Skin Care Moisturizer Cream

Skin care moisturizer cream is one of those basic yet essential cosmetic accessories that is a must when you live in the modern world. Our skin is constantly under attack from a whole host of moisture sapping things that surround us on a daily basis whether we live in the countryside, small town or large city.

The main moisture drain on our skin is the sun itself and the longer we spend under its rays, the more moisture is taken from our skin that needs to be replenished. Now, our own bodies are pretty good at doing that job for themselves, as our skin is designed to be self-healing and self-moisturizing. But more often than not, it needs a little help and we can give it that help by using a good skin care moisturizer cream.

These skincar creams come in an abundant array of brands ranging from very cheap to very expensive, but in general, they all do pretty much teh same job of replacing lost moisture to the skin. Lets look at how these creams do their job.

Dry Skin Moisturizer

In its most basic terms, a dry skin moisturizer replaces lost moisture and re-hydrates the skin. The most common place for this is the face as this is the part of our bodies that is most exposed to the elements.There are different types of dry skin moisturizer creams that act in different ways.

Oil Based and Water Based Moisturizers

The most common form of moisturizers are either oil-based or water-based. They help our skin to retain the water content on it's surface by locking in the moisture. So it stands to reason that by keeping our skin hydrated with these humectants or emollients, our skin will naturally appear smoother and also softer.

AHAs (Alpha-Hydroxy Acids) Moisturizers

Moisturizers containing alpha-hydroxy acids, which are those which are mainly derived from fruit acids, actually do more than just add surface hydration to the skin. By helping to slough off dead cells which naturally accumulate on our skin, they restore its shine and healthy look. It also helps to clear the pores while assisting the emergence of new layers of skin. They also act to soften any fine lines. These types of skin moisturizer can irritate sensitive skin, so its always worth doing a patch test before going ahead and applying it to the face. AHAs moisturizers are best used at night. During the day it's a good idea to use a sunscreen. This is because the acids can make our skin more vulnerable to the sun's damage.

Retinoid Moisturizers

Retinoid moisturizers are those which contain a substance called tretinoin. This is a vitamin A-derived acid and in a similar manner to AHAs, can also help slough off dead skin cells. These moisturizers also produce a skin-lightening effect, making them perfect for applying to hyper-pigmentation and sun spots on the skin. As with AHAs, these skin moiurizers are best when used at night.

Moisturizers of all types work well to treat our dry skin. Its usually advisable to choose a moisturizer that is labeled as hypoallergenic. Probably the best of all skin moisturizers tend to have the most gooey consistency. Ointments (or oils) are generally the best kinds followed closely by creams and lastly, lotions. Petroleum jelly is also a good skin lubricant, although it can be quite messy to use.

The Causes of Dry Skin

So what causes dry skin in the first place? Well, as I said in the opening paragraph, there are many elements that come into play to rob our skin of its natural moisture. Sometimes this happenes to an extent greater than the skin is able to replenish its moisture by itself. Which is when we need the help of a good skin care moisturizer cream to apply topically to replace that moisture. So here are some of the things that act to strip teh moisture from our skin:

• The Sun
• The Wind
• Dust
• Soap and Water
  
• Air Pollution

The Sun

The great luminary above is responsible for giving us light and warmth and making it possible for us to live on this planet of ours. With all these good things, I guess there has to be a downside somewhere along the line and that is the sun's ability to strip moisture from our skin when we spend too much time exposing that skin to it.

The Wind

The wind is another excellent moisture stripper of the skin and especially in warm weather it can take a lot of moisture from the skin by dehydration.

Dust

Dust is a problem more for country dwellers but it also affects those in the cities too. Fine dust particles clog up the skin's pores making them less able to secrete natural moisturizing oils onto the skin's surface.

Soap and Water

Soap and water generally strips moisture from the skin especially when you wash yoru face often this way. If this is the case, its is a good idea to apply a skin care moisturizer cream immediately after drying your face to keep it hydrated.

Air Pollution

Air pollution comes in many forms. Fir city and large town dwellers, most of this pollution comes from automobile exhausts which contain a nasty cocktail of chemicals that range from bad smelling to downright carcinogenic! In amongst them are carbon monoxide, which depletes the skin's moisture and robs it of oxygen.

Chemical air pollution comes in teh form of agricultural crop spraying and while some individual pesticides, herbicides and fungicides have been tested in isolation and found to be harmful only with high exposure, there has been no such testing on the chemicals when used together. In today's modern farming methods, crop sprays contain a cocktail of in excess of a hundred different chemicals. There is no way to know how these affect the skin, let alone any other area of people's health. If you live near a large intesively farmed crop farm, you might consider getting the hell outta there and moving someplace else!