6 Simple Steps to Healthy and Beautiful Hair and Skin During Winter

It’s winter time, and our hair and skin are feeling that winter blues. Wind, cold air and exhaust fumes negatively influence both our beautiful skin and our luscious hair. In order to keep your glowing skin and shiny hair in top condition, you’ll need to adjust your grooming routine to the winter season. These 5 steps are the most important in your mission to stay healthy and fabulous during winter.

1. Fight skin dryness with moisturizers

Whatever type of skin you have, it will become drier in winter, which will lead to various skin problems. As it will be dry and sensitive, it will be prone to cracking. To prevent cracking and dryness, you need to moisturize your skin. If your skin is dry and sensitive, you have probably found the right moisturizer for you. However, during summer and spring we use water-based moisturizers, which won’t work in winter. You need to adjust your skincare to the season if you want to keep your skin healthy. In these winter days, you should use oil-based moisturizer, because oil creates a protective layer on the skin, which will protect you from external factors such as smog, wind, and cold.

Except for external factors, your skin can become more sensitive and dry due to aging. It’s perfectly normal, and everyone is going through the same process. Make sure you take a good care of your skin, so it can stay elastic and soft for years to come. If you have some changes on your skin such as age spots, scars or even sunspots that you don’t want to keep as a memory of a wild summer vacation, you have probably considered skin bleaching, which will make your imperfections less visible, or even make them disappear completely.

2. Don’t use curling and flat iron

Nowadays, we all dye our hair, and use curling and flat irons. Throw wind and cold into the mix, and you’ll get the worst combination of negative factors that your hair won’t be able to endure. No matter what products you are using, it is simply impossible to keep your hair healthy while attacking it with so many things that are damaging it and making it dry.

Therefore, as it is winter, and our hair desperately needs to become shiny again, you should focus on keeping your hair moisturized. To prevent breakage and split ends, try leaving the irons aside for the season, and change your hairstyle so that you won’t have to use them. On the other hand, if you really need to use a flat iron, make sure you are providing your hair with all the right vitamins, and keep it moisturized.

You can make various homemade masks for your hair, which you can make by just taking a few basic ingredients from your kitchen. You should also include a thick moisturizing conditioner with a few key ingredients in your daily hair care routine. The products should contain humectants and fatty acids, as they hold the moisture in your hair, which is essential during this romantic season.

3. Put an end to your bad habits

What doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger, but bad habits are actually ruining your health slowly, and your skin and hair will be the first to go. Smoking and drinking a lot of alcoholic beverages will certainly lead to hair and skin dryness, and make them both sensitive. Therefore, the best solution is to quit smoking, and have just one glass of wine instead of the whole bottle.

Another bad habit is lack of hydration. The only way to keep your skin hydrated and avoid dryness and redness is to drink enough water throughout the day. Instead of a soda, take a glass of water, and your body will be thankful. Not so hard, is it?

4. Start healthy diet

Vitamin C is definitely your best friend during this cold season. Firstly, it boosts your immune system and secondly, it improves the production of collagen, which keeps our skin elastic and healthy. Great sources of vitamin C include citrus fruits, strawberries and leafy greens.

Except for vitamin C rich foods, you should also consume food that contains omega-3 fatty acids, which will benefit both your skin and your hair. They will keep your hair and scalp conditioned, while also making your skin wrinkle-free and more elastic. The biggest source of these fatty acids are definitely walnuts, but they can be found in oily fish, other nuts, olive oil and salmon. Add these to your diet, and you’ll be able to enjoy the holiday season stress free.

5. Don’t stop exercising

As we want our body to be in shape and bikini ready for the summer season, spring is the time for exercising. Moreover, most of us do a good job of staying active during the warmer months, but somehow when winter comes, we all tend to become hermits. Don’t stop exercising, be strong and don’t fall under the winter blues spell.

By exercising you will help your body get rid of toxins more efficiently, which will give your skin that glamorous glow. If you feel like you don’t have enough energy, than get a little help from healthy nutritional supplements, which will provide you with more energy and allow your body to absorb the necessary nutrients it needs to fuel the workouts much faster. This energy boost is very important, as you might become unwilling to work out due to SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder), and feel like you have no energy for any physical activity.

Also, as exercising boosts the production of endorphins, you will be able to fight winter depression, and finally be happy and satisfied during the cold winter days.

6. Get more sleep

We have heard so many times that we need to get more sleep in order to look pretty in the morning, but is beauty sleep a myth or a fact? Actually, an experimental study has shown that beauty sleep is nothing less than pure science. The study found that if we sleep for only a few hours, we will look unhealthy, whereas well-rested people will look more attractive and healthier.

But how does it affect your skin and hair? When you are tired, your skin is the first to show signs of unhealthy habits. When you sleep for 8 hours, even the products you are using will work better. And no matter how tired you are, always clean your face and never go to bed with your makeup. Also, change your pillowcase more often, because the acne and irritations you have might be caused by that little bacteria nest of yours, i.e. the pillowcase that hasn’t been changed for a long time.

Being constantly exhausted will negatively affect your overall health, and your hair and skin are going to be the first to show signs of damage and fatigue. This leads to split ends, breakage and dry hair, as well as irritable, dry and flaky skin, particularly during the cold and dry winter months. However, it’s not that difficult to keep your body in good health using the simple tips outlined in this article, you just need to be persistent and adopt a few good habits.

Featured photo credit: Ed Gregory via stokpic.com

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