Protect Your Skin Barrier

Almost overnight, we’ve turned into a society of crazy hand washers. While it’s definitely one of the best things that you can do to prevent COVID-19 (and one of the few that you can actually control), it also takes its toll on the health of your skin. This is especially true for those of us in our 40’s, 50’s and beyond as a decrease in estrogen means that the skin on our hands is already thinner and dryer. In fact, many of you may already be noticing patches of red, dry, flaky skin, and a higher propensity for hangnails, cuts and scrapes that seem to take forever to heal. Yes, these breaks in the skin barrier are unsightly, but more importantly, they’re dangerous.

Eczema or contact dermatitis, the official name for those red, flaky patches, is what happens when excessive hand washing and/or over-exposure to alcohol based hand sanitizers breaks down the outer layer of your skin. This protective barrier is what keeps moisture in and germs out. The more damaged your skin barrier, the more likely it is for germs (and viruses) to enter your body resulting in:

• dry skin
• bleeding
• cracked skin
• hang nails
• scaly skin
• itching
• pain

One of the simplest ways to keep your skin barrier doing its job is to wash your hands in lukewarm, not hot, water, and moisturize them every time that you wash them. I know it sounds like a pain, but it really does make a difference. Here are a few of my favorite clean hand creams for keeping your skin barrier safe.

Protect Your Skin Barrier with Ten over Ten Hand Cream & Serum

As one of the first companies to make beautiful, high functioning, yet clean nail polishes, Ten over Ten now has an entire line of fantastic products for your hands and nails. I’ve been using their Celery Oil on my cuticles for about 6 months with borderline miraculous results. But their new Hand Restorative Cream and Hand Repair Serum are true game changers. Not only do they feel amazing, but the moisturizing effects continue to protect your skin barrier through multiple hand washing sessions.

I typically use the serum once in the morning and once at night, but I apply the hand cream throughout the day. Well, that is when I’m not using one of my other go-to hand creams.

Sóley Organics Hand Cream & Healing Cream

If anyone knows a thing or two about subjecting their hands to harsh conditions, it’s someone who lives in Iceland. Made with Icelandic water and healing herbs, Sóley Organics Hand Cream is super lightweight, but still packs a serious moisturizing punch. With a clean, slightly medicinal scent, a little goes a long way. And for those areas that need a little extra love such as super dry cuticles, patches of eczema and scraped or nicked skin, their Healing Balm is unbelievable. It heals everything skin related including:

• zits
• scrapes
• burns
• eczema
• redness

Juice Beauty Green Apple Age Defying Hand Cream

And last, but not least, I adore the delicious smelling Age Defying Hand Cream from Juice Beauty. If you don’t know this company, they have been at the forefront of the clean beauty movement, using fruit and plant extracts to naturally heal your skin, and help reduce the signs of aging. Not only do I love the way this cream functions, but it’s the perfect size for carrying in your purse or tote.

Like the Ten over Ten hand cream, this has a thicker, richer consistency. However, both rub in easily and don’t leave your hands feeling greasy. This is important. No one wants to use a hand cream that is going to leave behind a trail of slick slime on their keyboard or tablet.

So, protect yourself by washing your hands like mad. And protect your skin barrier by applying a good hand cream. It will keep you safe and who knows, you may even come out of this quarantine with significantly younger looking hands….