care tips
The right hand care: How to treat dry and chapped skin
Dry, rough or cracked hands are a sign of a lack of care
© yuriyzhuravov / Getty Images
No other part of the body is used as often as our hands – and you can see that: Not only with increasing age, but also with the daily work that they have to do. Regular hand care is all the more important.
The less we try to care for our hands, the drier and rougher the skin becomes – especially in the areas that are particularly stressed. At the latest when the knuckles on your fingers are red or the skin around them tears, you should act. Because dry hands not only look unkempt, they can also cause pain. In addition, bacteria have an easy time if the backs or palms of your hands have small cracks. It is therefore advisable to follow the most important steps for cleaning and care. You can find out what these are in this article.
That’s why our hands are so sensitive
Although our hands are particularly stressed in everyday life, the skin on the back of the hand is extremely thin: it contains only a few sebaceous glands and hardly any fatty tissue. The inner surfaces have many sweat glands for this, but no sebaceous glands at all. As a result, the skin can dry out faster (and unfortunately also age) – especially if the hands are washed with soap or disinfected several times a day. But external influences such as UV rays, dry heating air, heat and cold also attack the skin’s natural protective film, which is normally supposed to protect our hands from drying out.
How to properly wash and care for your hands
Our hands come into contact with many millions of germs throughout the day: every time we go to the toilet, when we go shopping – even when we turn a door handle and use the computer keyboard. In order to protect us and our fellow human beings (not only in times of Corona), it is important that you wash your hands regularly – for at least 20 seconds. This is the only way to prevent the transmission of possible pathogens. To prevent your skin from drying out too much, you should heed the following tips:
- use a nourishing soap that is pH-neutral
- wash your hands under lukewarm water
- blot your hands instead of rubbing them dry
- use one greasy ointment, that moves in well
The right hand cream: you should pay attention to this
Which hand cream is right for you depends on two factors: your skin type and the time of year. For example, if you tend to have dry skin, it needs special care and should be moisturized regularly. A rich product that provides your hands with sufficient moisture is ideal here. If, on the other hand, you tend to have sensitive and easily irritated skin, you should use a hand cream without fragrances or dyes. For the normal skin type, on the other hand, it is only important to know that hands generally need more care in winter than in summer.
While nourishing ingredients such as urea or glycerine are intended to make dry hands smoother, ingredients such as shea butter or olive oil have a calming and regenerative effect on the skin. According to Eco test However, many products also contain substances that are harmful to health, such as mineral oil-based fats, waxes or synthetic polymers. For this reason, the consumer portal primarily recommends the purchase of certified natural cosmetics, which is free from dangerous problem substances such as PEG, paraffins and silicones. You should also pay attention to the following points:
Before buying, check whether a hand cream contains “butylphenyl methylpropional” – this is the Lilial fragrance, which is classified as problematic.
The same applies to the ingredients “Paraffinum liquidum” and “Cera Microcristallina”, which are mineral oil-based fats and waxes that, according to Ökotest, can be contaminated with MOAH.
Do without synthetic polymers in hand creams – distinguished as acrylate and other co- and cross-polymers, carbomer, polyacrylamide, polyquaternium-10.
Peeling, mask & co: more tips for hand care
Not only hand creams are suitable for regular care of your hands, but also hand peelings, hand baths and hand masks. Proceed as follows:
hand peeling
Exfoliating regularly can help improve blood circulation in your hands. This has a significant influence on your skin: the poorer the circulation, the drier and more cracked your hands become. Another positive side effect of hand scrubs is that they remove dead skin particles – although they should only irritate the skin slightly. This is made possible, for example, by a homemade peeling consisting of olive oil and sugar or salt. Massage it into your hands and then wash off the rest.
hand bath
A soothing bath is also good for the hands. For this there is special products from the drugstore department for hand care, but you can also make the hand bath yourself with natural ingredients: Use warm milk and mix it with a little olive oil. Then dip your hands into the mixture and let the bath soak into your skin for ten minutes – it makes it soft and supple.
hand mask
Similar to a face mask, the job of a hand mask is to moisturize your hands while caring for them. It can be used both during the day and at night – in this case, however, it is advisable to put cotton gloves on your hands so that the cream only absorbs into your skin and not into your bed linen. Ordinary hand cream is suitable as a hand mask, alternatively you can also moisturizing gloves for dry hands or ready hand masks use. Or you can use foods that have a moisturizing effect on the skin, such as: avocado, quark and eggs. Mix the ingredients together and rub your hands with it. Then leave the mask on for 15 to 30 minutes before rinsing off the residue with lukewarm water.
And one last tip: Regular hand care also includes the fingernails, especially the cuticles. Always apply cream to the nail base so that it does not dry out and tear. It doesn’t look good and, in the worst case, can even catch fire. Therefore, nail care should always be included in hand care.
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