Skin Care Post 5: Hydrate & Moisturize
- Jul 14, 2018
- 3 min read
Okay, we are about to embark on one of the most misunderstood yet most important parts of skin care.
Did you know that there is a difference between hydration and moisture? (Am I the only one who missed this?)
THIS WAS THE THING THAT I COMPLETELY MISUNDERSTOOD.
HYDRATION: If your skin needs hydration, it is DEHYDRATED and is lacking water.
Your body (and skin) are hydrated by water. Makes sense, right? If the doctor tells you you are dehydrated, you need to drink more water. So, why does your face get all tight after you get out of the shower? This has always STUMPED me. I was just standing in the water, letting my skin absorb all the H2O, but then I get out of the shower and I feel like a raisin. Let's explain it.
Your skin does absorb water while you are in the shower, but while you are cleansing your face, scrubbing body wash all over, you are also getting rid of your skin's lipid barrier. Simply put: your skin has a barrier in order to keep water in and keep the skin hydrated. If you wash the barrier off, as soon as your skin is dry, all of the water will evaporate and your skin will become dehydrated. This is what happens as soon as you dry off from the shower.
How to solve it?
You have to hydrate your skin again! One of the best hydrating ingredients is hyaluronic acid--heard of it? Acid makes it sound scary, but it isn't at all! Hyaluronic acid occurs naturally in your body! Hyaluronic acid has extremely high water retention, so it is the perfect molecule type to get water back into the skin.
This is the tricky thing: most hydrating products are not called hydrators, they are just called moisturizers. It can be difficult to tell just from the name of a product what the function is. That's why looking at the ingredients can give you a good indication! Hydrators are also going to tend to have a thinner, lighter, more jelly-like consistency rather than a heavier, more oily-like cream.
My #1 ALL TIME FAVORITE hydrator is SeneGence Climate Control (pictured above). When you put it on, it honestly feels like your skin is getting a giant glass of ice cold water! It is SO refreshing and would be my choice if I could only have one skin care product for the rest of my life.
Another example of a hydrator is the Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel. I used up a jar of this and it was a good product! I haven't repurchased it though... I'm still loyal to Climate Control.
MOISTURE: If your skin needs moisture, it is DRY and is lacking oil.
Once you get water back into the skin, you need to rebuild your lipid barrier so that your skin stays hydrated! Moisturizers work to keep the water IN. Moisturizers will generally be a heavier or thicker consistency than hydrators.
If you put a moisturizer on without a hydrator, your skin may feel tight, look dull, and be irritated.
If you put on a hydrator without a moisturizer, your skin may be rough and flaky.
I was always SO CONFUSED when I would wash my face and put on my moisturizer and my skin still felt like it was going to crack! My face desperately needed hydration, not just moisture. I was lacking water, not just oil. Yeah?
There are lots of moisturizer options out there in the world. I use a daytime moisturizer in the morning (a bit lighter of a consistency that will quickly absorb so that I can put makeup on top); an evening moisturizer at night (a thicker consistency that will absorb more slowly while I sleep); and a color-correcting tinted moisturizer (I use the color light, but there is also a medium option available) that is essentially pigmented skin care and has been my go-to for summer coverage instead of thick foundations.
I also use an illuminating eye creme that is specifically formulated for the under eye area. During the winter, I use Nangai oil for an extra layer of mmm mmm goodness (I put it on before my evening moisturizer and I even mix it into my foundation!).
WOW. That was a lot of information I threw your way, but it is honestly the MOST helpful thing I have learned from my research so far about skin care!
XOXO
TIFFANY
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