ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The heat and humidity are back — say goodbye to cooler, dry air and hello to hot temps! Dermatologist Dr. Priya Nayyar of Dermaclinique says that means it’s time to make some swaps in your skincare routine.
“One thing you can do is modify your cleanser. So, usually in the wintertime, you’ll want a more hydrating cleanser, so something with hyaluronic acid, a little creamier. Now, you can switch to a more gel or foam-like cleanser,” she said.
Dr. Nayyar says to look for ingredients like lactic, glycolic and salicylic acid to help reduce oil production.
The skin needs moisture year-round, but a lighter formulation is better for the warm weather.
Dr. Nayyar says a tip is to think about the effort it takes to rub in a product, more for the cold, less for the heat.
“You have ointments like Vaseline, Aquaphor, so that’s really, really greasy, really heavy, so that’s perfect in the winter. If you can tolerate it. Creams are the thicker white, so you rub it in, you kind of have to work a little harder to rub it in.”
Dr. Nayyar explains, lotions are not as thick and gels are typically clear and effortless to rub into the skin.
On top of a moisturizer, Dr. Nayyar says don’t forget to protect. We all need SPF to avoid the sun’s damaging rays.
She says, “it’s always sunny in Florida, so you always need that protection SPF 30 or higher.” Look for ingredients like zinc and titanium dioxide in the spray or lotion.