Tight dry skin after washing your face: Causes and solutions

This is an automatically translated article.


Clean face is an extremely important step in the skin care routine. However, there are many women who complain about dry skin after washing their face, even many women think that this is a sign of clean skin. So what is the cause of dry skin after washing your face and is this feeling really good?

1. Dry and tight skin after washing your face

Our skin has a slightly acidic protective layer consisting of: a mixture of sebum, amino acids, fatty acids, lactic acid and water (sweat), which protects the skin from bacteria. , viruses and contaminants can penetrate the skin. The protective acid layer of the skin also secretes enzymes that help break down excess sebum, keeping the oil layer on the skin in balance. When we try to get rid of excess oil from the skin, we inadvertently strip away this protective acid layer making the oil spill worse.
Normally, if you choose the right cleanser, your skin can rebalance its natural pH level after washing your face in the usual way within 30 minutes. However, if you wash your face too vigorously or use the wrong products, you will accidentally damage this protective acid layer, which can take up to 2 weeks for the skin to rebalance itself.
The pH of a healthy skin will range from 4.5 to 6.2. If we use a cleanser with a higher pH (high alkalinity) means the more cleansing effect, the more corrosive and harmful to the skin.
If the skin is dry and tight after washing (face feels tight, not smooth but feels pulled up after washing), this means that the skin has lost too much oil, or This is too dry.

2. Causes of dry skin after washing your face

2.1. Choosing the wrong cleaning product


Not all facial cleansers are the same, choosing the wrong cleanser will cause many negative effects on the user's skin. Each skin type will have different characteristics, so the choice of cleaning product must also be different.
If we own sensitive skin but choose a cleanser with a strong fragrance and outstanding whitening effect, it means that we are manually destroying our skin with the product. Facial cleansers contain high concentrations of detergents and fragrances.
If you have oily skin (oily skin), but every day you only use mild acidic cleansers and contain oil free ingredients, your skin will not be able to reduce oiliness, but on the contrary, it will also stimulate the skin. The oil glands are more active, making the skin prone to loss of essential moisture, leading to dryness and rapid aging.

Da khô căng sau khi rửa mặt do lựa chọn sai sản phẩm làm sạch
Da khô căng sau khi rửa mặt do lựa chọn sai sản phẩm làm sạch

2.2. Rub vigorously on the skin


Many people think that applying a strong force will help clean the skin more deeply, so in the process of washing your face, you always rub your skin violently, even many people use a towel and face wash to rub it on. skin many times. This will make the skin thinner and dry, more burning, easier for bacteria, acne to attack more.

2.3. Apply the cleanser directly to the skin


Another mistake of women when cleaning the skin is to put the cleanser directly on the skin, apply it evenly, and then wash it off with water. In fact, there are chemicals in all facial cleansers that should not be used directly on the face, especially when the skin is still dry and has not been wetted.
The best way is to wet your face, wash your hands, then take an appropriate amount of cleanser in your hand, brush it on your hands first, then wash your face.

2.4. Wash your face several times a day


Even if the skin is shiny and oily, washing your face continuously several times a day is also a disastrous mistake. Washing your face too many times will inadvertently make the skin lose its natural moisture, even causing the skin to become irritated, thereby stimulating the sebaceous glands to produce more sebum on the skin, causing acne. In fact, this is the cause of dry skin after washing the face.
Especially in the winter days when the weather is dry, washing your face too often will "squeeze" the amount of water on the skin, making the skin dry and tight after washing, very uncomfortable.

2.5. Exfoliate at the same time as washing your face


Exfoliation is an indispensable step in skin care. However, you should only exfoliate 1-2 times a week. If exfoliating regularly with each face wash, the skin will be dry, burning, very easily irritated, ...

2.6. Wash your face with water that is too hot or too cold


In the summer, many people often wash their face with cold water, whereas in the winter, hot water is the first choice. However, even hot / cold water is not suitable for the skin because the temperature change will cause the skin to undergo thermal shock, cause irritation, and break capillaries. Especially if the water is too hot, it also makes the skin lose the necessary moisture, the skin is dry and tight after washing the face. It is best to use moderately warm water to wash your face.

2.7. Skip the moisturizing step after washing


In addition to the above reasons, dry skin after washing your face can be a normal phenomenon of the body because the skin temporarily loses moisture, leading to dry, hissing skin. Therefore, it is extremely necessary to add water and moisture to the skin after washing the face. Users should use a layer of toner (rose water) to balance the skin's pH or wait for about 10 minutes after washing their face and start applying moisturizer to the skin.

Việc bổ sung nước và độ ẩm cho da sau khi rửa mặt là cực kỳ cần thiết
Việc bổ sung nước và độ ẩm cho da sau khi rửa mặt là cực kỳ cần thiết

2.8. Not washing your face thoroughly


Not washing your face thoroughly will make all cleaning and skin care efforts fail. Not washing your face thoroughly can be due to too little cleanser, not enough foam applied to the skin to wash or not massage evenly on the face.

3. What to do to avoid the phenomenon of dry skin after washing your face

The American Academy of Dermatology recommends that we only wash our face twice a day, once in the morning after waking up and once in the evening before skin care steps. Sometimes after activities with a lot of sweat, this step should also be performed because sweat can irritate the skin.
Should wash your face with mild warm water, not too hot, use gentle, non-abrasive cleansers. Choosing a facial cleanser must be suitable for skin types such as:
For sensitive skin: for sensitive skin; For dry skin: for dry skin; For oily skin: used for oily skin. Use your fingers to create a lather before applying to the face, rub the foam cleanser on the skin and gently massage for about 1 minute in a circular, upward motion, it is recommended to limit the use of towels or wash nets because the products This may cause skin irritation. Note that the massage operation needs to be gentle and slow to increase the cleaning effect while maintaining the elasticity of the skin, helping to increase blood circulation on the skin to help the skin relax.
Everyone's face size is different, so it is necessary to use the right amount of cleanser to create the necessary amount of foam for the entire face. Taking too little cleanser will make the cleaning effect not optimal while taking too much will be counterproductive and wasteful.
After washing your face, use a clean, dry towel to gently pat dry, do not rub your face. It is necessary to perform the step of balancing the pH and moisture of the skin with the right toner/lotion, this will be the stepping stone for the intensive care steps behind to maximize its effectiveness.
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