When it comes to skincare, knowing how to hydrate skin is everything. Hydration is making your skin drink water and then helping to retain that moisture. A hydrated skin is plump and youthful, it’s what gives your skin that lit-from-within glow that every beauty enthusiast seeks.
In This Article
- Dehydrated vs dry skin
- Hydrators vs Emollients
- Drink Enough Water
- Get Enough Sleep
- Sheet Masks
- Humectants
- Panthenol (Pro Vitamin B5)
- Detox Water
- Avoid Hot Water
- Exfoliation
- Key Takeaway
Dehydrated vs Dry Skin
How to know if your skin is dehydrated? Without enough hydration, skin looks mature with prominent smile lines, and fine lines, feels tight, and worst of all, leads to premature aging. Your skin looks dull and boring.
A dry skin on the other hand is a completely different thing. Dry skin is something that is in your genes. It is when your skin produces less oil hence people with dry skin have issues like dry patches and flakiness.
A dehydrated skin is more like a temporary thing where your skin has fewer water molecules. Deep down dehydrated skin is thirsty for hydration and that is what we are going to give our skin.
For both, dry skin and dehydrated skin, the focus is to have a hydration-focused skin care regimen and lifestyle with few adjustments.
Hydrators vs Emollients
It’s not unusual for a dehydrated skin to be dry and vice versa. That’s why it’s necessary to know where the problem lies.
The essence here is to bring life back to a dehydrated skin by applying humectants onto the skin followed by lightweight emollients.
If you have dehydrated skin, you would want to focus more on hydration such as by using hyaluronic acid or glycerin to incorporate water back into your skin and afterwards you can apply lightweight emollients to lock in the moisture you just delivered your skin.
On the contrary, if your skin is dry, which means you have less natural lipid, you would want to focus more on products that are rich, creamy and loaded with emollients to make your skin soft and supple.
A dehydrated and dry skin can co-exist and pretty much overlap. The beauty lies in having a customized skincare routine that targets your skin concerns.
Drink Enough Water
If you’re wondering how to make skin more hydrated and how to remove internal dryness from the body, start with your water intake.
However you should know that there is a difference between drinking enough water and drinking more water. A common recommendation is to drink about 2 liters of water daily.
Listen to your body. If you are feeling thirsty and in an environment where it’s dry, drink water by all means. But if you are not thirsty, drinking excess water, especially in a short time, can lead to the loss of electrolytes from the body.
You can also hydrate with food that are high in water content, such as watermelon, and cucumber. Monitor signs of proper hydration by urine color, energy levels, and skin health.
If your body is showing signs of good hydration, do not feel pressured to drink if you are not thirsty.
If you are like me and get thirsty more often and your urine color is often transparent, you might want to stock up on your electrolyte level with supplements, coconut water, or leafy green vegetables.
Get Enough Sleep
A well-rested face is a hydrated face.
For those of you who want to hydrate your skin overnight, start with a well-rested good night’s quality sleep. Sleep allows the broken cells in your body to repair and charge them back to life.
Some of us might struggle to sleep at night, you can use natural supplements such as melatonin (which is the body’s natural sleep hormone) or have a pre-bed chamomile tea to help relax and calm your body for a beauty rest. That glow in the morning is going to be vibrant.
Sheet Masks
Sheet masks are my favorites. They are a quick way to boost skin hydration.
Look for ones that contain hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and panthenol. Sheet masks are magical when you are in need of a quick fix and want to hydrate your skin ASAP. Besides they feel good on the skin.
Humectants
Hyaluronic acid and glycerin are both hero ingredients and are non-negotiable for skin hydration. HA has an impressive ability to attract and retain water molecules, that are up to 1000 times more water than its weight. Glycerin also pulls water from the air and the deeper surface of the skin to hydrate.
Both these ingredients can be found together in many product formulations, and if you have dehydrated skin, you should incorporate such a product into your skincare routine.
Panthenol (Pro Vitamin B5)
Panthenol is well-loved in the beauty industry for its ability to dive deep into the skin and give your skin a hydration boost, leaving your skin plump and smoothing fine lines.
Here is the real magic, panthenol not only hydrates but also strengthens your skin barrier against environmental stressors and locks in essential moisture.
It will make your skin so supple and smooth, that you might never want to live without it.
Detox Water
Detox water is loaded with minerals and vitamins, that will hydrate your skin from within. Infusing water with cucumber, lemon and mint hydrates your skin naturally and gives the skin a radiant glow.
Think of detox water as a refresh button. Feeling that tightness in face? Fix yourself an overnight detox. The best part, detox water is how you can naturally hydrate your skin at home.
Avoid Hot Water
Hot water, though it seems soothing in winter, can be a hidden culprit. It can harm your skin by stripping away essential oils off your skin, without you immediately noticing it.
Over time, the skin will feel dry and tight. Always go for a lukewarm shower instead of hot water to keep your skin hydrated and resilient.
You might have heard of transepidermal water loss (TEWL), it is the process by which our skin naturally evaporates water into the environment.
When too much water escapes, it leads to a dehydrated skin. Factors like harsh weather, and hot showers can do that to your skin.
Exfoliation
Exfoliate once in a while to get rid of the dead skin layer. A dead skin layer doesn’t allow the hydrators and moisturizers to go through the skin effectively and sort of act like an obstacle.
Focus on gentle exfoliation once a week, and allow your skin to drink your hydration efforts.
Key Takeaway
Hydrating your skin is a combination of good beauty habits from within and without. Choose the right ingredients in your skincare regimen, and be consistent.
By following the steps on how to hydrate your skin, from HA to doing the right amount of exfoliation to drinking enough water and getting quality sleep, you will achieve the softness and suppleness of your skin that you seek.
