Nothing irritates me more than dry, itchy hands. (Well dry itchy feet are no fun too). Many have said that people with dry skin should limit the number of showers they take daily since showering too frequently could lead to the skin loosing more moisture. How about hand washing? Yes, this is true too for hand washing. However, it is difficult to limit hand washing especially if you are working in certain fields (such as health care, food preparation and etc.). Frequent hand washing is also advised to the general public to help reduce and prevent certain illnesses such as the flu, cold, food poisoning etc.
So how does someone with hand eczema handles frequent hand washing? I personally find the following 3 pointers helpful.
1) Do not foam with your hands
Using soap-free cleanser is better. However, I have yet to find a soap-free cleanser that completely removes oily dirt and grease. With soaps, the foam helps with cleansing. I find foaming up soaps with my hands very harsh. It could either be because of the friction from rubbing my palms together (sounds ridiculous but people with eczema do have thin, weaker skin) or because of direct contact of my skin with non-lathered soaps (similar concept with applying shampoo directly to the scalp without lathering it up first. I was told by a bunch of hairdressers that one should always try to lather up shampoo first before applying it on the scalp/hair). Or both.
Solution: Use self-forming soaps. Soap which pumps out as foam directly from the bottle. I was surprised at how big a difference it makes switching to self-foaming hand soap. The one I am using is by Bath & Body Works.
"Anti-Bacterial Gentle Foaming Hand Soap is enriched with an exclusive blend of moisturizing honey, coconut milk and olive fruit extracts to help nourish and soften skin. It is further enhanced with Mango Fruit extract, leaving hands lightly scented, gently cleansed and conditioned while effectively fighting germs."
This soap is definitely a good option to try.
Bonus: They come in so many different great scents.
Cons:
- Not suitable for those who are allergic to honey, coconut, olive or mango.
- Some scents may be overwhelming. Your hands will definitely be scented for at least 10 minutes.
Don't rush. It doesn't take much additional time to wash away all the soap from your hands. Any soap residues left on your skin may dry it out. No matter how gentle a soap is, it still contains cleansing ingredients. (Soap-free cleansers may be more forgiving).
3) Moisturize after each wash - ALWAYS
Tedious, yes, but applying a good hand cream after each wash is very beneficial. I was lazy myself but my skin did suffered. It was drier and cracked. Cracked skin on your hands are just terrible. It hurts with movement and stings a lot with further hand washing.
To avoid it, I religiously apply hand cream after each wash. Finding the right hand cream could also be tedious and pricey. I have tried a few and most either gave me a reaction (because they contained Vitamin E) or they did not moisturize my hands enough. It is very dissatisfying when hand creams leave my hands superficially moisturized - they are just greasy on application and once dry, my hands also feel dry.
My current favorite hand cream is the Make A Difference Rejuvenating Hand Treatment by Origins.
"Origins clinically-proven plant complex helps hardworking hands recover from dramatic dehydration. Scutellaria Extract helps even out skin tone. Leaves an elegant, silky, undetectable barrier on hands."
I love how my hands feel with this cream. A little greasy at first but not for long and I can feel its moisturizing ingredients effectively absorbed into my skin.
Those are the 3 tips I find helpful and hope that they are helpful to you as well. I know they are nothing new but hey, in case you didn't know. ^_^
Reminder: Product that works for me may not work for you, and vice versa. =)
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