November and December are arguably the happiest (and busiest) months of the year. With Thanksgiving and Christmas a few weeks later, a lot of us will be traveling to visit our closest family and friends. While making plans and traveling, we often have feelings of excitement and sometimes stress. These feelings, along with traveling (especially on planes) can negatively effect your skin. So, whether you are spending your holidays in the cold winter weather or relaxing on a warm beach in Bermuda, you will want to keep your skin healthy while you're traveling!
Traveling and Low Humidity
Have you ever noticed yourself becoming extra thirsty on airplane flights? Or maybe your skin becomes incredibly oily? Both of these instances are due to the low humidity and result in our bodies becoming dehydrated.
To get into the technicality of it, the cabin pressure and humidity levels are different in airplanes than what we are typically used to. On average, the comfortable humidity level for humans is 40-70 percent and most airplanes are about 20 percent, which causes reactions in your body such as dry eyes and throat, dehydration and headaches. Some of these issues cannot be changed (like the pressure levels in the airplane), but below are some tips to help you combat the changes your body experiences while traveling.
Stay Hydrated and Moisturized
Keeping your body hydrated and your skin moisturized is one of the primary ways to keep your skin beautiful as you travel. To try and prevent dehydration, it's best to stay away from drinks like alcohol, coffee and tea that end up intensifying the dehydration, and be sure to drink lots of water. It’s likely that you will be drinking alcohol and lots of coffee while you are on vacation, but for the to-and-fro traveling, make an effort to drink a lot of water to keep your skin from drying out.
The results of the low humidity can also show on your lips. Dehydration can cause your lips to become dry and chapped so be sure to pack a nourishing lip balm to apply before, during, and after flying. Doing this along with drinking plenty of water and applying (and reapplying) a moisturizer like our Vitamin C Moisturizing Cream to your skin and face during your travels can aid in keeping your skin glowing and healthy.
Keep Your Hands Off Your Face
You can’t help but touch all kinds of things while traveling - like the handles on your baggage, anything in or around the bathroom, cash and credit cards - and these items can carry tons of germs, all of which you do not want to come in contact with your face. It’s simple to transfer unwanted germs to your skin: one minute you’re buying a water bottle and paying with cash, the next you’re watching a movie on the airplane, resting your hands on your chin and cheek. Then all of a sudden, you have an acne breakout or skin irritation along your jawline.
Stick to Your Normal Beauty Routine & Pack Your Own Products
Typically, a slight change in your normal beauty routine has potential to cause breakouts or for your skin to act abnormally. Having a routine beauty schedule is one of the key components in preventing breakouts and it is just as important to keep to this routine when you are away from your usual schedule.
Packing your own products is one of the best ways that you can stick to your normal beauty routine. Introducing new products into your beauty routine can cause breakouts or skin irritation. If you have ever started a new beauty regime or acne system, you may be aware that your skin takes a while to process this change and to react to it. Some new routines break out your skin before helping, and others just cause skin irritation and the same thing happens when you introduce a new product to your skin, even if just for a night or two.
It is important to pack your own products and try to match your usual skin routine as close as possible while on vacation. If you wash your face in the morning and also at night, be sure to do both. Don’t opt in for hotel soaps and your friend’s moisturizer. Small changes like this, plus the changes your body is undertaking from traveling may not leave your skin in its best condition.
We suggest packing a carry on beauty bag that includes your beauty essentials, like a moisturizing cream, lip balm and antibacterial cleanser, in travel size containers. This way you can keep applying moisturizer and lip balm throughout your flight! Remember that TSA guidelines state that carry on items can be no larger than 3.4 oz.
Cococare has a line of travel size products that are a cute and convenient way for you to carry around some of your favorite Cococare products in small 1 oz. tubes. So whether you are enjoying life on a beach or experiencing the wonders of winter, keeping your skin moisturized is a must while traveling.
Wear Minimal Makeup
We know it’s not always possible, but wearing less makeup while you travel is great for your skin. Heavy makeup can be drying to your skin so again, make sure to moisturize your face before applying your makeup and try wearing a minimal amount of makeup if you can. If you pack on too much makeup and your skin becomes dry, you will start to see a cracking on your skin and lips and no one wants that! Plus, it will be easier to apply moisturizer with minimal makeup on and also will let your skin breathe.
The low humidity in airplanes have also been known to affect your hair. You can tame your hair and control flyaways in the dry cabin air by hydrating your hair with an all natural moisturizer like 100% Coconut Oil prior to your flight. If you notice that your hair tends to get frizzy while traveling, try using a hair serum that contains natural oils such as Argan Hair Serum; this will help moisturize your hair and provide it with a protective layer to help smooth out and combat frizz.
Tip for your lips: Try to stray away from long lasting lipstick, as they tend to dry out your lips more-so than usual while traveling. If you really want to wear a lipstick, make sure to apply a moisturizing lip balm first, like Cocoa Butter Lip Balm, to hydrate and protect your lips. By doing so you will help offset the drying effect of the lip color as well as the dry cabin air.
The stresses of traveling, changes in weather along with an abnormal skin routine can lead to your skin not looking it’s best, and having beautiful skin on your travel ventures is something that every woman wants. With these simple solutions to keep your skin beautiful while traveling, we hope that your skin will be glowing during this holiday season!
Do you have any special tips or tricks that you do to take care of your skin while traveling? If so, we would love to know your secrets - comment below or tweet us at @cococare!