How To Relieve Dry, Itchy Skin On Your Face
It’s time to break free from the irritating cycle that is itchy, persistently dry skin. And we’re here to help.
Similar to how oily skin is often plagued with acne breakouts, dryness and itchy skin frequently go hand in hand. And while we’re sure anyone who has to deal with oily skin on the reg would happily trade places with their dry skin friends, it works both ways with dry skin sufferers being prepared to give anything to swap a little extra oil for a lot less itch.
The grass is always greener and all that.
The unfortunate thing is that the amount of sebum (oil) your skin produces is not something of which you have complete control. Yes, you can help balance things out with better skincare and smart lifestyle choices, but your overriding skin type is the one you were born with. Annoying? Maybe. But the good news is that it's usually pretty manageable.
Extreme dryness that’s coupled with dehydration, tightness and makes you want to scratch away at your poor, delicate skin 24/7? Well, that’s a whole other issue.
Why Is Your Skin So Itchy?
Itchy skin (aka pruritus) is basically the evil partner to skin dryness. And while the amount of sebum your skin produces is an important player, there’s also another factor at work. And that’s your skin’s barrier function which is its outermost layer, aka the stratum corneum.
If itchy skin is not the norm for you, this is a red flag that something’s going on with this important protective layer which acts like your skin’s very own personal bodyguard, keeping moisture in and toxins, allergens and irritants out. When this barrier function becomes compromised thanks to things like extreme weather, harsh cleansing, overly active skincare products or even a lack of sleep, it weakens, becomes unable to do its job efficiently and cries out for help. Moisture, oils and important nutrients start to escape way too easily. Not to mention the free rein given to external irritants to do their worst on your skin.
All this can result in serious bad news for your poor skin. Dryness and dehydration are the first signs of a weakened barrier – all thanks to the skin’s inability to retain moisture. Then there’s the redness, sensitivities and inevitable itch. Itching, in particular is all thanks to your nervous system being activated by irritants that have made their way through the weakened barrier.
What To Do About Dry, Itchy Skin: Your Barrier Function Rescue Plan
The most common triggers of a compromised barrier function will come as no surprise. Emotional stress, insufficient sleep, extreme weather, overbathing and environmental pollution are all major contenders, so it's important to avoid these by working on the following things…
* Look after your mental health. Breathing exercises, yoga, even brisk walks are great ways to help reduce anxiety and stress.
* Go to bed at a decent hour and try to stick with a regular sleep routine. It’s also smart to invest in a bedroom humidifier to reduce overnight dehydration.
* Increase your intake of omega-3s and vitamin-rich foods to ‘feed’ your skin from the inside out.
* Stick with lukewarm, rather than hot showers and baths. And don't wallow for too long!
* Keep your air conditioning and indoor heating at reasonable, rather than extreme temperatures – sudden changes in temperature are a killer on dry skin.
Your skincare routine also deserves your undivided attention.
Gentle cleansing is crucial because certain ingredients like harsh alcohol, synthetic fragrance, strong sulfates and unnecessary fillers can really screw with your barrier function. Instead, look for cleansers that are non-stripping and nourishing with ingredients like hydrating hyaluronic acid, soothing oat milk and gentle, skin-friendly oils like sweet almond. Our Soothing Cleansing Milk is a total winner in our eyes.
You should also dial back on exfoliation and reduce your use of active ingredients like retinol and glycolic acid – at least temporarily. Pause them for a week or two until, fingers crossed, your skin recovers. Then you can slowly introduce them back if your skin is up to the job. If not? Well, maybe it’s time to rethink your routine. You could always switch out potent retinol for bakuchiol or niacinamide which both thrive on sensitive skin. Try Rejuvenating Longevity Serum or Niacinamide (B3) Facial Serum.
Then there's the most important step of all: moisturization.
The Best 3-Step Moisturization Regime
Keeping your skin hydrated and moisturized is everything. But it doesn’t begin and end with face cream. To truly ensure your skin has all the moisture it needs, you have to think outside the box and treat it on three different levels.
1. Start With A Soothing Toner
Toner might not be front of mind for dry, itchy skin, but if you steer clear of alcohol-heavy, pore-stripping formulations, the right toner can bring a lot of benefits to the table. Our Rose Water Refreshing Facial Toner, for example, contains only pure Moroccan Rose water (honestly, that’s it!) and is a great way to kick off the ultimate hydration plan, gently toning, refreshing and calming inflammation.
2. Sandwich With A Hydrating Serum
After toning, don’t reach straight for the face cream. Layer up with a facial serum to lavish your skin with a quenching hit of moisture. Serums contain smaller molecules than moisturizers which means they’re able to penetrate the skin at a deeper level, thus tapping concerns that a face cream might otherwise not reach.
Our Hyaluronic Acid Facial Serum is a fabulous choice here, but we also love Smoothing Collagen Serum which simultaneously helps to strengthen the skin barrier with peptides, ceramides and superfruit extracts.
3. Finish With The Best Moisturizer For Dry Skin
Your choice of moisturizer is important. Go too light and you risk not bringing enough moisture to the skin. But go too heavy and you could potentially clog your pores and exacerbate breakouts and itching. The key is to look for creamy emollients that replace lost lipids, seal in water and help replenish your barrier function.
Our favorite moisturizers for dry, itchy skin are Renewing Longevity Moisturizing Cream in the morning and Vitamin C Deep Hydration Night Cream before bed. Of course, UV protection is also non-negotiable so always finish your morning routine with a broad-spectrum sunscreen like SPF 30 Mineral Sunscreen with Vitamin C.
Finally, Know When To Call In The Heavies
Most dryness and itching issues can be dealt with at home, but if your symptoms persist longer than a few weeks, or they get worse despite doing everything you can to keep them under control, it may be worth seeking professional help from a dermatologist. Underlying chronic skin conditions like eczema and rosacea are major culprits for causing dryness, flaking and itchiness, and oftentimes these need more than at-home TLC can offer.
You May Also Like
View More-
![The Easiest (But Most Effective!) New Year Skin Goals]()
Incoming... skincare goals that truly make a difference. Count us in.
We don’t know about you, but years of making pointless new year’s resolutions ‘just for the sake of it’ have made us somewhat over them. Sure, it’s great to have ambitions and personal goals to strive for, but forcing yourself to come up with something, just because it’s the start of a new year? That’s a hard pass from us.
Making skincare goals, however, is something we can totally get on board with. And if you’re reading this you’re probably in complete agreement. Because knowing you’re doing your best for your skin – even if you change only one habit or add just one extra product to your routine – is worth a thousand ‘I shall spend less at Starbucks’ false promises.
So, on that note, to follow are some very doable skincare goals for you to totally crush this year.
DO Reassess Your Skin
Your skin is not the same as it was ten years ago. Heck, it’s not even the same as it was this time last year. So, spend a few minutes taking a good, long look in the mirror to see what’s going on. Are you noticing some redness? Maybe a few extra dark spots have appeared? Perhaps your skin is feeling more dehydrated than it used to? Or, wait, is it weirdly oilier?
You can only deal with skin concerns if you actually know what they are, so make sure you’re totally on the ball with where your skin is at right now. Then you’ll be able to act accordingly with targeted skincare and better lifestyle habits.
DON’T Use Cleansing Wipes On The Reg
Face wipes are fine in a pinch but most of them are doused in drying chemicals that do your skin zero good. Granted, they might be called ‘cleansing wipes,’ but rarely do they actually cleanse your skin thoroughly – instead they simply move surface debris around a bit. Then there’s the fact that they’re mostly made from synthetic, non-biodegradable materials which end up hanging around in landfills for up to 100 (no joke!) years.
You might be tired, but make it a priority to cleanse your skin with a decent face wash morning and night. Try Vitamin C Brightening Cleanser which is so delightful, you’ll actually enjoy using it.
DO Moisturize Skin When Damp
You’ll have had undoubtedly heard this trick before, but we bet you don’t actually put it into practice, right? Well, try it. You see, applying moisturizing while your skin is still slightly damp from cleansing helps to seal in those tiny droplets of water that are left hanging around at the surface. It’s basically free moisture your skin will really benefit from – especially during winter when the air is extremely drying on your poor skin. C’mon, when we put it like that, it seems insane not to.
DON’T Give Up On Retinol
Retinol is one of the most effective topical ingredients for the skin. It deals with premature aging, it helps keep acne under control, it protects your skin from environmental damage, it does your laundry. OK, so that last one is a bare-faced lie, but you get where we’re coming from.
The problem with retinol is that its potency can be hard to deal with – especially during the first few weeks when it can make your skin especially dry, red, flaky and even a little itchy. As long as it’s not causing discomfort, however, a little initial irritation is OK, it’s just your skin adjusting, so don’t give up. Simply reduce your frequency of use as your skin acclimates, then build back up again. Easy.
DO Give Your Neck Some Love
You may be meticulous with your facial skincare routine but if your habits stop at your chin, you’re doing yourself a real disservice. How so? Because your neck is one of the first places to show signs of aging.
The skin on your neck has fewer sebaceous glands than your face, you see, which means it can’t produce as much oil to keep it soft and moisturized. This is seriously bad news in the fight against dry skin, fine lines, wrinkles and sagging because moisture is essential for the firmness and elasticity of your skin.
Whatever you do to your face, continue down to your neck and décolletage area. Cleanse it, tone it, treat it with serum, moisturize it (we love Renewing Longevity Moisturizing Cream for the neck area) and protect it from the elements. It’s the least you can do.
DON’T Fret About Your Imperfections
If we asked you to name something you hate about your skin we bet you could reel off a few without taking a breath. Well, do you know what, those crow’s feet you hate or monthly breakouts that drive you crazy are not worth crying over. You’re not perfect. But big deal, who is? So instead of sweating over the bad stuff, do the best you can for your complexion with a consistent skincare and good lifestyle habits. And, instead of feeling all the skin self-hate, try to focus on the good. Sure, you have fine lines around your mouth, but hey, isn’t your forehead looking pretty fabulous?
DO Trash Old Products That Rarely See The Light Of Day
Skincare products do not last forever. In general, they’re usually good for around one year if previously opened or two years if unopened. Unless it says otherwise on the label, of course.
Go through your vanity and trash anything that’s older than two years. Allowing your products to collect dust in the vain hope you might go back to them one day? Not gonna happen.
DON’T Underestimate Your Bedtime Skincare Routine
Sleep time is crucial for your skin. As your brain goes into rest mode, your skin gets super busy. Blood flow increases to nourish it with valuable nutrients; cell turnover accelerates to bring fresh, healthy skin cells to the surface; collagen production revs up big time and your natural antioxidant system kicks it to help nix any free radicals which may have built up during the day.
If you go to bed with unclean, unmoisturized skin, this whole rejuvenation process becomes compromised. So don’t do that. Make sure you’re doing everything you can to ensure your skin is thoroughly cleansed before bed, then apply your favorite serum and moisturize with Vitamin C Deep Hydration Night Cream.
DO Exfoliate More
As you get older, your skin doesn’t turn over as quickly. What does this mean? Well, when you’re in your 20s the life cycle of a skin cell is around 28 days during which time it’s created, moves up to the surface, then dies and sloughs away. Great. As you age, however, this process slows down and dead skin cells get ‘stuck’ at the surface where they cause uneven texture, blocked pores and dull-looking skin.
The good news is that exfoliation helps keep things moving at a more favorable rate, so how about increasing the frequency of your exfoliation game going forward? This can mean anything from once a week to three or four times a week but it depends on your skin so play around to find what works.
Our Vitamin C Gentle Face Scrub is fantastic for gently brightening and exfoliating your skin without drying it out making it ideal for regular use. You could also try our 6% AHA, BHA + PHA Liquid Exfoliant which does without scrubbing particles and instead uses gentle skin acids to slough away dead cells. Neither are a bad choice. Far from it.
DON’T Ignore Sketchy-Looking Moles
Noticed a change in a mole? Get. It. Checked. Out. Moles that change in color, shape, texture or just start to feel or look wrong should always be immediately looked at by a qualified expert to rule out serious concerns such as melanoma. The chances are your mole is totally fine or, at least, can be treated quickly and painlessly, but it’s better to be on top of them.
The Easiest (But Most Effective!) New Year Skin Goals
read more
