It’s very nearly June, and that means one thing: summer is nearly here! Long days sitting in warm sunshine, lazy barbeques with the family on balmy, breezy evenings, a cold drink in your air-conditioned kitchen after a long day in the heat… those first few days of summer after a long, cold winter are some of the best days of the year.
Summer does have its downsides, though. The dry air your central system gives out might cool you off, but it also sucks moisture straight out of your skin. While sitting in the sun might feel fantastic and give you a glowing golden tan, the sun’s harmful rays can destroy your delicate skin and even catalyse skin cancer. And sweating might be a natural part of the summer heat, but leaking liquid also means losing the essential minerals your skin and body need for good health.
Keep reading to learn about the best Israeli skin care tips for summer!
Hydration
Everyone knows that you’re meant to drink eight glasses of water every day, but in summer, you might need even more. Sweating is your body’s self-cooling mechanism: it opens blood vessels near the surface of your skin to help you cool off, and creating external moisture helps your body keep itself cool.
It’s a genius mechanism, but it comes at a cost: your body loses precious liquid, which can leave you feeling dehydrated. We know that severe dehydration is dangerous – it can send the body into shock leading to a total shut down. On a less drastic scale, it can wreck your fragile skin. Under-hydrated skin is loose, dry, and less elastic than healthy skin. It can fall to flakes in an instant, becoming itchy and irritated. It also makes you look older, as wrinkles and fine lines appear more pronounced when the skin isn’t plumped up with water.
Step one to keeping your skin hydrated is remembering to drink – lots. Step two is layering on the best products for your skin type. Choose light, easily absorbed products that have been designed to help skin lock in moisture.
We love this Bioxir Argan Uplift face serum from Edom – it has argan stem cells and hyaluronic acid which plump out skin cells and help your face retain moisture. Top it off with a slow-absorbing overnight treatment that’s packed with minerals for ultimate moisture like this AHAVA gel cream skin conditioner. And boost your body’s moisture with a skin-sealing oil spray like this multi-vitamin dry oil body mist that will help your body lock in much-needed moisture and stay soft.
Sun Protection
Nothing feels quite as indulgent as warm sun on bare skin – but sun exposure has the potential to be very, very dangerous. Sunlight is made up of different ultraviolet rays which break down your skin’s natural protection. This is part of why you get sunburnt and tanned – one may look much better than the other, but they’re both bad for your skin.
Harmful UV rays also trigger what’s known as free radical damage, a complicated chemical process that can have devastating effects on skin. Free radicals are the leftover pieces of old cells that couldn’t regenerate properly, and they destroy new cells while looking for the “missing pieces” to heal themselves. A build-up of free radicals makes your skin age too quickly, leaving you with blemishes and wrinkles.
There is good news: the right skincare can stop free radical damage from occurring and heal any damage before it spreads. Use sun protection every day: choose a sunblock with a high SPF (sun protection factor) as this will maximise your skin’s ability to cope with UV rays. Check for products with good UVA and UVB ratings for maximum protection.
It’s also worth investing in antioxidant skincare. Antioxidants are powerful compounds with “spare” parts that free radicals absorb to become whole again. This stops the chain of destruction that starts when they steal missing pieces from other cells. Most antioxidants have other amazing effects on skin too: they work deep within the layers of skin tissue to trigger rejuvenation, pushing your skin to produce new, healthy cells and stay plumped up.
You don’t have to buy extra products to make sure your skin is getting everything it needs: choose a daily moisturiser with added SPF to keep your skincare simple! We love this uplift day cream from AHAVA with broad spectrum SPF20, perfect for keeping your skin safe, hydrated, and healthy. End the day with an antioxidant-rich treatment like this Edom green tea night cream, ideal for healing sun damage and drenching your skin with natural nurture.
Magical Minerals
If you’ve ever had the unfortunate experience of being so sweaty that a little bit ends up on your lips or in your mouth, you’ll know that sweat tastes salty. It’s not regular sodium chloride table salt you’re tasting: sweating pulls all kinds of different minerals out of your skin. Your skin really needs those minerals for optimal function, so it’s really important to replace what you’re missing.
This is where Israeli skincare is leaps and bounds ahead of the rest. Dead Sea skincare is made from mud and water harvested from the iconic salt lake, and is jam-packed with a unique combination of mineral salts. The nutrient-rich materials include every mineral that your skin needs to stay healthy, supple, and nourished. Choose Dead Sea products that match your skin type, are enriched with extra vitamins and natural extracts, and have easily-absorbed formulas. Check out a great range here.
Hydration, sun protection, and minerals – everything your skin needs to stay healthy this summer!
