Okay, enough is enough. I’ve battled dry skin in the winter for about five years now. But last June, I had a form of weight loss surgery that features a re-routing of my intestines, which means I don’t absorb about 80% of the fat that I consume. It’s done wonders for my waist line, but not so good for my skin. So I’ve got to get serious about putting some moisturizer on my face, every night. Not just when I remember.
I prefer a once-a-day moisturizer, as I often put on mineral makeup in the morning, and if you put it over moisturizer, it gets streaky and doesn’t look nice.
All the products I look at seem “targeted” to the eye area, or evening out skin tone, or something like that. I don’t need that (well, I do, but let’s start with the basics). So, recommend me a decent everyday moisturizer for my face. It will get bonus points for not being overly expensive, but really, if it works, I don’t mind laying out some $$.
I use Cetaphil. I have combination skin and live in a very dry climate, so I need something that performs over a range of conditions. Cetaphil has been by far my favorite so far and it is dermatologist recommended. It also has sunscreen, which is a nice bonus (no idea of the rating, I’m away from home at the moment). It is slightly spendy on a par with Olay or the like, but still light years from the exorbitant Creme de la Mer.
I use Pond’s cold cream once a week as well to battle the dryness from the high desert winter. I take a liberal amount and massage my whole face, neck, and décolletage (I continue all of my facial care this far, since it is in the sun frequently also), then follow with a washcloth to clean off the excess. If your skin is really dry, you may consider using a cream cleanser or just cold cream to cleanse.
First thing is to make sure your cleanser isn’t drying out your face on top of the other issues. I have oily skin so I can’t give much in the way of recommendations, but I know there are plenty of options at the plain ol’ drugstore. I too like Cetaphil cleansers and moisturizers. Almay might have something for you. Might as well make sure it has anti-oxidants thrown in there as many do. A good resource would be Paula Begoun’s Don’t Go to the Cosmetics Counter without Me, probably available at the library. Good luck!
Another vote for Cetaphil. I am a lifelong eczema sufferer, it was recommended to me a few years ago by a dermatologist. His directions were to put it on immediately after showing or washing my face, because water actually drys out your skin. So, IANAD, but I wonder if once a day just isn’t enough for you, no matter which brand you use? I don’t wear foundation so I can’t offer advice on how work around that. But can you put it on, wait a bit, and then put your makeup on? I believe a very thin layer of moisterizer is okay, or at least better than nothing.
FWIW, I just switched to a very expensive brand (so not a rec for OP) called Dermalogica, because of problems with acne. According to my newly acquired esthetician, Cetaphil is “too heavy”, even though it says “non-comedogenic” on the label. Of course, she’s not a doctor, so one has to take her medical advice with a grain of salt. But she’s good at treating acne, thats for sure.
I also like Cetaphil although I use a non-SPF one. I prefer to use my own SPF afterwards. Also, call me a cynic, but I think a lot of the ‘targeted’ products are just trying to get us to part with more $$ than necessary.
Oh, actually, I have a note about the SPF Cetaphil. It makes my face burn!! A lot of the reviewers on MUA say the same thing abou it. I hate it…I’m not using it on my face anymore. Just trying to use up the bottle on my arms etc…
I didn’t know you could buy the sunblocking chemical separately-because if that were the case I’d use my Neutrogena Deep Wrinkle cream all the time (it’s basically OTC low-dose Retin A) as it clears up my skin on top of moisturising.
Well, it looks like my next trip to Wal Mart (no Target or Walgreens out here in the sticks) will lead me to look for some generic Cetaphil. I think I’ll buy the smallest bottle they have, so if I don’t like it, I won’t feel bad about throwing it away.
anu-la, thanks for the heads up about the SPF. I don’t usually use one, as my minerals are a very effective natural SPF.
Thanks! I still have 40lbs. or so to go, followed by several rounds of plastic surgery for the skin issues. But so far, I’m really pleased with it.
Cetaphil has a range of products (cleanser and moisturising cream and, I think, an extra-dry version) I visited their homepage (it’s different here in Oz, of course) and asked to be sent some samples. It might be worth doing that if you suspect you may be allergic. It might be worth it even if you don’t, just to get a sample of the other products. I find their moisturising cream excellent for my extra-dry legs in winter.
I’ve got fairly sensitive skin, and there are two moisturizers that I really like. One is Oil of Olay’s daily moisturizer (with SPF, as I’ve got skin cancer in my immediate family and don’t want to risk getting it), and the other is Vitamin E facial day lotion (also with SPF) from The Body Shop. Pricier than the Olay, and pricier than generics, it’s at about $14.50 for 2.5 ounces. Since I’ve got combination skin, I use the lighter moisturizers in both brands so that I don’t overdo it on the oily areas.
For body moisturization, I’ve never found anything that moisturizes better than cocoa butter. At this point, it’ll probably be the only type of lotion I ever use again for body moisturization.
The Moisture Therapy stuff from Avon is decently cheap and really works well without being slimy. The body lotion is the best I’ve ever used, as is the lip balm. If they ever discontinue this stuff (as all cosmetics companies are required to, just to piss me off), I’ll weep, picket, go to their HQ and shed dry skin layers, whatever it takes!
I work in a dermatology office and have tried lots of different moisturizers. I’ve settled on Neutrogena Healthy Skin face lotion with SPF on my face and Cetaphil for the rest of my body, and if my face is extra dry I’ll put it on over the Neutrogena there, too. The Neutrogena has beta-hydroxy acids so it helps with exfoliation, but it’s not harsh and irritating to me, as others can be. A good lotion for extremely dry skin is AmLactin, available over the counter but you have to ask the pharmacist for it, usually.
The key is really to apply lotion with 3 minutes of getting out of the shower or bath. You have to trap the water into your skin.
One caution re: sunscreens. Right now there is some controversy over whether it damages the DNA and actually causes more skin cancer. The risk of this possible problem may be reduced by reapplying the sunscreen every couple of hours, which is recommended anyway.
I want to speak up for Neutrogena as well. I’m using the Deep Wrinkle complex I mentioned upthread and while it’s marketed as a night cream, it’s very light and I use it around the clock, with some Eucerin sunblock on top. I didn’t buy it for the de-wrinkling properties, but because I had run out of both Retin-A AND Differin and grown a few zits overnight. And the prescriptions had run out and I needed to go into the office to get it re-upped.
It has hyuloronic acid (sp?) and retinol and maybe some AHA as well. I faxed the ingredients list over to my sister and she told me to use it until my Retin-A prescription got re-filled because it has enough of the Retinol to count. Miracle of miracles, it actually cleared my acne FASTER…I don’t know why, but the lower dose of retinol really seemed to do the trick. My face has stayed remarkably clear, since.
I didn’t even know that retinol was available over the counter, until I had a medical student staying with me last November (internship). Maybe this is a well-kept secret? I got a prescription for retin-A last February, and the dermotologist neglected to mention that I could get the same product over the counter. With prescription retin-A, I get into this cycle where my skin gets so dry I have to layer on moisturizer, which makes the acne worse, etc. Haven’t tried the non-prescription strength yet, though. I’ve since given up on prescriptions, in favor of well-chosen over-the-counter products. So I enjoy reading everyone’s replies.
If anyone decides to go pick up Cetaphil tomorrow, note that the “regular” non-spf kind (cream or lotion) is often sold with body lotions, not face lotions.
Like nashiitashii for my face I use The Body Shop vitamin e cream. I’ve been using it since I was a teen (though I used a completely different cleanser then) and I find a little jar of it lasts a fair bit of time as you don’t really need a lot. I usually grab it when it’s on sale.
For my body I have a few favourites, Jergens Ultra Care Intense Moisture Therapy (for extra dry skin, find at any drug store) or Hempz herbal moisturizer, though I use the former more now as the Hempz is a little pricey.
And for my hands I’ve takena liking to the Opi AvoJuice Skin Quencher (my favourite is vanilla spice juicie). It’s a bit pricey too, but the tiny bottles are perfect for the purse. Luckily my friend can buy them from the salon suppliers directly so I can get them cheaper.
