April Showers: Skin Care in Humid Climates
Being able to enjoy the warm weather during the summer is delightful, but hot, humid air can wreak havoc on your skin. The excess heat and humidity causes the skin to produce excess amounts of oil, which can lead to an increase in breakouts as well as skin that looks overly shiny. You need to take precautions to keep your skin looking its best when warm weather arrives. Here are some tips from Vanguard Dermatology to keep your skin looking radiant even during the dog days of summer.
Keep It Clean
One of the most important things that you need to do to keep your skin looking good in hot weather is to keep it as clean as possible. This means that you should wash your face at least twice a day to keep the oil from building up when you sweat. Make sure to wash your face with an oil-free cleanser. Using a cleanser that contains salicylic acid is a good idea. This acid works its way into pores very well, assuring that your skin is not just clean on the surface. This will help you to prevent breakouts.
Soak up the Excess Oil
Even if you are careful to wash your face twice a day, you still will have to deal with the buildup of excess oil on your skin that comes with summer sweating. One of the best ways to deal with this excess oil is to use a mattifying product. Mattifying products contain ingredients that will absorb the excess oil that your sweat releases. Look for mattifying products that come in gel or lotion forms for the best results in hot, humid climates.
Go Easy on the Moisturizer
When you are in a hot, humid climate, you do not have to use very much moisturizer. The humid conditions and your sweat will ensure that your skin will stay moist naturally. In lieu of applying moisturizer, make sure that you apply sunscreen instead. Avoid sunscreen products that contain oils. Sunscreens that use titanium dioxide and zinc are very good options in warm weather. These minerals will actually help to absorb the excess oil that tends to build up when you sweat. Make sure the sunblock you use has an SPF of at least 15, and you should wear it every day. This includes cloudy days.
Exfoliation Is Your Friend
Even when you are very diligent about your daily skin care regimen, you will still often find that it is hard to keep your pores from getting clogged during the summer. The amount of sweating you do when it is hot and sticky out just makes it extremely hard to keep the oil from building up.
To fight against this, you should give yourself a facial at least once a week. Use an exfoliating facial scrub to remove the dead skin cells that can clog your pores. Try to use an exfoliating wash that contains round beads instead of the ones that come with rough grains. This will be gentler on your skin.
When you finish your exfoliation, apply a clay-based mask that will absorb the excess oil that builds up on your skin over the course of the week. If you follow this weekly regimen, you will find that your skin stays beautiful even in the harshest of hot, humid conditions.
