6 Expert-Approved Steps To Care For Skin During The Holidays

So enjoy your holiday season, in whatever way that looks like for you this year. And if you feel the need, make skin care adjustments as you see fit, while keeping the below in mind as possible irritants: 

Regardless, the advice is simple: Edit your skin care routine to your basics, and stick with it. When you layer in masks and peels, do so with care, slowly introduce new ingredients, and never overdo it (stick to one to three times a week, max). We get it: There is so much temptation to switch up your skin care routine, but it only introduces new opportunities for irritation or breakouts. 

Your best bet is to amp up your topical hydration, as well as make sure you are drinking enough water. Topically, be mindful you are using ingredients that support your barrier health (check some out here). Internally, always drink the recommended amount of water daily. It's not a myth: Drinking enough water is essential for overall skin health and has even been shown to increase dermal density1. 

Also, your best bet of fabrics is silk: While sleeping on fabrics like cotton or linen certainly isn't going to ruin your skin or hair, they're not the best fabrics for them, either. Cotton or linen are porous and therefore rougher fabrics. For hair, this means the fabric can snag and pull at hairs, trigger physical damage, lift up the cuticle, and cause frizz. This is especially problematic for those with curly hair, which is already prone to all of these issues. For skin, this means the fabrics more readily absorb sebum, bacteria, and even your precious skin care products (silk and satin, on the other hand, are more repellent fabrics). But the benefits of silk don't stop there: They are hypoallergenic, antimicrobial2, moisture-wicking, and breathable. (Check out some of our favorite ones here.) 

Sleep is oh-so-important for your skin, and vacation time and special celebrations often mean your normal sleep schedule is off—or nonexistent. But sleep is when your body goes into repair mode, and thus your cells are able to rejuvenate. More specifically: The skin cells' regeneration process is up to three times faster at night, compared to during the day. Most notably, the skin sees a surge in HGH (human growth hormone) in the nighttime sleep cycle. The release of HGH helps rebuild body tissues3 and spurs cell production, to replace cells that were damaged throughout the day. Not only that but losing sleep can trigger cortisol in the body. "When the quality or the quantity of your sleep is compromised, especially over time and especially if it's more than one night, that's registered by the body and the brain as stress," board-certified dermatologist Whitney Bowe, M.D., says on the mindbodygreen podcast. Increased cortisol, consistently, can lead to collagen breakdown, inflammation, and even breakouts. 

You can also do your best to proactively manage inflammation by using supplements, like mindbodygreen's organic veggies+.* The powder is a nutrient-dense, whole foods blend rich in organic sea vegetables, dark leafy greens, prebiotics, probiotics, antioxidants, and digestive enzymes. This can help promote gut health and manage any skin issues that may come up from holiday food choices.* 

It's understandable to get overwhelmed this time of year; especially in a year as strange as this one. And heightened stress does a number on your complexion, among other more pressing effects. So when you're feeling holiday-induced anxiety approaching, take a moment to relax. We suggest a quick scalp massage: "Massages can reduce stress and boost mood," board-certified dermatologist Raechele Cochran Gathers, M.D., who specializes in hair care and founded MDHairMixtress. "In fact, a study of female office workers found that twice-weekly scalp massage had effects on stress hormones4, blood pressure, and heart rate."