enough of it to have skin as baby soft as we’d like.
So, how does dry skin differ?
Unlike dehydrated skin, dry skin means you lack lipids, which are your skin’s oils and natural fats. Lipids are essential to a supple complexion as they hold the skin surface together, adding plumpness to it and helping it to retain water. When lipids are depleted, the skin essentially shrivels and tightens, which can result in a rough and taut-feeling complexion.
Fortunately, you can tackle these symptoms with hardworking ingredients, all of which can be found in Clinique’s Moisture Surge Intense 72H Lipid-Replenishing Hydrator. As well as hyaluronic acid and aloe activated water, this rich formula ups the ante with a trio of lipids to replace those you’ve been missing, designed to secure your skin’s barrier and lock in moisture for up to three whole days — even after washing your face!
What’s more, it contains the ancient Chinese cica herb, famed for soothing redness and irritation for those days when your skin really isn’t playing ball.
How can I tell which skin type I have and what’s the best way to treat it?
It can be hard to determine whether you are suffering from dry or dehydrated skin just by looking. “Both dry and dehydrated skin can appear dull, lines may be exaggerated and the skin may feel rough, dry and flaky,” says Dr Wedgeworth. “The difference is really how enduring the trait is, rather than the individual characteristics.”
Think how long you’ve been managing dry-feeling skin for — if it’s persisted longer than a few months and hasn’t improved with changes of weather and a skincare switch-up, you can most likely conclude that dry is your skin type. If the taut sensation only sticks around for a few days, then your skin is probably just dehydrated and in need of a bit of TLC.
Unfortunately, you can’t change your skin type but you can certainly manage it with the right products. Regardless of whether you have dry or dehydrated skin, you should go with gentle, hydrating products like milk cleansers and mineral SPF products and choose very wisely when selecting a moisturiser — this will be the hero item in your skincare regime.
As for the rest of your skincare, it may be a case of doing some detective work to find out what does — and what doesn’t — work for your skin. “Try and work out which part of your skincare might be dehydrating,” advises Dr Wedgeworth. “Give acids, retinoids or scrubs a break for a bit and then reintroduce them one by one to see which ingredient might be drying out the skin.”
Choose wisely which products to keep and which to throw away and you’ll have glowing, plump summer skin in no time.
Originally published at https://www.refinery29.com.
