Hi, it's us, your favorite team of Licensed Estheticians at Nickel & Dodge. We started a blog! Now whenever you have a question you will have all of our collective knowledge at your fingertips! This week we are helping you get your skin ready for winter. It's officially dry and cold in the northern hemisphere so here are some solutions to ward off itchy dry skin.

Hydrated supple skin requires a multifaceted approach. Water, exfoliation, humectants and ceramides combine to create a targeted treatment plan.

Hydration comes from within first and it is common knowledge that 8 glasses a day is the minimum amount of water an adult should drink. A few more glasses won't hurt though, especially during the dry winter months. Stay hydrated not only by drinking water but also be sure to eat a diet rich in minerals and omega fatty acids. At the studio we all enjoy drinking a Liquid I.V. and taking HUM OMG omega supplements daily to help increase our ability to utilize the water we consume.

Now, on to the outside. Have you ever been in the desert during a monsoon downpour? It almost always flash floods. This is because the top soil or clay is pert near completely dehydrated and the water can't pass through to moisten the soil below. The rain water will pool on top and eventually evaporate. Your skin is a bit like this. Exfoliation can help remove some of the superficial debris and dead skin that is preventing your moisturizer from hydrating your living cells. 

We have two options for exfoliation, chemical and mechanical. Chemical exfoliation utilizes enzymes and acids to help loosen cellular debris while mechanical exfoliation uses physical friction to scrub or scrape away the dead skin. The optimal technique will vary depending on skin condition and area of the body.

For your face, a gentle chemical exfoliation with an enzyme mask 1-3x a week is our preferred method. Our current favorite is Sorella's Papaya & Pumpkin Mask. It is great for sensitive skin and has added brightening and hydrating benefits.

The skin from the shoulders down can tolerate mechanical exfoliation in addition to chemical. Although loofahs turn the most basic of body washes into a luxurious, creamy, foamy lather they really don't do much as far as exfoliation. A LuvScrub is what we recommend for use on the body. The LuvScrub is made of fast drying nylon to prevent bacteria growth! It has stretch and length that makes scrubbing your back a breeze, great for back acne! 

A good moisturizer will contain both humectant and occlusive ingredients. Humectants help to draw moisture to the epidermis. The moisture can either come from the dermis or external sources such as the air in humid conditions. Occlusives help trap the moisture in the skin to help minimize transepidermal water loss (TEWL). TEWL occurs when water passes from the dermis through the epidermis and evaporates from the skin’s surface, this is known as transepidermal water loss (International Journal of Pharmaceutics). Reducing TEWL will be one of the most critical actions in keeping your skin smooth to the touch and comfortable to live in day to day.

Glycerin and Sodium Hyaluronate are common humectants found in skin care formulas. Both can be found in Face Reality's Hydrabalance. 

An example of an occlusive ingredient is ceramides. Ceramides are lipids that help form the skin's barrier and help skin retain moisture. Without the proper ratio of ceramides, the skin's barrier function can become compromised. A compromised barrier leads to inflammation and itchy dry skin. Safflower oil, which is present in Face Reality's Clearderma moisturizer, is a balanced and acne safe ceramide to help even the most breakout prone skin stay moisturized through fall and winter.

If you have keratosis pilaris (aka "chicken skin") we recommend using mechanical exfoliation (luvscrub) and chemical. AmLactin is a wonderful drugstore moisturizer utilizing lactic acid (chemical exfoliant), humectants and ceramides to hydrate. 

If you need a targeted treatment plan to seriously infuse your skin with moisture, a professional facial appointment or virtual skin care consult will lead you to a curated regimen just for you

Thanks for reading! Let us know what other topics you would like us to include in our blog!

XOXO,

Your skin care experts at N&D