Even if you follow a daily skin care routine, many of us are frustrated with the results. It’s hard to be happy with the way your skin looks if it’s sometimes dry, dull or sensitive, which is why skin hydration is so important. With the multitude of serums, moisturizers and beauty programs (like the new trend called skin cycling) available, it’s hard to know what really hydrates the skin and what is a waste of money and time.
In this article, learn how to hydrate your skin from the inside out with healthy diets, hydrating ingredients, dietary supplements, and other tips.
What is skin hydration?
Skin hydration refers to the amount of water or moisture present in the outermost layer of the skin, called the stratum corneum. When the skin is properly hydrated, it is soft, plump, elastic and supple. Adequate skin hydration is important not only to keep your skin looking healthy, bright and youthful, but also to maintain a healthy skin barrier, which promotes overall skin health. When the skin is occasionally dehydrated, it can appear dry, flaky and itchy, and can even develop fine lines and wrinkles. It is therefore essential to take steps to keep your skin properly hydrated to maintain healthy, youthful-looking skin.
How to hydrate your skin and help it stay in great shape?
As we explain in more detail below, many factors play a role in skin hydration, including how much water you drink, what foods you eat, how you cleanse your skin, and the products you apply to its surface. Age, hormones and genetics can also impact how hydrated or oily your skin is.
How to help moisturize the skin
1. Drink plenty of water
How to keep your skin hydrated? First, make sure you’re not dehydrated. Drinking plenty of water helps keep your skin hydrated from the inside out. Try to drink at least eight glasses of water a day. Other beverages that help meet your fluid needs include coconut water, herbal teas, freshly squeezed juices, and bone broth.
2. Eat hydrating foods
In addition to drinking water and other beverages, you can stay hydrated by eating foods that are high in water content. Hydrating foods include: watermelon and other melons, cucumbers, oranges, leafy green vegetables, tomatoes, and most other fresh fruits and vegetables.
3. Lather up your moisturizer
How can you help hydrate your face overnight? Morning and evening, it is essential to apply a moisturizer to your skin, including after bathing, showering or washing your face. A good quality moisturizer helps maintain skin hydration by replenishing the skin’s natural oils and minimizing water loss. Look for moisturizers that contain humectants, emollients, and occlusives that provide optimal hydration in different ways. Humectants draw moisture to the skin, such as glycerin, hyaluronic acid and urea.
Emollients help soften and soothe the skin, such as shea butter, cocoa butter and jojoba oil. Occlusives seal in moisture, such as petrolatum, mineral oil, and beeswax.
Aloe vera contains properties that help moisturize and soothe the skin.
4. Use a mild cleanser and don’t wash too much.
If you have dry or sensitive skin, it’s best to avoid soaps that contain drying ingredients or use them sparingly if necessary. Look for mild, fragrance-free soaps designed for sensitive skin and containing moisturizing ingredients like glycerin, ceramides and coconut oil. Wash your skin once or twice a day (morning and evening) to avoid removing too much sebum. Try to avoid long, hot showers, which cause the skin to lose water.
5. Exfoliate
Exfoliation can help remove dead skin cells, but it’s important to do it gently. Avoid using harsh scrubs or over-exfoliating (eg daily) as this can negatively impact the skin barrier and lead to dryness.
6. Avoid drying/irritating products
Harsh soaps and cleansers can strip your skin of its natural oils, making it dry and irritated. Common ingredients found in soaps and other products that can dry out your skin, especially if used in excess or on a regular basis, include:
Sulphates
Perfumes
Alcohol
Triclosan
Salicylic acid (may be suitable for oily skin, but is too aggressive for dry skin).
7. Be careful not to burn your skin
Hot water can strip your skin of its natural oils, making it dry and dehydrated. Opt for lukewarm or cool showers instead, or try taking brief hot showers when it’s cold outside.
Sun damage can also dry out your skin, so don’t spend too much time in direct sunlight without applying sun protection factor (SPF).
8. Apply hyaluronic acid
One of the best ways to moisturize your skin is to apply ingredients directly to clean skin that help retain water. That’s what hyaluronic acid does: It retains water in your skin, plumping it up and reducing the appearance of dark circles under the eyes or wrinkled, dry or frizzy skin. You can use hyaluronic acid once or twice a day on clean skin, under thicker moisturizing creams and lotions.
9. Look for products with antioxidants
Antioxidants, especially when combined with a healthy diet and collagen supplements, can support skin elasticity as they help promote healthy skin volume.
Look for skin care products containing ingredients such as vitamin C, vitamin E, green tea extract, resveratrol, coenzyme Q10 and niacinamide, which promote a healthy skin barrier.
10. Use a moisturizing face mask weekly
There are many hydrating face masks that can help hydrate your skin and promote healthy skin tone and texture. Look for masks containing ingredients such as hyaluronic acid, glycerin, or honey, which help moisturize the skin. Be careful not to overuse masks or other products containing kaolin clay and charcoal, which are ideal for people with oily skin.
11. Get a humidifier
How to help moisturize dry skin? A humidifier adds moisture to the air, which can help keep your skin hydrated. Keep a humidifier in your bedroom near your bed, as well as in your office or home where you spend a lot of time.
12. Don’t smoke
Smoking can damage the collagen and elastin fibers in your skin, leading to premature aging and dryness. Quitting smoking can help improve the overall health and appearance of your skin, as well as benefit the rest of your body, including your lungs and immune system, in many other ways.
Bonus: Extra skin protection
1. Wear sunscreen every day
You’ve heard it before, but applying sunscreen really is one of the best tips for summer skin. In fact, dermatologists recommend wearing sunscreen all year round, including in the winter. Apply a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher to your face every day to protect yourself from the sun’s harmful UV rays.
2. Take collagen protein supplements
Collagen is a protein that provides structure and elasticity to the skin, helping to combat loss of skin volume and the appearance of fine lines and crow’s feet. Although collagen itself does not directly hydrate the skin, it does help retain moisture and promote overall skin health. The production of collagen by our body decreases due to natural aging and other factors. Therefore, by increasing your collagen intake through diet (collagen-promoting foods and collagen-rich foods) or dietary supplements, you can give your body the building blocks it needs to produce its own collagen. and improve the appearance of your skin, including crow’s feet and complexion.
