Your Skin After a Texas Summer
How Heat, Sweat, and Humidity Affect Your Skin
and What To Do Now
Texas summers mean prolonged heat, humidity, sweating, outdoor exposure, and A LOT of sunscreen. Even if your skin doesn’t feel dramatically different, it may be dealing with buildup, dehydration, congestion, irritation, and/or increased hyperpigmentation.
September is a good time to reassess, not because it’s suddenly fall (I wish!), but because your skin has been through months of Texas summer conditions. So, let’s talk about what these conditions actually do to your skin and what you can do about it!
When temperatures rise, your body naturally produces more sweat to help you cool down. At the same time, heat can stimulate your sebaceous glands to produce more oil. When sweat and excess oil mix with dead skin cells, SPF, makeup, and other products, it can create buildup that contributes to clogged pores and breakouts. Then there’s the humidity! In the drier air, sweat can evaporate more easily.
But when humidity is high, that evaporation slows down, leaving more build up and residue sitting on the surface of your skin. This can make your skin feel greasy and congested AND can create an environment where certain types of breakouts are more likely. And let’s not forget about friction. Constantly wiping sweat from your face and wearing tight or damp clothing can cause irritation and contribute to clogged pores and acne mechanica (breakouts caused by friction + pressure). So while sweating is your body’s way of keeping you cool, your skin may need a little extra help keeping up with the Texas heat!
Even though summer is winding down, SPF is still important!
Just because we’re in September now doesn’t mean the sun is taking a break. All that sun exposure adds up and can contribute to hyperpigmentation, premature aging, and skin cancer. So keep applying and reapplying your SPF 30+ every day. Another thing to keep in mind: sweaty skin can still be dehydrated skin. Hydration refers to your skin’s water content, while moisturizers help hydrate the skin and reduce water loss. And yes, you can have oily or sweaty skin that’s still dehydrated!
So what can you do about all of this now? Here’s an easy checklist to get you started:
- Gentle cleansing morning and evening
- Consistent SPF usage
- Hydrating serums and moisturizers
- Appropriate, gentle exfoliation (don’t overdo it!)
- Avoid picking at congestion
- See your esthetician at Urban Betty
I recommend seeing your esthetician about once a month to help keep your skin on track. But if you’re noticing persistent breakouts, dullness, texture, dehydration or unwanted pigmentation (or your current routine just isn’t doing the trick), it’s time to stop by! Your facial will also include a personalized home-care routine because what works for your bestie, your sister, that TikTok influencer, may not be what YOUR skin needs. Your skin is unique and your routine should be too!
Ready to give your skin a little post-Texas-summer reset? Come see us at Urban Betty!
By: Grace Drescher
