Dry skin is a common problem that happens to many people.
To some extent, everyone has dry skin or the appearance of it at some time, with wintertime being the worse.
For winter dry skin, care is very important to prevent or help with "winter itch".
This problem happens to people of all ages as well as people that don't usually have problems.
It occurs because the humidity is low in the wintertime, thus drying it out.
Dry skin has an appearance all its own.
Lines are suddenly are more visible and the skin will feel dull, flaky or rough.
It may appear on the face, but the most common places in the winter are arm, legs and feet.
Although you may notice of parts of the body, these are the most often affected by winter.
This problem is often referred to as "asteatosis" or "xerosis".
Skin care on a regular basis can help with this problem.
Most people need to begin a moisturizing regimen.
It is vital to try to get back some of the oils lost in the winter months.
Although many people suffer from dry skin, most aren't aware of the actual causes.
The outer layer of our skin is a lot like how Saran Wrap is when we use it to cover food.
The Saran Wrap prevents the food from drying out just as the outer layer of our skin (stratum corneum) prevents our body from drying out by retaining water and natural oils.
Some of the things that remove water and natural oils from our skin are harsh chemicals, overexposure to the sun, diseases and the natural aging process.
Some of these things, with the exception of the natural aging process can be avoided.
One of the main causes of this loss of water and natural oils is the winter.
Moisturizing is important, however, even before winter comes.
The use of a good moisturizing lotions or soap is great.
You can also be helped by avoiding long baths and showers and using warm rather than hot water.
There are many different moisturizers on the market.
Some well-known brands are Vaseline, Oil of Olay, Aveeno, Neutrogena and Cetaphil.
A general good rule is if it feels greasy, it just might work.
Other types are called ointment, cream, oil and lotion moisturizers.
Lotion moisturizers are the most popular for winter dry skin.
Skin care is easy with lotions you can apply daily.
You may need to use a trial and error method until you find the product that you like and one that works best for you.