Winter is a stressful season in all sorts of ways. It’s busy, it’s expensive, it forces together fractious family members who might be happier kept apart and on top of all that, it puts your skin through a punishing gauntlet. From freezing weather outdoors to the desiccating dryness of centrally heated offices, to the toxins you’ll gleefully load into it with your Christmas dinner, your skin is asked to carry a heavy burden through the Christmas months.

The least you can do is help it defend itself and it’s that topic we’re addressing today. Let’s take a look at some of the ways you can help to keep your skin safe from the depredations of winter.

Keep Wrapped Up

Simply going outside in winter means exposing your skin to all sorts of dangers: cold, windy days dry your skin out, and even rain can be dehydrating, strange as that may seem. You might think you’re safe on sunny days, but they still represent a risk: UV light is as active a force in December as it is in July, but because the weather cold and the sun is rarely out, people don’t think about it and put sunscreen on.

Creating a physical barrier as an important way to keep yourself safe. Coats, hats and scarves can all come between you and the cold, keeping your skin safe from some of the worst weather of winter. If the sun really is out, it’s well worth considering putting on sunscreen with a high SPF, and if you’ve taken a winter skiing break it’s absolutely vital.

Diet

Christmas comes with a rich menu that can encourage breakouts of acne and pimples, and you might think that to avoid this you’ll have to deny yourself some Christmas treats. That’s not the case though! Some of the best foods for your skin can be incorporated into your diet over Christmas and fit right in!

Fatty fish, like salmon contain lots of Omega-3 that helps to keep your skin plump and moisturised and can even reduce acne! Avocado contains plenty of healthy fats that are great for your skin. Starting Christmas dinner with an avocado and salmon salad will do wonders for your skin as well as making a tasty treat!

Making a Booking

There are all sorts of reasons to book into a beauty salon or aestheticians after Christmas and the New Year celebrations: detox treatments can siphon away some of the Christmas excess, and massages will smooth away some of the stress that could build up during a hectic family Christmas. Be good to yourself in the new year and make a booking at your local clinic.