If you are one of the record-breaking 112.5 million Americans who will be traveling for the holidays this year, you might be thinking about packing and planning already. One of the most common questions that people ask before hitting the road is, “How can I protect my skin while traveling?” Keep these holiday travel skincare tips in mind for healthy, happy skin for the holidays and beyond.
1. Start Using a Barrier Repair Cream before You Hit the Road
You can start prepping your skin now for your holiday travels. Start using a barrier repair moisturizing cream like Zerafite twice per day a few weeks before you’ll be leaving. This will help your skin to build up its lipid content and strengthen its protective barrier to prevent dryness and dehydration. This is especially important if you will be traveling from a more humid climate to a drier area, as your skin will not be accustomed to the dry air.
2. Don’t Use Hotel Skincare Products
Although convenient, hotel skincare products can wreak havoc on your skin. The bar soaps and cleansers that hotels offer are very drying to the skin, stripping it of its natural oils. Do not use body lotions on your face, or shampoo as a body wash. Instead, take the extra step and pack these essentials from home. A good tip is to buy a few inexpensive travel-sized bottles and fill them from your bigger containers at home. That way, you won’t have to lug large bottles around with you, but you’ll still get the benefit of having your own products while away.
3. Bring Your Own Pillowcase
If you have very sensitive skin, you could benefit from bringing your own pillowcases with you when traveling. Hotels tend to use harsh detergents that can irritate sensitive skin types.
4. Skip the Facial While Traveling
Flying and climate changes can make your skin more sensitive. Instead of treating yourself to a facial, which could irritate your skin, opt for a massage instead.
Along these same lines, do not use any new products while traveling or right before a holiday party. You don’t know how your skin will react, and you don’t want to end up with redness, pimples, or other signs of irritation from ingredients that your skin is not accustomed to.
5. Use a Facial Mist Spray
Facial sprays such as Element 47 Skin Fortifying Mist can help sensitive skin – both dry and oily types – to rehydrate and protect against bacteria. Use this mist after a long flight to help stave off breakouts after being in recirculated cabin air. As an added bonus, this facial mist removes traces of makeup and sunscreen that might have been left behind after cleansing without damaging your skin’s natural barrier.
6. Watch What You Eat
When traveling, it can be tempting to reach for whatever is easiest and tasty, but try not to completely throw your diet to the wind. Fried foods, sugar, and alcohol can have a noticeable impact on your complexion, not to mention your overall health. Instead, stock up on foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids like flax seeds, salmon, and walnuts to help give your sin an extra boost of moisture and radiance. These foods also have natural anti-inflammatory properties, helping to protect against redness, breakouts, eczema, and other inflammatory skin problems.
7. Try to Relax and De-Stress
Holidays can be a busy and stressful time of year, but try to relax as much as you can. Stress is known to wreak havoc on your skin, leading to a variety of cosmetic concerns like lines, wrinkles, acne, and flare-ups of eczema and rosacea.
If your skin could use a pick-me-up after a stressful trip, use a high-quality vitamin C serum and eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables that are high in antioxidants. Another trick is to take a warm bath and add a few drops of argan oil – not only is this relaxing, but the argan oil will help your skin to stay smooth and hydrated.
Bottom Line
Holiday travels don’t have to leave you with breakouts and dry, dull skin. Use these tips when on the road or plane to maintain healthy, happy skin wherever you are.
For more skincare advice, tips, and how-to videos from Dr. Leslie Baumann, be sure to follow Baumann Cosmetic on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
©2019 Metabeauty, Inc.