Winter is here, and it brings the dreaded body acne breakouts. While acne on the face is an unpleasant fact, body acne can be incredibly aggravating. Body acne, which can be caused by body hair rubbing against your skin or bacteria that naturally occur on your skin, can be annoying, unattractive, and embarrassing. We all get acne from time to time, and during the winter months, it often seems worse. While dermatologists frequently recommend avoiding the sun to reduce the appearance of acne scars and dark spots, cold air can also dry your skin and worsen acne.
Now that it’s cold and snowy outside, chances are your skin is extra dry and flaky. It could be that your skin is also breaking out in body acne. The winter weather can dry out your skin, causing irritation and inflammation. To keep the winter blues from turning your skin into a breakout, try these tips:
Do not touch your face.
What is the best way to treat body acne? Treat it as you would any zit: stop touching it, find the source, and treat it accordingly. Touching your skin can cause breakouts, as can picking at, squeezing, or popping your pimples—and body spots are no different. While you can get body acne from bacteria, spreading, and over-exfoliating, the environment in which you live could be to blame. If your city uses a lot of chemicals, such as fertilisers and pesticides, your skin could be reacting to those.
Acne breakouts are caused by bacteria that get in the pores on your face, and when you inadvertently touch your face, the bacteria transfer from your hands and clog your pores. Body acne, on the other hand, is brought on by inflammation. If your skin has been irritated by, for example, shaving, tweezing or waxing, then your skin may react by forming pimples.
Clean your skin regularly.
Winter can get extremely cold, which can leave many skin pores clogged with dead skin cells. This can cause your pores to become blocked with bacteria and sweat, which is the main cause of acne. The cold outside can also dry out your skin and cause oil glands to overproduce, further clogging your pores. To prevent acne, clean your skin regularly and avoid using harsh soaps and face creams.
Most of us don’t even think about cleaning our skin regularly, but winter is a great time to start. One of the most important things to learn about skincare is how to properly cleanse so as to remove dirt, grime, bacteria, oil, and other impurities. When washing your face, use warm water and a gentle cleanser, and pat your skin dry rather than rubbing it.
Keep your skin moisturised.
During the winter months, we often forget to moisturise our skin. Many people are fooled by the cold, dry weather into thinking they no longer need to hydrate their skin outside the shower. But the truth is that your skin cannot compensate for the indoor heat. When extremely dry, skin can flake off, causing irritation, itching, and in severe cases, worsening skin conditions such as eczema.
Sure, it’s colder, but that doesn’t mean you should neglect your skin. While you probably won’t have to moisturise as often, a good moisturiser is still important, especially in winter. After all, winter can be harsh on your skin, so it is best to keep moisture in. Body acne breakouts are bad enough but become unbearable in winter. It’s as though your skin is making up for the lack of time in the sun by spending all day and night making visible, unsightly, and irritating body acne breakouts. The solution? Keep your skin moisturised.
Nourish your skin
Cold temperatures, dry indoor heat, and harsh weather conditions can wreak havoc on your skin, leaving it feeling dull and dehydrated. To combat this, it’s important to nourish your winter skin from the inside out. Add more healthy fats to your diet by consuming foods like avocados, salmon, and nuts; supplement your diet with vitamins like omega-3 fatty acids and collagen, and boost your water intake to keep your skin hydrated.
Exercise regularly
Acne breakouts are something many people struggle with. In the winter months, our skin can become drier and chapped, which can make acne breakouts worse. Getting enough exercise can help fight acne breakouts. The winter months are the best time to exercise because, with shorter days and colder weather, it’s harder to stay motivated. Exercise also improves your mood; the winter blues can make us feel down and frustrated when everything is dreary outside. Exercise can also help combat stress, which often makes acne worse.
