You don’t need Al Roker, a weather app, or an Instagram feed full of pictures of your friends’ dashboard thermometers to tell you it’s cold. Most of us can tell by how our skin looks. When the polar vortex makes an appearance, our complexions turn into a winter landscape of flakes, bumps, and cracks.While there’s not much we can do about brutal weather conditions, we can tame our skin issues. Each area of the body has special needs, so we asked the experts how to treat winter skin from head to toe: cure dry scalps, soothe irritated eyelids, fight face flakes, heal chapped lips, get rid of cracks on our hands, smooth scaly elbows and knees, and soften crusty feet.
Read on to learn how to fight the forces of Mother Nature, one soothing ingredient at a time.
Scalp
Weirdly enough, it's most likely oil that’s creating your flaking problem. "The reason your scalp looks flakier is that oils are making dead skin cells stick together, so you can see them more," says Papri Sarkar, MD, a dermatologist in Brookline, Massachusetts.
Your scalp produces more oil in the colder months to compensate for the dry conditions, Dr. Sarkar says. So, if you’re not washing your hair frequently enough, the oils combine with dead skin, making dandruff look worse.
"You may need to wash more frequently with a dandruff shampoo in the winter," Dr. Sarkar says. If you’re seeing flakes, shampoo two or three times a week until you see results. Look for a shampoo containing pyrithione zinc, like Kiehl’s Scalp Purifying Anti-Dandruff Shampoo or Head & Shoulders Classic Clean Dandruff Shampoo.
Salicylic acid is also helpful in exfoliating flakes and controlling dandruff. Try Neutrogena T/Sal Therapeutic Shampoo.
The ingredients need to have contact with your scalp for 10 to 15 minutes to work, Dr. Sarkar explains. Since few of us want to stand in the shower for that long, she suggests this shortcut: Get your hair damp and massage a dandruff shampoo into your roots. Leave it on while you brush your teeth or pick out your outfit, and then get into the shower to lather and rinse.
Neutrogena T/Sal Therapeutic Shampoo, $7.14, available at Neutrogena.
Face
Keeping your face bundled from the elements is a challenge. (Sadly, balaclavas haven’t caught on for winter fashion.) While the wind and cold temperatures give your face a beating, the indoors is the real enemy. "Forced hot air is probably the number-one reason your skin feels dry and itchy in the winter," Dr. Sarkar says.
Start with a moisturizer. Ideally, look for one containing ceramides, fatty acids found in skin cells that help retain moisture, says Carolyn Jacob, MD, founder and medical director of Chicago Cosmetic Surgery and Dermatology. CeraVe Facial Moisturizing Lotion contains ceramides and has SPF 30 to protect you from UV damage.
You may want to reconsider your anti-aging routine during cold months. Strong ingredients like alpha-hydroxy acids and retinoids can cause peeling. Dr. Sarkar suggests applying them every other day if you’re battling dry skin.
CeraVe Facial Moisturizing Lotion AM, $14.47, available at Walmart.
This lightweight gel from Neutrogena instantly absorbs into skin to cure any dryness that may ail you. The hyaluronic acid hydrates skin and helps to boost moisture for the long term.
Neutrogena Hydro-Boost Gel Cream for Extra Dry Skin, $19.99, available at Ulta.
Eyes
The skin around your eyes is some of the thinnest on your body, and you have very few oil glands in this area, Dr. Jacob says. When you expose this sensitive area to extremely dry air, you end up with redness, inflammation, and irritation.
To calm your skin, apply a chilled ice pack like TheraPearl Hot or Cold Therapy Eye-ssential Pack or rest a bag of frozen peas on swollen eyes. The individual peas or beads conform to your eye sockets better than a solid ice pack. And, the cooling will help with the inflammatory response.
TheraPearlHot & Cold Eye-ssential Mask, $9.99, available at Performance Health.
At night, make sure you’re sleeping with a humidifier, like the Holmes Ultrasonic Cube Humidifier. Also, apply an eye cream that contains hyaluronic acid, a molecule that can hold 1,000 times its weight in water without feeling greasy. Try Mario Badescu Hyaluronic Eye Cream.
Mario Badescu Hyaluronic Eye Cream, $18, available at Mario Badescu.
Lips
When it comes to dry skin, your lips are your Achilles’ heel. (Yes, your face has an Achilles’ heel). "Lips have the thinnest skin, and they can’t hold moisture," Dr. Sarkar says. The combination of Arctic air and exposure to UV rays causes an inflammatory response that makes cracking and chapping worse.
To squash the inflammation, Dr. Sarkar tells her patients to use Dr. Dan’s CortiBalm. The cortisone soothes the irritation and swelling, while the beeswax and petroleum hydrate to heal chapping.
If you’re seeing flakes, picking is out of the question — you’re just creating an open wound. You can gently remove them by lightly rubbing a damp toothbrush over your lips before brushing. Then, cover them with a slick ointment, like Aquaphor Lip Repair. "The oilier, the better," Dr. Sarkar says. "The oils help lock in moisture and prevent dehydration."
Whatever balm you choose, avoid a flavored option so you resist the urge to lick your lips. The acids in your saliva, as well as the repeated evaporation process, cause chapping.
In order to defeat chapped lips for good, you actually need to exfoliate them just as you do your skin, to get rid of dead skin cells. This lip exfoliator from E.L.F. comes in a convenient lipstick form instead of a messy tub, so you can easily apply, rub your lips together, and wash off.
E.L.F. Lip Exfoliator in Mint Maniac, $3, available at E.L.F.
Body
Maybe you’re not going sleeveless or exposing bare legs until Punxsutawney Phil gives you the all-clear, but you shouldn’t have to suffer ashiness. Again, the dry air pulls moisture from your skin. Since you’re wearing more clothing, the fabric pulls moisture from your skin as well. "The number of oil glands determines how dry you get," Dr. Jacob says. "The areas with fewer oil glands get the driest."
The shower offers the best opportunity for hydration. Hot showers send all your body’s natural oils down the drain, so turn down the temperature and shorten the length of time you’re spending in there. Use a body wash containing ceramides, like OGX Coconut Milk Hibiscus Nourishing Creamy Body Wash, because these ingredients help the skin hold in moisture.
Blot your skin dry, and immediately slather on a moisturizer — the thicker the better. “If it comes out of a pump, it’s probably not going to be moisturizing enough,” Dr. Sarkar says. Concentrate the moisturizer on your legs, since they don’t heal as quickly as other parts of your body, Dr. Jacob says.
Josie Maran Whipped Argan Oil Body Butter, $35, available at Sephora.
Dealing with scaly skin can be downright annoying, even if it isn’t bikini season. And those scales can be hard to get rid of. Too Cool for School’s Egg Mousse Body Oil is not only fun to apply (so you won’t skimp on it!), but it’s also infused with both oils and egg-yolk extract so it’s ultra-hydrating for your skin. Plus, the mousse transforms into an oil as you apply and instantly absorbs.
Too Cool for School Egg Mousse Body Oil, $25, available at Sephora.
Hands
"Each time we wash our hands, the water evaporates, which causes them to become even drier," Dr. Jacob says. Since washing multiple times a day is unavoidable, it’s easy to develop cracked, raw skin. Rather than lather with soap and water, Dr. Sarkar says using Purell is actually a less drying action — the alcohol will not dehydrate your skin as much.
Always pair hand-washing with lotion application. Ingredients like glycerin (found in Eucerin Intensive Repair Extra-Enriched Hand Creme) won’t feel as greasy.
Seal deep cracks with a liquid cut sealer like New-Skin Liquid Bandage, Dr. Sarkar says. You need to close the cut from irritants that could cause the cells to split.
Eucerin Intensive Repair Extra-Enriched Hand Creme, $5.09, available at Drugstore.com.
You can use hand lotions all you want to, but sometimes you need to take it up a notch. That’s where Karuna Hydrating + Hand Masks come in. You simply slip the moisturizing hand masks on each hand (like gloves) and the creamy serum helps to restore skin in no time.
Karuna Hydrating+ Hand Mask, $9.50, available at Sephora.
Elbows & Knees
Repeated bending and flexing makes the skin on our joints rough and leathery. Most lotions can’t penetrate the outer layer of thick, dry skin to add any meaningful moisture.
"For thicker areas of skin, you need moisturizers that contain lactic acid, urea, or salicylic acid," Dr. Jacob says. These ingredients exfoliate while hydrating. After repeated use, you’ll get rid of the leathery layers and see softer skin. Try Soap & Glory The Righteous Butter Body Lotion, which contains fruit acids and vitamin E.
Soap & Glory The Righteous Butter Body Lotion, $12, available at Ulta.
Avène's Akérat body lotion contains lactic acid, making it clutch for those areas with tougher skin.
Avène Akérat Body Cream, $32, available at Dermstore.
Back
The skin on your back isn’t that different from the skin anywhere else on your body — it’s just harder to reach. If you’re not able to apply lotion, it’s going to dry out and cause a maddening itch that’s just out of reach.
Before you shower, try dry-brushing. Get a back brush with soft bristles, like Earth Therapeutics Far Reaching Back Brush, and gently rub it over your skin. This removes dead skin cells, which can be irritating, and makes it easier for moisturizer to absorb.
You can also switch to a spray formula, like Vaseline Intensive Care Spray Moisturizer. Mist it on right after the shower, and wait a couple of minutes before getting dressed.
Vaseline Intensive Care Spray Moisturizer, $6.23, available at Drugstore.com.
Feet
You’re on them all day, and they have few oil glands, so they get rough very fast. Layers of dead skin build up calluses that prevent moisture from getting in. At the same time, this skin cracks, letting hydration out. So, you’ve got an endless loop that creates scaly feet.
First, you have to remove the barrier to moisture and use a foot file to gently (we said gently!) remove tough, callused skin. Then, apply a generous layer of exfoliating lotion. "You need ingredients like urea, lactic acid, or glycolic acid to exfoliate thick skin," Dr. Jacob says. Try Glytone Retexturize Ultra Heel and Elbow Cream.
Dr. Sarkar suggests this trick to make hydration more effective: Soak feet for 10 to 15 minutes in cool water, towel-dry, apply your cream, cover feet with socks, and let the lotion sink in overnight. You may have to repeat the process several times, but your patience will pay off when it’s time to pull your strappy sandals out of hibernation.
After you're done exfoliating, apply Uncle Harry's healing foot salve — formulated with natural herbs and oils specifically to repair dry, cracked skin — and your feet will feel brand new in no time.
Uncle Harry's Healing Foot Salve, $8, available at Urban Outfitter's.
Like this post? There's more. Get tons of beauty tips, tutorials, and news on the Refinery29 Beauty Facebook page. Like us on Facebook — we'll see you there!
Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?
I Suctioned My Face For Better Skin
These Beauty Wipes Are Derm-Approved
How To Even Out Your Skin Tone Once & For All