Regenerating care for dry and damaged hands
Hands are our calling card - they should be beautiful, smooth and well-groomed. They should, but sometimes... it varies. The skin of the hands is extremely delicate, easily irritated and dry, and develops wrinkles and other symptoms of aging relatively quickly. In addition, it is exposed to the destructive effects of external factors such as sun, wind, frost and detergents. We usually do not spend as much time and energy on the care of the skin of our hands as, for example, on the care of our skin or neckline. This is a serious mistake. How can we make the skin of our hands regain a beautiful, healthy appearance and become our calling card in the positive sense of the word?
Specificity of hand skin
The skin of the hands is characterized by a very thin subcutaneous tissue, which makes it very susceptible to injuries, manifesting themselves in the form of wounds, scratches, etc. Additionally, this phenomenon is intensified by the lack of sebaceous glands, and therefore the lack of natural protection in the form of a hydrolipid coat. At the same time, many sweat glands are located in the skin of the hands, which causes the dermis to quickly lose water, become dry, chapped and prone to irritation and micro-injuries.
Factors negatively affecting the condition of the skin of the hands
Apart from the structure of the dermis itself, some harmful factors also influence the drying and destruction of the skin, including:
- sunlight,
- too high or too low temperature as well as sudden temperature changes or low humidity,
- detergents, liquids for washing dishes, floors, etc., and sometimes even some cosmetics,
- too frequent contact with chlorinated water,
- not protecting the skin against mechanical injuries (e.g. working in the garden without gloves).
Taking into account the above comments, during daily or regenerative care of the skin of the hands, you should first of all eliminate harmful factors and select cosmetics that take into account the specific properties of the skin.
Proper daily hand care
Daily care should be based on three basic activities:
- cleansing,
- moisturizing,
- security.
When it comes to cleansing, the best practice is to wash your hands in lukewarm or warm, but not hot, water, as the latter washes away the natural protective layer and causes the skin to dry out. For the same reason, it is better to give up traditional alkaline soap. For washing, choose gentle cleaning agents with an acidic or neutral pH. It is best if they contain a moisturizing component, e.g. cream or vegetable oil. Hands should be thoroughly dried after each washing. However, they should not be rubbed violently, but dried gently.
You should also exfoliate your hands at least twice a week. Thanks to this, we will remove dead epidermis, gently brighten the dermis, reveal healthy skin and better prepare it to absorb the active ingredients contained in cosmetics. When cleansing the skin of your hands, fine-grained or enzymatic peeling works best.
After each washing, you should also apply a moisturizing cream to your hands. The cream should be adapted not only to the condition of the hands, but also to the season. In summer, a delicate moisturizing cosmetic is enough. In winter, your hands should be additionally protected and greased. In general, a hand care cream should contain four basic groups of ingredients:
- moisturizing e.g. goat milk, glycerin, silk proteins,
- soothing, e.g. chamomile, allantoin, panthenol,
- protective, e.g. aloe, vitamin C and E,
- regenerative, e.g. plant extracts and oils (e.g. grape seed).
These are basically recommendations for traditional daily care. But what to do when the problem is a bit more severe and your hands are dry and damaged?
Home regenerative treatments for hands
At home, you can treat your skin with vitamin A and E. You can also successfully prepare your own cosmetics, e.g. from olive oil and lemon juice , or prepare a regenerative and soothing hand bath based on grape seed oil or sunflower seeds . After such treatment, cover your hands with a thick layer of nourishing cream, put on gloves and wrap your hands in a towel. Under the influence of heat, the nutrients contained in the cream will be absorbed faster. This treatment will have a great impact not only on the condition of our hands, but also our nails. Dry, chapped or irritated skin will become softer, silky, smooth and better moisturized, while dull, brittle or splitting nails will be better nourished.
An alternative treatment that can be performed at home is a paraffin bath. Paraffin intended for this purpose can be purchased at a pharmacy. This is a perfect way to regenerate dry and damaged hands. Paraffin lubricates the skin, creating a kind of coat on its surface that protects against excessive water loss. Moreover, paraffin has the ability to retain heat, thus stimulating circulation and opening pores. As a result, the skin becomes more relaxed, better supplied with blood, soft and elastic.
Help in a professional office
If the problem is advanced, home treatments and drugstore cosmetics may not cope with it. Then it is worth going to a professional salon. The beautician will assess the condition of our hands and select the appropriate treatment. In some cases, a circulation-stimulating, refreshing and regenerative massage, e.g. based on avocado or jojoba oils, is enough.
A paraffin bath may also be helpful, but this time it was performed in fully professional conditions. Hands cleansed with enzymatic peeling and covered with moisturizer are immersed in paraffin heated to 80 degrees. Then it protects against heat loss with gloves. After such a treatment, the skin is visibly moisturized and smooth.
An alternative may be a combination of mini lift and thermo lift . A lifting mask is applied to the hands, followed by a thermoactive mask, which improves the absorption of the preparation's ingredients. As a result, the skin is better moisturized, smooth, nourished and regenerated. In the case of visible damage and sagging of the hand skin, e.g. a natural result of aging , mesotherapy using hyaluronic acid and glycerin may also prove helpful.