Sunscreen and body products interfering...shower 2x's a day?
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Sat Sep 25, 2010 10:20 am

I do wash my face twice a day...but wonder about the body Question

I have dry skin, live in a dry climate and don't want to shower twice a day. I shower once a day in the morning. However, I'm wondering if the moisturizer and zinc oxide sunscreen I apply in the morning are worn off enough to apply actives over them before bed? (Like copper peptide body lotion or AHA cream)

In addition to whatever chemical reactions there may be, I wonder about a physical barrier that might interfere with absorption...

(Could dry brushing at night be an answer?)

I realize it will depend on what products you use...but...

How do you apply your evening actives/products on the body?

- apply without showering over sunscreen?
- or cleanse first?

TIA! Smile

Sun Sep 26, 2010 8:21 am

Really? No one worries about puttting night-time actives on top of the day's sunscreen?

free skin care · Sun Sep 26, 2010 8:36 am

Summer_time wrote:

Really? No one worries about puttting night-time actives on top of the day's sunscreen?

Hi Summer_time,

Living down in south Florida with heat and humidity all year long I almost always shower am and take a quick bath in the evening so I am not applying any products over my sunscreens.
Honestly after running around for a day here I need to get clean before putting on PJ's and getting into clean sheets! Smile

free skin care · Sun Sep 26, 2010 9:36 am

Agreeing with DarkMoon. I cannot imagine not taking a shower after an entire day running around before i get into bed at night. I do live in hot and humid Asia though.

Maybe at least wipe body with a wet wash cloth if you don't intend to shower at night? Although i personally would do a proper removal of body sunscreen. Smile

free skin care · Sun Sep 26, 2010 9:51 am

I also agree with DM. I'm in FL and I shower at night so applying actives at night is not an issue for me.

free skin care · Sun Sep 26, 2010 10:03 am

I shower twice daily. A very quick rinse (a minute or two) in the morning to wash the night off, usually with just warm water and only using body wash under my arms and down below. Then a slightly longer one, washing everywhere with body wash at night. I cannot imagine going to bed having not washed the days grime off my body.

Perhaps you could try that, or just shower at night and not in the morning?

Other than that, baby wipes could be an option at night. Just go over areas you want to remove your sunscreen from with them, give it a few minutes and apply whatever treatments/moisturisers you want.

Sun Sep 26, 2010 1:14 pm

Thanks for the responses Smile

Josh - I like the idea of a quick rinse...
I shower in the morning after working out. I could do my quick rinse at night and restrain myself from scrubbing.

Having grown up in a very humid climate I can understand the reactions I am getting. But now I live in Colorado at 6000 ft with very low humidity and very strong sun. By the end of the day I am not sweaty and grimy...I am drying up Laughing

Sunscreen, moisturizers and drinking lots of water are all a must here.

My local derm cautioned against showering twice a day and for most of the summer I ignored her. My skin became very dry.

Maybe I should start a thread for "over 55 and lives in a dry climate" Laughing

free skin care · Sun Sep 26, 2010 7:15 pm

I live in Canada and it is not hot in the winter
Smile

But, not showering before I go to bed is unthinkable and sometimes I shower more then twice a day.

I usually apply all my serums and lotions, then sunscreen.

free skin care · Mon Sep 27, 2010 4:25 am

Summer_time,

There is another option that I totally forgot about.

I have 2 friends back in Australia who cannot use body washes or soap because of severe dryness. What they use to shower with is a product called Sorbolene cream (that's not a brand-name, it's what the cream is called).

Ingredients vary slightly between brands, but it's essentially a water/mineral oil/other emollients moisturising cream. Not all that dissimilar to Cetaphil Lotion.

Now, I've used Cetaphil Lotion in the past as a pre-cleanse to remove sunscreen on my face. So there's not reason that wouldn't work for other areas either! Apply, massage in for a few minutes which will break up the sunscreen and moisturise your skin, then jump under a warmish shower for a minute to rinse.

I imagine it would work with any moisturising cream or lotion, the cheaper the better for this!

Worth a shot!

Mon Sep 27, 2010 7:31 am

Josh - More great ideas! Thanks sooooo much!
And it's nice that someone understands that not everyone's skin does well with too much water. Just to clarify, do you mean the Cetaphil cleansing lotion or the moisturizing lotion?

All of you who shower multiple times a day are very lucky you can do so. I was wondering if some others with very dry skin weren't commenting because they would just start to feel like the "great unwashed" Laughing

I guess it's hard to imagine this condition if you don't have it.

An interesting aside about dry climates:

I was reading last night about a dermatologist advising patients to apply moisturizer within 3 minutes of exiting a shower. Of course, this is to trap the water in the skin. I had to laugh...where I live, the water evaporates so fast that it's race to get the moisturizer on within seconds! Even in the summer. And if I'm applying actives first, I'm really in a hurry!

Dry skin is a tough problem. Sad

Josh wrote:

Summer_time,

There is another option that I totally forgot about.

I have 2 friends back in Australia who cannot use body washes or soap because of severe dryness. What they use to shower with is a product called Sorbolene cream (that's not a brand-name, it's what the cream is called).

Ingredients vary slightly between brands, but it's essentially a water/mineral oil/other emollients moisturising cream. Not all that dissimilar to Cetaphil Lotion.

Now, I've used Cetaphil Lotion in the past as a pre-cleanse to remove sunscreen on my face. So there's not reason that wouldn't work for other areas either! Apply, massage in for a few minutes which will break up the sunscreen and moisturise your skin, then jump under a warmish shower for a minute to rinse.

I imagine it would work with any moisturising cream or lotion, the cheaper the better for this!

Worth a shot!

free skin care · Mon Sep 27, 2010 8:22 am

Summer_time,

I'm talking about the moisturising lotion, not the cleansers. If you think about it, the moisturising lotions aren't that different to cream cleanser. They contain the usual water, emollients, oils and emulsifiers to keep it all blended. The biggest difference being the moisturisers don't contain harsher surfactants.

I've lived in the desert, the tropics and now in the cool and mostly cloudy UK (central heating in colder weather), have dry body skin (cracked skin and itching are normal for me, particularly on my hands and legs), a normal to perhaps ever-so-slightly dry face but am acne prone... try dealing with that! lol

free skin care · Mon Sep 27, 2010 8:26 am

Summer_time

Oops! Sorry if i came off the wrong way!

I live in hot and humid conditions year round, but I do have dry skin from eczema. Taking long showers make it worse. I certainly do better with short ones. Also hot/warm showers makes my skin worse, I try to go as low a temperature I am comfortable with.

On the water evaporating off too fast to put moisturizer, perhaps try spritzing with water and doing different "parts" at a time?

A humidifier would help lots too. Although I'd think you already have one. Very Happy

free skin care · Mon Sep 27, 2010 8:34 am

Same as circus! Smile

When I was living up north during winter (dry 1/2 year) I would shower at night and just wash around in the morning before work or day with kids.
Just in the heat and humidity of Florida I walk out to a SAUNA! seriously about 5-10 minutes outside and you feel sweaty and gross! Smile

free skin care · Mon Sep 27, 2010 9:42 am

Summer_time wrote:

I have dry skin, live in a dry climate and don't want to shower twice a day. I shower once a day in the morning. However, I'm wondering if the moisturizer and zinc oxide sunscreen I apply in the morning are worn off enough to apply actives over them before bed? (Like copper peptide body lotion or AHA cream)

In addition to whatever chemical reactions there may be, I wonder about a physical barrier that might interfere with absorption...

Smile

I wouldn't neccessarily wash off a copper peptide or AHA product, but would definitely wash off a sunscreen at the end of the day. I'd agree w/ your derm that washing twice per day is not neccessary AND it might be contributing to your dry skin. Josh's suggestion of using a cream before a quick rinse is a good one. Otherwise, just a wipe with a clean washcloth might be all that's neccessary in your new climate. You could also try the Skin Bio sunscreen > Copper Sun. It's their Protect and Restore Body Lotion with a little bit of titanium oxide in it for sun protection. It has other anti-oxidants and sun protectents in it too, so it works really well for an everyday sunscreen. And with only a small amt of TiO2 in it, it may not need to be rinsed off at the end of the day. Dr. Pickart does that and he just tops it off w/ the Body Lotion at the end of the day. For your face, the P&R Day Cover is just like the Copper Sun.

Mon Sep 27, 2010 1:28 pm

Josh - thanks for the clarification. Dry skin and acne is such a challenge! Thanks for sharing. Smile

Circus and DarkMoon - no worries...I used to live in a humid clime. Totally understand! Thanks for the suggestions Smile

Foxe - I will check out the copper peptide products you indicated. I'm new to them and liking them so far! Smile

I just wonder if we are washing too much...I definitely prefer the clean feeling I get from showering but I wonder how my skin would look if it got to keep more of its natural oil. This whole issue reminds me of the condition-only shampoo method - maybe Josh's idea should be the lotion-only body wash method Laughing

free skin care · Tue Sep 28, 2010 9:20 am

You mentioned you're using a zinc oxide sunscreen, so if it has nothing bad for you in it then it's not a big deal to wash it off or not in the evening. I don't worry about that (removing sunscreen), but I also don't put anything on top of it at night. I don't think it would be a problem...

Maybe if you want to do something in between, spray some water or toner on your face and wipe that off with a cotton ball or something, that would make you feel cleaner before putting on night time products.

free skin care · Tue Oct 05, 2010 11:38 am

I agree with the others that it's more important to wash off grime at night before applying your actives. I don't even think you need to wash that off in the morning before applying sunscreen, unless you're the type that needs a shower to wake up, in which case I think a quick splash without soap should suffice.

Wed Oct 06, 2010 7:33 am

Dont shower too much or you'll wash all your natural oils away!

free skin care · Wed Oct 06, 2010 7:49 am

ladygrey33 wrote:

Dont shower too much or you'll wash all your natural oils away!

I have never found that an issue as I replace then with oils, butters or creams while my skin is still wet. Smile

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