what happens to your skin when you wash your hands too much

I of the all-time ways to protect yourself from common viruses and germs is to launder your easily frequently, particularly after using the bathroom, prior to nutrient handing and after bravado your nose.

In times of pandemic, information technology is common for people to deport hand sanitisers effectually with them to disinfect their hands in public after coming into contact with surfaces such equally lift buttons, door handles or knobs and money.

While skilful hand hygiene is important, frequent handwashing and sanitising tin lead to dry skin bug.

Breaking down the bulwark

Washing your hands with soap and water assist to rinse away dirt and germs, but it also strips away the healthy oils that your skin needs to stay salubrious and the adept bacteria that defend against disease. The utilize of alcohol-based hand sanitisers when soap and water are not available irritate your peel less than lather, but they practice not go rid of all types of germs. Just soap and water are able to wash abroad the visible dirt or grease on your easily. Unfortunately the very products you apply to keep your hands make clean and even the water itself are stripping the skin of your easily of the much-needed barrier that is there to protect them from harm.

In a written report conducted to investigate the effect of peel damage due to repeated washing, it has been institute that frequent handwashing over a long catamenia of time tin can crusade long-term changes to the peel, resulting in peel conditions such as chronic pare harm, irritant contact dermatitis and eczema. Moreover, damaged skin can increase the risk of harbouring and transmitting infectious microbes.

So how can yous continue your hands healthy and yet exist hygienic?

1. Apply warm h2o

Don't use hot h2o to wash your hands as this strips the skin of natural oils that information technology needs to stay waterproof. Hotter water does not hateful cleaner easily. Washing in warm water with sufficient lather volition do just as well.

2. Choose your soap wisely

Lather can take a drying outcome on the easily and so be certain to pick a moisturising lather. Look for products that say moisturising on the packaging and with ingredients such as glycerine and lanolin. Choose liquid soaps instead of the bar variety as the binders that agree lather confined together contain high pH levels that can dry out your peel. Avoid perfumed soaps as these tin irritate already chapped or dry out skin.

3. Be gentle

Equally well as choosing a more gentle soap to wash with, do take care to use gentle deportment when washing your hands. Nosotros accept a tendency to rush through the washing process due to busy schedules, but take intendance non to exist too aggressive equally this can aggravate the skin.

4. Make manus cream your best friend

As y'all employ water to your hands while washing, the water acts like a magnet cartoon out existing moisture from the deeper layers of your skin, which volition likewise contribute to drying your skin out. Then y'all demand to replenish the moisture in your pare after washing. Have a handy tube of hand foam next to your hand soap, or acquit a tube effectually with you so that you can utilize immediately when you need to. You lot tin also utilise it earlier y'all go to bed and any time your hands feel dry. Select cream or ointment varieties rather than lotions as lotions have too high a water content in them and don't provide the bulwark your skin needs.

Applying mitt foam volition:

• increase the moisture content of the skin
• restore the barrier role of the peel
• provide a protective film
• soothe the skin
• better the pare's advent and go on information technology soft

5. Treat your easily to a soothing mask

For added care, and to ensure the surface moisture sinks in, especially if yous suffer from dry, chapped hands, endeavour a mask treatment. To exercise this, soak your easily in clean water for 5 minutes, utilize a thick layer of moisturising cream or Vaseline, and skid your hands into a pair of cotton gloves for the night. Go out the gloves on for around 8 hours. This handling will likewise assistance when travelling to colder climates where the cold and wind can severely dry your pare.

6. Switch to hand sanitiser

If yous still discover your easily drying out, consider switching over to a hand sanitiser instead of soap. This reduces the amount of water you need to use. However, practice acquit in mind that hand sanitiser is no substitute for soap for washing hands before eating, after going to the bathroom and when your hands are visibly soiled. Be aware also that the most effective hand sanitisers contain high levels of alcohol and this tin can have a drying issue also.

Dry thoroughly later on washing

Use a cloth or paper towel to dry your hands thoroughly after washing equally germs are more easily picked upwards on wet easily. Again exist gentle with your hands and blot rather than rub so you don't irritate the peel. Replace fabric towels in your home every iii days and ensure that each family unit member has their ain towel to use.

When should I wash my easily?

While it is important to wash your hands regularly for basic hygiene and to reduce the chance of viral infections, over-washing can really compromise your allowed system. Yous need to expose your body to a limited amount of potential harmful pathogens to train your immune system to fight it and make it amend able to respond when your body comes into contact with foreign leaner and viruses. Wash your hands:

• After using the bathroom or changing diapers.
• After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
• Afterwards touching animals or fauna waste.
• After touching garbage.
• Subsequently coming into contact with bodily fluid or afterwards sexual activity.
• Before, during and after food handling.
• Before and subsequently contact with a ill person.
• Earlier and afterward treating a cut, sore or wound.
• Whenever they feel or look dirty.

Signs you are overdoing it

If your hands start to get itchy, flaky, painful or scarlet, it's probably a sign that the peel barrier is being damaged. When you lot outset to run across cracks in your skin, yous become more susceptible to bacteria entering the torso.

If y'all starting time experiencing these symptoms, see a skin specialist for advice on how to heal your hands and restore the skin's natural protection barrier.

Article reviewed by Dr Jean Ho, dermatologist at Mount Elizabeth Infirmary

Reference

vii Tips to Keep Your Skin Healthy While Washing Your Hands Often. Retrieved on seven/4/2020 from https://www.healthline.com/health-news/how-to-continue-your-skin-healthy-while-washing-your-hands-often#7.-Absorb-dry

COVID-xix: How to intendance for dry hands after washing them so much. Retrieved on 7/four/2020 from https://www.uclahealth.org/body.cfm?id=1397&action=item&ref=5741&fr=truthful

Quick Dose: Can You Wash Your Hands Likewise Much? Retrieved on vii/4/2020 from https://world wide web.nm.org/healthbeat/healthy-tips/quick-dose-tin can-you lot-wash-your-easily-too-much

You Might Be Washing Your Easily Too Oft. Retrieved on 7/4/2020 from https://world wide web.huffpost.com/entry/washing-hands-too-much_n_5b7b0141e4b0a5b1febdce5f

How to Take Care of Your Hands When You're Washing Them Then Much to Forestall Coronavirus. Retrieved on vii/four/2020 from https://time.com/5800275/covid-19-wash-hands-dry-pare-tips/

Hygiene of the Skin: When Is Clean Too Clean? Retrieved on 7/4/2020 from https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/vii/ii/70-0225_article

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Source: https://www.mountelizabeth.com.sg/healthplus/article/wash-sanitise-hands#:~:text=In%20a%20study%20conducted%20to,irritant%20contact%20dermatitis%20and%20eczema.

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