Skin Hydration: Why It’s Important + Tips

Nothing is more important for your skin than hydration.

Properly hydrated skin is radiant, youthful-looking skin — but hydration is also key for your skin’s overall health and wellness. 

Without hydration, your skin barrier function can’t continue to stand strong against outside influences or keep hydration inside your skin. 

Looking for ways to boost your own skin’s hydration and keep it looking, feeling and behaving its best? We’ve got everything you need to know.

Why does skin lose moisture?

As you may already know, the human body is made up of mostly water (about 60%, in fact). Although you’re not consciously aware of it, your body is fighting a constant battle to maintain its crucial water balance 24 hours a day. 

There are a few factors that influence how much or how quickly water loss occurs. These include:

• Activity level
• Alcohol consumption (especially in larger or more frequent amounts)
• Your daily intake of dietary salt or sugar
• Your health
• Your water temperature when you take a bath or shower
• Weather (both temperature and humidity)

Dehydrated skin can show up in a few different ways, and not all of them are obvious. A few potential signs of dry skin or moisture loss include:

• Increased breakouts
• Loss of elasticity
• More visible fine lines and wrinkles
• Tightness
• Skin dullness
• Visibly dry patches

If you’re dealing with these concerns, there’s a chance your skin is lacking some much-needed hydration.

7 tips for keeping your skin hydrated

Keeping your skin happy and hydrated requires a well-rounded approach. Here are a few of our favorite skin hydration tips so your skin can be its best.

1. Drink water

It should come as no surprise that what we put into our bodies can significantly impact the health of our skin. 

Although everyone is different, the usual recommendation of eight glasses of water intake a day is a good place to start. Getting enough water helps make sure you’re hydrated from the inside out, which can have a significant impact on your skin’s appearance. 

2. Diet matters, too

A lot of your hydration comes from your diet, too. For example, focusing on eating healthier, less-processed fresh foods can naturally increase your hydration level. 

These foods are also packed full of antioxidants, which are also key for keeping your body — and your skin — healthy. Look for foods with high water content, like cucumbers, peaches, tomatoes and strawberries.

3. Wash your face with cooler water

We all know how good it can feel to take a hot shower — but cranking the temperature up too high can actually break down your natural oils and leave your moisture barrier less intact. 

Don’t worry — we don’t expect you to take cold showers. Just try changing it up and using lukewarm water instead of hot water when washing your face, and you’ll quickly feel the difference in your skin.

4. Don’t overwash your skin

You may feel motivated to wash your skin multiple times a day — especially if you work out often — but overwashing and over-exfoliating can be extremely damaging to your skin’s moisture balance. 

Aim to cleanse your face just once in the morning and once at night. If you get sweaty and need to rinse off in between those times, use lukewarm water only.

In addition, make sure that your cleanser matches up with your skin type. Sensitive skin may require a more gentle cleanser, while oily skin may need a deeper clean. A mismatch in cleanser and skin type can dry your skin out or even cause new problems (like breakouts).

5. Know your hydrating skin care ingredients

In the battle for hydrated, healthy skin, no factor makes quite as much of a difference as the active ingredients you’re using. Knowing what works — and what can actually make matters worse — helps you choose the exact skin care products that your skin needs.

Some of the most popular and effective hydrating ingredients include:

• Ceramides and lipids
• Humectants like hyaluronic acid
• Squalane
• Aloe vera
• Glycerin

These nourishing components are each essential for building and protecting your skin barrier in their own way. Including as many of these active ingredients in your skin care routine can help you take one more step toward healthy, hydrated skin.

And, as always, finish up your morning routine with sunscreen. Sunscreen (with broad-spectrum, water-resistant protection and an SPF of at least 30) is the best way to keep your skin — and yourself — healthy for as long as possible. 

6. Pay attention to the weather

The weather also plays a role in your skin’s hydration level. While we often tie this to an increase in temperature, humidity is actually a more important factor. As the humidity level decreases (both outside and inside the home), your skin’s hydration naturally takes a hit. 

You can help reduce the impact of low humidity on your skin by investing in a humidifier for your home and regularly using a nourishing moisturizer.

7. Take advantage of hydrating cosmetic treatments

As amazing as the right skin care routine can be, you can help your hydration really soar by also choosing the right cosmetic treatments to support it. 

For example, our Gold Infusion facials gently “stamp” hydrating ingredients just under your skin. When used in tandem with a hydrating routine, your skin will be dewy and glowing in no time. We offer Gold Infusions at all of our Skin Pharm clinics.

In summary...

Don’t struggle with skin dryness — boost your hydration and improve your skin’s health and wellness by focusing more on what you’re doing to keep it moisturized. Skin hydration is crucial for your appearance — hydrated skin is healthy, beautiful skin. 

For more advice on how to reveal your best skin, the providers at Skin Pharm are here for you.

Sources:

The Water in You: Water and the Human Body | U.S. Geological Survey

How much water should you drink a day? | BBC

Ceramides and skin function | PubMed

Hyaluronic acid: A key molecule in skin aging | PMC