Oily, Dry, Dehydrated or Combo: The Skin-ny On Skin Hydration

 Winter can wreak havoc on your skin, but the difference in dry skin vs. dehydration begs different approaches in skin care treatments when correcting certain imbalances and damage. 

Here are some quick answers and solutions to these common skin care battles.

Dry or Dehydrated: What's the difference?

Dehydrated skin is lacking water, while dry skin is lacking oil, or sebum, which is produced via the pores on your face. In short, dehydration is essentially environmental, and dry skin is a result of few or smaller pores, depending on your skin type.

A combination of dehydrated and oily skin could become a result for some people.

Skincare Combat:

For dehydrated skin, drink lots of water, daily. Your body is made-up of around 60% water and needs to stay hydrated for cells and organs to function correctly. The recommended minimum is 8 glasses a day, although more may be needed for people who remain active through work or exercise.

Water keeps skin cells hydrated and working to keep wrinkles away by plumping them, making them look less wrinkled. Also, water flushes impurities and toxins out of the system keeping your face fresh and clean, reducing breakouts and acne.

Common signs of dehydrated skin include redness, lots of congestion, and inflammation.

Dry skin, on the other hand, tends to be uncomfortable, flaky, and itchy. The worst areas are typically near the eyebrows and around the corners of the nose and mouth.

For all skin types:

Don't over exfoliate! It is easy to spot clients that come in for treatment who tend to use a daily facial scrub, particularly with a harsh, grainy texture. The result is red, flaky skin and acne breakouts. Dehydrated skin can cause oil glands to overproduce when exfoliating daily, resulting in this unwanted combination.

DO exfoliate at least once or twice a week. This helps to remove dead skin cells that cause a dull look and can keep your facial pores clogged and unable to absorb a moisturizer. It also aids in skin cell regeneration. 

Don't rub the product into the skin however, this can cause tiny scratches to let in bacteria, and can also push dirt deeper into pores. First, wash your face with a regular cleanser, lightly scrubbing in circles around the face to lift dirt and debris away. Then you can spend extra attention exfoliating on the T-zone still using the circular motions, which consists of your forehead, nose and chin area.

Apply moisturizer while your skin is still wet from washing your face to help absorb the product.

Steer clear of moisturizers (and other products) that contain parabens and other ingredients used as preservatives.

I recommend and have available in store and online, the Pharmagel Clear Medicated Moisturizer for combination skin year-round. It contains Salicylic acid to dissolve skin debris that clogs pores, Vitamin E as an antioxidant, and other ingredients to combat acne while hydrating your skin.

Layering a serum under the moisturizer can help repair your skin, while using a sunscreen over your moisturizer daily is essential to anti-aging and prevents sun damage.

Oaks and Derby Spatique carries a variety of skin care products to keep you looking and feeling your best self.

Remember, your skin is your body's first line of defense to keep you healthy, take care of it so it can take care of you!