It is usually quite easy to know what 'dry skin' is all about. Flaking, itching, redness and cracking are all a part of dry skin. Dry skin can be mild, moderate, and down right severe. Severe itching, cracking, crusts and oozing and bleeding are parts of severe dry skin problems. The medical term used at this stage is eczema, or eczematous dermatitis. Luckily, statistically, conditions usually do not progress to that point very often.
With our striving for cleanliness, especially frequent hand washing, or with the use of harsh soaps or detergents, dry skin problems are at an increase. The skin normally provides various degrees of oils to cover the skin. These provide a barrier, which protects the skin from losing water and drying out of certain protective layers of the skin. The deeper layers then begin to loose water. Just like a dry riverbed, ruts and gouges begin to appear in the skin.
Just as sun and wind would raise havoc with the dried earth, the air, sun, wind, and even local irritating factors in our work place and homes, from perfumes to cleaners, from inks to paper and dust, all contribute to further injury.
Surgeons who scrub frequently know quite well that they can develop such problems. Putting on gloves with talcum powder is notorious for causing irritation in the dry cracked the hand. The face, while not so readily apt to dry out as the hands, certainly can develop problems.
Restoring a protective cover to the skin allows it to retain its water and begin to heal itself. The use of emollients, (derived from the Latin word - emollire - which means to soften), help restore the skin to health. When emollients are applied there is an improvement in the way some skin cells retain water. The oils of ancient times (including olive oil) and today, Vaseline, are the most time honored and perhaps some of the most effective emollients).
Since we do not wish to walk around on a daily basis with Vaseline or olive oil on our faces, cosmecutical (cosmetics and pharmaceutical) companies along with those who provide skin care, have develop more socially acceptable agents to apply to the skin.
Some agents that help maintain the healthiness of skin that are recommended by physicians and especially dermatologists and plastic surgeons can be found in our product center.
For dry skin without major problems of cracking and itching - the following will probably be helpful -
Look for Moisturizers
and Moisturizing creams
