How to keep your hands soft and moisturized even after washing them 20 times a day!

Coronavirus, refuses to leave. There are cancelled travel plans and days of social isolation ahead. And of course an obsessive and justified need to scrub our hands with soap, or at the very least, sanitize them with alcohol-based hand sanitizers. We are washing our hands more times in a day than we have in a month. But all that frequent hand-scrubbing and alcohol-rubbing is probably beginning to take a toll on your once smooth hands.

So here’s the final word on how to keep your skins moisturized, even as you wash and sanitize your hands every hour of the day.

It is not always possible to wash your hands, especially while commuting or travelling. In which case, carrying a gel-based sanitiser is a great fallback option. But did you know that sanitizing gels contain strong alcohol like ethyl or isopropyl alcohol, which can strip away the natural oils of your skin. They might also cause pH imbalance and end up dehydrating the skin cells. We would strongly suggest that you choose only non-alcoholic variants in sanitisers which contain organic salts like Benzalkonium Chloride or antibacterial agents like Triclosan.

While we have always rallied around the idea of keeping soaps away from your face, extend this advise to your hands too! The skin on your hands is as sensitive as your facial skin, and with all the washing and sanitizing, it is prone to completely drying out, scaling and itching. In times of great washing, is advisable to use use mild yet effective foaming solutions to wash your hands, something like Dermalogica Clearing Skin Wash. This will keep your hands clean and maintain the moisture levels of the skin too. Now all you have to do is make sure is that you sing “Happy Birthday” twice every time you wash your hands.

• Dermalogica Clearing Skin Wash

One of the common reasons why we all end up with dry and aged skin on our hands is because we rub our hands dry with a fabric or tissue instead of simply patting it dry. When you rub a towel on your hands vigorously to dry out the water, it causes friction and abrasion that along with the water, pulls away the natural oils on the skin. This leads to redness and irritated skin. The perfect way to dry your skin is to blot it dry. Once done washing, gently pat the water dry with a soft fabric or plain tissue (not the printed ones, as the dye will further damage the skin).

Our hands are the most used body part. The skin on our hands endures a lot! The heat outside, the sun, the freezing cold. And of course, pathogens and virus. And with this pandemic outbreak, our constant use of sanitisers, soaps, and water to wash our hands leads to loss of moisture as well. Our suggestion? Try using gloves wherever possible, if not everywhere. For example, if you are washing dishes or bathing your pet, use a pair of nice rubber gloves. It will not only keep your hands clean but protect it from coming in contact with any dangerous chemicals in the soap. You can also sleep wearing a pair of soft cotton gloves in order to protect the skin on the hands from moisture-loss.

And the best way to protect your skin from loss of hydration is to MOISTURISE! If you’re indoors, moisturise, if you’re outdoors, moisturise and even if you’re about to slay a dragon attacking your kingdom, take a minute and moisturise! Regularly moisturising your skin helps in maintaining a hydration barrier, despite having to wash your hands frequently with soapy solutions and sanitisers which may contain harmful chemicals and alcohol. For moisturisation indoors, we swear by the Caudalie Nourishing Body Lotion. But when you’re travelling, you must carry something special for your hands too, like the The Body Shop Almond Hand And Nail Cream or the Elemis Pro-Radiance Hand & Nail cream.

• Caudalie Nourishing Body Lotion
• The Body Shop Almond Hand And Nail Cream
• Elemis Pro-Radiance Hand And Nail Cream

Apply it to your hands before going to bed at night to replenish the skin of the moisture loss and repair problems like cracked skin, irritation and dryness.