Winter Skin Survival guide!

Winter is near and we have been seeing a lot of dry skin in clinic over the past few weeks! A combination of increased heating, cold dry climate and perhaps even the chlorination of Christchurch water is to blame. Here are my top five tips for healthy winter skin

1) Lower the Thermostat

When it’s chilly outside, what’s the first thing you want to do? Crank up the heat! But heat dries your skin out big time! Whatever you do, don’t let any heaters blow on your face – going from a hot environment and into the cold air dries the skin out and shows off the delicate blood vessels, leaving you dry and red. Try an extra layer of clothing or a snuggly blanky first, your skin and your power bill will thank you.

2) Modify Your Facial Skin-Care Regimen

Our skin care active ingredients should change with each season, to address our skins current needs, in winter we need to focus on hydration and protecting our skin barrier. Gently remove dead skin cells using a Glycolic acid toner. Glycolic acids remove the sticky bonds between the dead skin cells to refine the skins texture, and helps with hydration. It is also time to upgrade your moisturiser – and sorry people, your supermarket moisturiser is not going to cut it. I absolutely adore Aspect Doctor Resveratrol moisturiser because it is hydrating, gentle, and is clinically proven to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, win!

3) Add a serum Placed on clean skin under your moisturiser, serums are highly active and interchangeable depending on your specific skin requirements. I recommend adding Aspect doctor Hyaluronic Hydrating Serum to your winter skin care regime. This contains Hyaluronic acid, a sugar found naturally in our skin which is water binding to lock in moisture.

4) Apply Sunscreen. Don’t be fooled by darker, dreary days in winter, either. The sun’s harmful UVB rays can permeate clouds and UVA rays are just as damaging in winter as in summer! So before you go outside, apply a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF 50 or higher to all exposed skin.

5) Treat yourself to some Laser! For a fast and supercharged skin boost try a Sciton Nano Laser peel, This treatment gently removes dry, dead skin cells using a laser light while using heat to stimulate collagen, reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, lifting pigment, and increasing skin firmness and texture. It can even help with acne scarring and ither scar types. By removing the dead skin cells, skin care products will soak up into your skin, ensuring you get the best out of your skin care regime.

Winter is also a very popular time of year to have your Sciton BBL treatments. So it is time to sort out that red nose and treat the pigmentation spots which have developed over summer. This client favourite is a medical grade energy treatment with anti-ageing research to back it.

Thank you to all of my clients who have been asking me questions on how to best look after their skin between treatments. If you have any skin related questions drop us a line via private message or come and see us for a free consultation. Stay warm everyone!