How to cope with dry hands and cracking skin when travelling in cold locations?
So I'm from a pretty warm country, Australia but now I've spent my first month in cold Tbilisi Georgia and I lack the local know-how and intuition of how to cope with some aspects of cold winters. I asked a general question about dealing with winter here before I arrived, but now that I'm here I have some more specific concerns:
It has been getting only as low as -3°C or 26°F which seems to be the typical minimum temperatures for December and January here. It's snowed a few times but it's mostly dry and so far it hasn't been very windy. For instance I'm doing fine without a proper winter coat/jacket for now.
I assume in my ignorance that the combination of cold, dryness, and putting my hands in and out of my pockets a lot is the reason I've now got rough sore skin on the backs of my hands, occasionally splitting and bleeding.
So will hand cream / moisturiser fix this, and if so, aloe vera, lanolin, what works best?
Or is it that I should have winter gloves? If so, what kind? I remember my father used to get cracked skin on his hands from wearing gloves with a fluffy but absorbent lining so I'm worried I might buy the wrong kind and make things worse.
I'm not sure whether I should get synthetic or natural fibre, or blended; lined or not and what kind of lining, how tight or coarse the stitching should be, etc. I'm really totally ignorant.
I do have some strong preferences. I'm on a really tight budget and whenever possible I prefer to live as the locals do. I'm in a poor country where most people can't afford hi tech things such as gore tex. I also can't afford them and want to do it the local way in any case.
15 years ago I spent a much colder winter in Canada and had the same problem. I bought cheap modern synthetic gloves but they didn't keep my fingers as warm as making fists and keeping my hands in my pockets, and I did use hand cream but after a couple of months it got so bad I gave up and moved to a warmer country. This time I don't want to give up (or have bleeding hands).
Best Answer
I'm not an expert on gloves, but I have found that when trying to keep my fingers warm, mittens (like above "oven mitts") work better than five-fingered gloves; they maintain the flesh-on-flesh contact rather than isolating each finger to fend for itself.
I do know much more about skin. There is a misconception that moisturizer is about putting moisture into the skin - though that is partially an effect, more correct is that it acts as a sealant to prevent moisture from escaping. The best thing you can do to keep your skin moisturized is to slather on a coat of your preferred product as soon as you get out of the shower, wash your hands, etc. Given you are on a tight budget and have limited options, I highly suggest using petroleum jelly as your moisturizer of choice for areas most exposed to the elements - it should work well as a general hand lotion, lip balm, etc. For more covered areas, a thick creme-like lotion should be fine; if such isn't readily available or expensive, you can even use a light layer of olive oil.
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How do I stop my hands from cracking in cold weather?
Petroleum jelly is a reliable standby. Or choose a thick, rich moisturizer in a formula that contains heavier ingredients such as dimethicone, cocoa or shea butter, or beeswax. Slather on at bedtime, slip on a pair of cotton gloves or socks, and keep on overnight.Why do my hands crack in cold weather?
The air in our environment is much less humid; cold outdoor temperatures as well as dry indoor air from our central heating systems both contribute to this. This causes water to evaporate from our skin quickly, making it vulnerable to dehydration. Common symptoms include scaling, redness, irritation and cracking.How do I stop my hands from cracking and drying?
5 Tips to Keep Hands From Drying and CrackingHow do I stop my skin from getting dry in the winter?
Tips for combating dry skin in winterWinter Skin Care - Mayo Clinic
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Answer 2
To augment @mindcorrosive's suggestion, use two layers of gloves, but to keep your hands and gloves in top shape, set your "underglove" layer to leather gloves, and apply a light layer of petroleum jelly to your hands before putting your gloves on for extended periods of time. For short periods of time, the jelly will persist in the gloves, and won't be necessary. Buy the smallest container of petroleum jelly available; it doesn't take too much to work.
This will also keep your leather gloves from becoming chapped and rigid as well. Do take fish oil capsules every morning and drink plenty of water!
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