As common a blight as dry skin is, most of us know surprisingly little about the condition. It is not, for example, limited to people who were born with it — dry skin can develop later on or even be an irritant reaction. It can signal other health problems. And, experimenting with moisturizers can actually worsen the condition.
With the cold season bringing out the worst in dry skin, with so many products marketed towards its relief, and with scant information to guide us, it’s not uncommon to feel high-and-(very)dry.
Virgin Coconut Oil As The Ideal Moisturizer?
Which Moisturizer Is Right For Me?Why does skin become dry?
You’re not always “born with it.” And even if you are, dry skin can worsen over time. If you’ve never had dry skin, you can get it later. Skin does change, after all. Just as clear skin can develop acne in the summer or during hormone-frenzied teenage years or during pregnancy or sleep deprivation, normally well-lubricated, pliant, glowing skin can suddenly become dry. Why does this happen? There are several possible causes.
Seasons and Environmental Factors
Both cold temperatures and lack of humidity (outdoors and in heated rooms) in the winter, as well as excessive heat from summer sun can dry out the skin. Traveling by air or spending lots of time in air-conditioned rooms can cause dryness. Non-hypoallergenic products can make naturally dry skin, which is inherently more prone to irritations, even drier (steering clear of allergens is a good preventive measure).
Too Many Products/Treatments, Improper Product Usage, Irritating Ingredients
Even oily, acne-prone skin can become dry by over-treatment: using too many soaps, detergents, antiseptics, or harsh medicines. Any skin can become dry by using too many products from too many different companies — the more ingredients your skin is exposed to, the higher the risk of it developing an irritation to one of them. Using beneficial skin treatments incorrectly (such as rushing the application frequency of an active product) can also produce dryness. And the use of irritants and allergens can result in a contact irritation that manifests as dryness.
Age
Age plays a part: as we grow older, the skin’s oil glands produce less oil (and with years of accumulated sun exposure, the problem is even worse). As we age, our skin also loses lipids and its barrier becomes dehydrated.
Diseases
Dry skin can be caused by diseases such as psoriasis, or atopic or contact dermatitis. Diabetes or kidney or thyroid diseases (or the medicines used to treat them, especially if you’re allergic to them), can cause dryness, too.
Whatever the cause, finding the right moisturizer is so important — for the skin’s feel and look, as well as for comfort — that the search can become obsessive. But randomly trying every newfangled lubricant, if this experimentation leads to an irritation, can actually worsen dryness. So how should you select a moisturizer? A good starting point is to familiarize yourself with the basics of how moisturizers work.
How Do Moisturizers Work?
The fundamental cause of dryness is a defect (due to irritations, allergies, sun exposure, or other environmental factors) in the barrier function of the skin against its surroundings. Most moisturizers work by trying to imitate this barrier function.
Many oils in moisturizers work by providing a hydrophobic film: a film that blocks the exit of water from the skin. By preventing water loss, skin stays softer.
Some others, notably virgin coconut oil, work not just by preventing water loss but by actually replacing the skin’s lost lipids.
Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO) as the Ideal Moisturizer?
Recent and an increasing body of studies seem to support this. Both in terms of moisturizing efficacy and safety (even for severely dry skin, atopic dermatitis, psoriasis and medically-managed, even immuno-compromised conditions), virgin coconut oil is proving to be an ideal choice. While mineral oil is good for the skin, its function is still primarily hydrophobic whereas virgin coconut oil can do much more and has natural antiviral properties.
Virigin coconut oil is very safe, pore friendly, and its fatty acids are a normal component of human skin’s barrier — so instead of just preventing water loss, VCO helps replace the skin’s lost lipids, creates an environment for healing, and restores damaged skin cells and intercellular lipids to the normal brick-and-mortar organization of the keratin layer.
Furthermore, initial studies suggest that VCO’s broad-spectrum antiseptic properties may prevent infection. So in addition to making skin fundamentally softer and more pliable, VCO may help keep skin disinfected from microorganisms that can penetrate cracks in dry skin, causing itching and more dryness. And it’s a natural anti-inflammatory, too—inflammation is linked to several skin diseases from acne to aging, psoriasis, eczema, etc.
VMV HYPOALLERGENICS®uses virgin coconut oil in many of our products, including our Skintelligent Beauty makeup, Grandma Minnie’s Mom and Baby Care products, our Know-It-Oil in its purest form, and even as one of the primary anti-aging components of our Re-Everything line. The virgin coconut that we use is first-and-cold-pressed (so it’s as fresh from the tree as possible), clinically-validated (our studies on it have been published in multiple peer-reviewed dermatology journals and even awarded at medical conventions) and USDA-certified organic.
Which Moisturizer Is Right For Me?
At VMV HYPOALLERGENICS©, you’re rather spoiled with a choice. Here, you’re starting with an advantage because whichever moisturizer you choose, you can be confident that your lubricant is non-irritating and healthily hydrating — almost all our moisturizers:
- Are validated as hypoallergenic, lacking all or most of all common allergens. Click here for more on the VH-Rating System.
- Are 100% All-Types-Of-Fragrance-Free
- Are 100% Phthalate, Paraben + Preservative-Free
- Are 100% Dye-Free
- Contain monolaurin for skin-safe and soothing disinfection, and are coconut oil-based for deep, healing, rebuilding hydration (our Know-It-Oil is pure VCO)
- Are for use on both the face and body
What We Suggest:
For extremely dry or atopic skin or skin with particular conditions like eczema, psoriasis, contact dermatitis, rosacea, etc.:
- Grandma Minnie’s Oil’s Well Nourishing Do-It-Oil (pure, USDA-organic virgin coconut oil plus monolaurin)
- Know-It-Oil Clinically-Validated, 100% Pure USDA-certified organic virgin coconut oil
- Grandma Minnie’s The Big, Brave Boo-Boo Balm on very dry/eczematous patches (if your doctor prescribes a steroid, ask her or him about trying steroid-free Red Better Flare-Up Balm as a last try before using a steroid).
For very dry, sensitive skin:
- Essence Hand and Body Smoother
- Grandma Minnie’s Oil’s Mommycoddling All-Over Lotion
- SuperSkin Care Creammmy Rich Intensive Moisture Milk
If you have rosacea:
For seasonally dry skin (that is normal in warmer months), or as a daily moisturizer all year round for Combination Skin Types:
For Oily Skin:
- SuperSkin Care Spring Fresh Oil-Free Nourisher which hydrates without adding shine.
- If skin is oily and acne-prone, it can get enough moisture from other products in a cream base that provide other benefits such as:
- Id Anti-Acne, Anti-Aging Face, Chest, Back + Body Exfoliating Lotion
- Re-Everything Anti-Age Treatment Creams
- Re-Everything Face-Hand-Body Lotion
- Illuminants+ Brightening Treatment Creams
- Illuminants+ Face-Hand-Body Lotion
- Any Armada Sun + Light Screen
For Those Concerned About Anti-Aging or Brightening Therapy:
- Re-Everything Anti-Age Treatment Creams
- Re-Everything Face-Hand-Body Lotion
- Illuminants+ Brightening Treatment Creams
- Illuminants+ Face-Hand-Body Lotion
For Pregnant or Nursing Moms, or for Babies and Children:
- Grandma Minnie’s Oil’s Well Nourishing Do-It-Oil (pure, USDA-organic virgin coconut oil plus monolaurin)
- Because of VCO’s natural anti-protozoal and highly-soothing properties, it also doubles as a diaper-rash prevention salve.
- It can help detangle hair or reduce cradle cap and seborrheic dermatitis.
- Its anti-microbial properties make it a great ouchless wound cleaner (follow with Grandma Minnie’s The Big, Brave Boo-Boo Balm).
- Wonderful for bonding infant massages, too.
- Know-It-Oil Clinically-Validated, 100% Pure USDA-certified organic virgin coconut oil.
- Grandma Minnie’s Oil’s Mommycoddling All-Over Lotion
Primary Reference: Verallo-Rowell VM. Rx Coconuts (The Perfect Health Nut). Philadelphia, PA: Xlibris Corp.; 2005
Click here for more on very dry, flaking skin.
Click here for dry skin, medically explained.
