Are lotions with water bad for your skin? Episode 157

Are lotions with water actually bad for your skin? Veronica asks…I heard that using lotions with water is actually bad for your skin because as the water evaporates it removes the skin’s natural moisture and oil. Is this true? Veronica’s question is an interesting twist on a theme that we have discussed a couple of times – and that is how moisturizers actually work. There are two fundamental ways that lotions can moisturizer your skin: one way is to provide an occlusive barrier that prevents the moisture that’s already in your skin from evaporating. That’s what ingredients like, petrolatum, mineral oil, silicones and so forth do. The technical term for this is reducing TEWL or Transepidermal Water Loss. The second way lotions work is to attract moisture to you skin using an ingredient that has an affinity for water. We call these ingredients “humectants” and they are things like glycerin, sorbitol, and hyaluronic acid. They essentially bind water to the surface of your skin. The best skin moisturizers use both mechanisms to moisturize skin. And the best way to do that is through an emulsion that’s a combination of oil and water. This brings us back to Veronica’s question – what about the water that’s contained in the cream or lotion? What does it do? There’s enough water in a lotion or cream to give your skin a little quick moisture boost which the oils and other occlusive agents can lock in your skin. Let’s be clear ...
Source: thebeautybrains.com - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Podcast Source Type: blogs