The Dry Skin War

Another day when the temperature outside is setting records on the low side. My heater has been running constantly, sucking the moisture out of the air like a vacuum. To make matters worse, I went walking this week in what I thought was balmy 30s but I forgot to add in the wind chill. My bad.  And then there has been my constant use of  alcohol based hand sanitizers because it is the evil flu and stomach virus season. I think a hazmat suit is in order over my deep arctic coat!

It was warmer on top of the Swiss Alps near a glacier than it is here in NC right now!

My skin decided it had enough. Or maybe it was me. My face was dry but my dishpan hands and hiking heels were awful. I mean like so disgusting I couldn't take pictures of myself. If you really want to know how bad dry skin can get, google it. I won't link to the pictures. Blech.

In my war against dry skin, I headed to Google. I learned I am at a higher risk for very dry skin thanks to a thyroid that doesn't work, diabetes in the family and being a woman in the prime of her middle aged life. Well, that explains a lot. My healthcare is up to date. Can't do anything about my age. So what's next?

Diet. Surely foods are important. And they are, to a point. Drinking lots of water. Making sure I eat foods with anti-oxidants. Keeping my sweet tooth at bay. The interesting thing about sugar is it causes inflammation in the body and that includes the skin. So what little sugar is left in my diet has been scrutinized! Studies go every which way on whether diet really improves skin dryness. But all of them say a healthy diet is important. I get to keep my warm milk, got a round of applause for cutting out all caffeine but my morning cup of tea, but need to up my water consumption.

A waterfall from our trip to Maui. Water. WARM! Oh, I mean lots of water!

That's the prevention part. Now to the war on what dry skin I have. Loads of weapons are in my arsenal:

 I love my dishwashing gloves from William-Sonoma (no latex). And remember to put them on!

My Curel Sensitive Skin in the large bottle It's easy to pump a dollop as I pass by.  

But then there are the heels. The cracked painful heels. Did you know you can get infections through severely cracked heels? Not to mention they snag on your fuzzy socks!

My plan of attack included soaking my feet and then scrubbing with a regular washcloth. Then I dried those tootsies and pulled out my secret weapon.

Pumice stone on a stick. Attack that dry skin over a towel to catch the flakes. Uck.

Next?

Good old-fashioned Vaseline. My grandmother swore by it. Me too. For the tough dry skin.

I put my slathered feet in plastic bags. If my hands are bad, I do that too.

  
Kind of weird but I slip on my slippers or ManO's stretched out socks over the bags and then leave them on for a couple of hours.  Note: I do not close the bags with elastic because I don't consider it safe. Usually, I  do my pampering while I'm watching a movie (see below) and not moving around because those things are slippery. OR I just put the socks on my feet as I am getting ready to bed, forgetting the bags. And voila! My feet look great in the morning!

Bonus: Movies to warm my tootsies and me up on a cold winter day? Anything Hawaiian or filmed n Hawaii. The Descendants with George Clooney comes to mind immediately. No clue why! Blue Hawaii. It is dated but still has some fun moments. But if you want to go the opposite way and go for places more frozen than you are, my top picks are: Frozen though you still have to leave your home for it, Dr. Zhivago (ah, Omar Sharif!), Groundhog Day, Ice Age and Happy Feet.

So what about you? How do you keep dry skin at bay in the winter or tame it if you have it? Do you believe certain foods can make a difference for your skin? And what about the movies that make you think warm, either by taking you off to a balmy place or an arctic one that makes you appreciate where you are?