By Lisa Petrison
Keeping hands in good condition is an especially difficult endeavor during the colder months of the year, when dry inside air takes a toll on them.
Those who have sensitive skin, dry skin or mature skin (or, like me, all three of these) may have an especially difficult time finding specific products and general strategies that work for them.
This article provides some overview suggestions on caring for the hands during the winter months and links to product-specific information relevant to hand care on other pages of this website.
This information is discussed in my YouTube Video called The Best Winter Hand Creams for Sensitive Skin – Dry Mature Skin.
The Importance of Exfoliation
One critical aspect of hand care that I personally missed out on for many years was the need to exfoliate my hands, to the point that just starting to do this made a huge difference for me.
Especially when people are using hand creams on a regular basis, the top layer of the skin may become coated with a waxy type surface that does not allow the other ingredients in hand products to penetrate into the skin very well.
I try to remember to do some kind of mild exfoliation to my hands on a daily basis.
During recent months, I have mostly been using facial scrubs with large grains – including ones from Burt’s Bees, The Outset, Mineral Fusion and Aveda.
Details about these products are on the Exfoliating Scrubs page of this website.
I also have tried using face products containing chemical exfoliators (such as ones from Alpyn Beauty or Mad Hippie) on my hands and have found that to be helpful as long as my hands do not already have cracks or other types of sores on them.
Reviews of Hydroxy Acid Resurfacers are on another page of this website.
Body exfoliators tend to be more on the rough side but also may be useful for the hands.
Credo offers a variety of Body Scrubs & Exfoliants that may be worth considering for those with sensitive skin.
A product from a smaller company that I have been using to give my hands a more intensive exfoliating as well as moisturizing treatment is the Udder Delights Lavender Oatmeal Salt Scrub.
Hand Creams
Product pages on this website discuss Unscented Hand Creams and Scented Hand Creams.
It seems to be generally accepted that a good hand cream typically includes three different components – moisturizers (which increase the amount of oil in the skin), hydrators (which increase the amount of water in the skin), and occlusives (which seal in the water and oil so that it is less likely to evaporate or to be washed away).
My experience with many hand creams is that while they include hydrators (such as glycerin) and occlusives (such as wax), the amount of oil is often insufficient to address the problems with my very dry skin.
Adding a drop or two of good-quality face oil each time I put hand lotion on my hands can help any hand cream to be much more effective for me.
Product pages on this website discuss Unscented Facial Oils and Scented Facial Oils.
Extra Treatments
During the time of year that my hands are.particularly dry, I often use a balm-type product to give them an extra dose of moisture overnight.
Some of the products that I have found especially helpful are listed on the Face & Body Balms page.
If my hands are especially in need, sometimes I will even resort to putting a pair of white cotton gloves over a thick layer of balm (and then do wake up to hands that seem especially repaired).
Recently I have been using the Honest Organic Cotton Moisturizing Gloves for that, though these are tight enough on my own fairly small hands (size 7) that I wonder if they would work for someone with larger hands than mine.
I also often use Cuticle Creams to provide extra moisture during the day or at night to the areas of my hands that are in the worst shape.
About This Website
The Living Clean in a Dirty World shopping website is designed to provide guidance to those seeking out products that are relatively low in toxicity and that provide generally positive user experiences.
Although the skincare and makeup sections have a particular focus on products appropriate for women who are in their 40’s or beyond, the information provided may be useful for other people as well.
The products are curated by Lisa Petrison, who has been focused on helping people to improve their health by avoiding toxicity since 2008 and who heads the Paradigm Change organization.
Her Living Clean in a Dirty World blog site discusses a variety of topics of relevance to those who are working to pursue a more natural lifestyle with less exposure to harmful toxicity.
Lisa is the author of several books, including A Beginner’s Guide to Mold Avoidance (co-written with Erik Johnson).
She also runs the Paradigm Change website (focusing on issues related to toxic mold illness) and the Mold Avoiders Facebook group (designed for the discussion of all topics of interest to those pursuing the mold avoidance approach described in the “Beginner’s Guide” book).
Lisa was born in August 1964 and has yet to try cosmetic surgery, Botox or other cosmetic treatments requiring interactions with a physician, or beauty products containing retinoids.
In her former life, Lisa worked as a business school professor, as a marketing consultant to a variety of large companies, and as a reporter covering the advertising industry.
She holds a Ph.D. in marketing and social psychology from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University as well as B.S./M.S. degrees from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern.
Lisa would like to extend a special note of appreciation to Ellen Kleiman-Redden for her help in trying out products and discussing issues related to this project.
She also would like to thank the many members of the Mold Avoiders community who have shared suggestions of products to be included here.
A Note From Lisa
Products that I have tried or researched and that I have not found to be acceptable from a toxicity standpoint have been omitted entirely from the discussions on this website.
However, since a goal of this project is to introduce people to a range of options in terms of price and functionality, some products discussed on this site include ingredients that may not be appropriate for everyone.
It’s my hope that all individuals making their way to this site will find at least a few options from each product category that meet all of their own needs and wants from a variety of perspectives.
The vast majority of cosmetics marketers now offer affiliate programs in which Internet content creators may earn commissions if people who are referred to the companies’ sites by clicking on links end up making purchases.
I participate in quite a few individual affiliate programs as well as in the Sovrn/Viglinks program (which automatically converts regular links into revenue-generating links).
Links on this page that may result in affiliate income may include – but are not necessarily limited to – those from the following companies: Amazon, Aveda, Beautycounter, Chantecaille, Charlotte Tilbury, Credo, Fenty, Glossier, Huda, Ilia, Jane Iredale, Koh Gen Do, MAC, Mineral Fusion, Neutrogena, Pharmaca, Rare Beauty, Sephora, Tarte, The Ordinary, Ulta, and Undone Beauty.
Reader comments about products discussed on this website are very welcome.
Thoughts may be shared either by posting them in the comments section at the bottom of this page or by sending them directly to me at the following email address:
info at paradigmchange dot me
Companies that would like to offer me complimentary products to try out may contact me at this address as well.
Individuals who are seeking out less-toxic products or who are interested in pursuing a cleaner and healthier lifestyle may want to sign up to receive occasional email newsletters from Living Clean in a Dirty World.
Thanks very much for visiting the Living Clean shopping site!
Links on this page are in orange (no underlining).
