It’s summer time, which means the living is easy, and you can relax when it comes to caring for your skin, right? Not so fast. While there might be more humidity in the air in the summer, making your skin feel less dry or uncomfortable, the season brings with it a range of other skincare concerns. You do want to change up your skincare routine in the summer. Just don’t make too many changes or leave out certain products or treatments.
Skipping Moisturizer
The summer heat and humidity can make your skin feel oily or softer than it does in the winter. But, that doesn’t mean that you can skip the hydration process. Find a lighter weight moisturizer if the one you use in winter feels too heavy, but make sure it contains ingredients that help protect your skin’s lipid barrier and help lock in moisture, such as hyaluronic acid or even aloe vera. If you are worried that the combination of moisturizer, heat, and sweat will make you break out, make sure the product you use is labeled non comedogenic, meaning it won’t clog your pores or lead to blemishes.
Avoiding Skin Treatments
You might want to skip certain skin treatments in the summer, thinking that it’s better to wait for the fall for a chemical peel or laser skin resurfacing. While you are less likely to spend time outdoors in the fall or winter, there’s no real reason to skip a treatment in the summer. You will need to limit your sun exposure after the treatment to protect the skin, but you would need to do that at any time of year.
Depending on the depth of your treatment, it might actually be easier to schedule one in the summer than another time of year. People can assume you are taking a vacation when you schedule a few days off to recover after a laser resurfacing treatment and might be less likely to ask questions at work.
Keeping your skin exfoliated is essential in the summer, as it helps peel away not only the dead skin cells, but also any grime and sweat.
Being Lax About Sunscreen
Sunscreen is important all year around. In the heat of summer, it becomes even more important, as you’ll most likely be spending more and more time outside. There’s often a bit of confusion about the right way to wear sunscreen, to get the most protection. Sun protection factor (SPF) might be less important than you think. Sunscreens with SPFs of 70 or 100 don’t necessarily offer that much more protection than a product with an SPF of 15 or 30. What matters more is how frequently you apply the sunscreen and how much you apply at a time.
The general recommendation is to reapply sunscreen throughout the day, at least every two hours. If you’ve been outdoors sweating or have been swimming, it’s a good idea to reapply every 40 to 80 minutes. You want to use about an ounce each time you put the sunscreen on. Sunscreen doesn’t just protect you from burns. It will also reduce the chance of you developing age spots or hyperpigmentation, as well as wrinkles.
Not Deep Cleaning
Although it might be a more relaxed time of year, summer is also a busy time of year. You might find yourself staying out later or enjoying more time at parties, after which you are too tired to wash your face before bed. But, that nightly cleansing is an essential part of keeping your skin looking fresh and youthful. If you don’t already, it’s a good idea to start washing your face in the morning and again at night.
You can use a gentle cleanser in the morning, to wash off any sweat or dirt you picked up from your pillow as you slept and to create a clean canvas to put your lotion or makeup on. At night, you might want to use something that cleans a little more deeply, such as a cleanser with alpha hydroxy acids or salicylic acid, to really clean your skin and get the grime, sweat and dirt that built up over the day off of your face.
If you would like more summer skincare tips or would like to learn more about skincare treatments to help fight the signs of aging and keep your skin looking refreshed, Dr. Jessica Kulak, an aging face specialist practicing at the Naderi Center, can help. You can contact Dr. Kulak at either of the center’s two locations, in Virginia or Maryland. For a consultation in Maryland, call 301-222-2020. For an appointment in Virginia, call (703) 481-0002.
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