Cracked knuckles? Scaling fingers? Dry skin that splits and bleeds? Yep, this is the state my hands are in most of the time thanks to my obsessive hand washing. And the cold weather only makes them worse if I don’t moisturise.
But recently, I’ve found that I can’t use any old moisturiser on my poor hands. Anything with alcohol makes my skin dryer. Sodium Laurel Sulfate is my new nemesis (if it’s in toothpaste my throat gets so sore) and toiletries with a long list of ingredients that I can’t pronounce tends to cause dry patches of skin anywhere they’re applied.
So whilst I’m not going to cut down the number of times I wash my hands during the day because GERMS and lackluster hygiene from those around me, I do need to increase the number of times I apply hand moisturiser. Especially now that the cold weather has set in.
I’ve recently tried out Defensil which has been developed in the Swiss Alps to combat extremely dry skin experienced by those living at high altitudes as well as for those who suffer from eczema. I tend to find that anything that’s been developed to moisturise skin that’s exposed to rugged conditions is usually pretty tough so I was keen to give this a go.
I’ve been using Defensil for a few weeks now and whilst I’m not going to say it’s a miracle cure, because any natural cream that I use on a regular basis keeps dryness under control, it has been soothing and quickly stopped dry skin spell turning into sores. AS LONG AS I’M STRINGENT WITH APPLYING IT.
The cream was created by Swiss scientists to help lock in moisture for winter skin prone to dryness and flaking, it contains a lot more natural ingredients than it does artificial, so I’m happy to continue using it. Doctors try to throw hydrocortisone creams at you as soon as you mention ‘dry skin’ which I’ve shied away from because they’re not safe for long term use.
However, efficacy trials against the standard hydrocortisone creams found that Defensil decreased skin sensitivity by almost 50% and skin dryness by 35% just 15 minutes after application. So if you’re looking to replace or cut down on your steroid cream, this could be an effective alternative.
If you’d like to try it, it’s available from the Skin Shop for £9.95
