In this article:
How does summer affect your skin?
Tips for a summer skin care routine
Apply a sunscreen that doesn't feel like sunscreen
Add vitamin C to your summer skin care routine
Use a lightweight moisturiser
Stop shiny skin in its tracks
Fight back blemishes
Banish annoying body bumps
When the weather is warm and sunny, it’s extra important to make sure your skin is shielded from the elements so it can look its healthiest from head to toe.
Although a solid skin care routine works year-round, a few routine tweaks can help better protect skin from the more intense UV rays that spring and summer bring about, remedy body breakouts and help with sweat-induced shine (1).
Here are our top summer skin care tips to beat the heat and have protected, healthy-looking skin.
How does summer affect your skin?
First, let’s dive into how summer can impact skin and the way we approach skin care. During the summer months, UV rays are hitting earth at a steeper angle for a longer amount of time, meaning there are more hours of daylight (2). Exposure to increased UV ray intensity can more quickly lead to sun damage, sun burns, and in the long run heighten your risk of skin cancer (3).
Make sun care a priority to combat sun’s power. Outside of consistent, liberal application (and, every two hours outdoors, reapplication!) of a broad-spectrum SPF 15 or greater, monitor your sun exposure. Try to remain inside, or if not inside, in the shade with specialised UV protective gear (hat, sunglasses and clothing), especially between the hours of 10AM-2PM, when the sun’s strongest (4).
Beyond sun’s increased intensity, the heat and humidity that we associate with warmer weather can cause increased sweat as our bodies try to keep cool. This increase in sweat for those with body breakouts can mean a surge in pimples and blemishes, as sweat can mix with oil and debris and lead to clogged pores (5).
Tips for a summer skin care routine
Learning how to care for skin in summer is quite simple. A large routine upheaval or entire bathroom cabinet skin care product swap-out isn’t needed. A summer skin care routine should closely resemble, if not mirror, your tried-and-true, year-round skin care regimen.
However, due to the way summer impacts skin, you might want to explore lighter product textures, mattifying products to combat sweat-induced shine and add body blemish solutions. Let’s get into our tips to help you achieve healthy, protected skin all summer long.
Apply a sunscreen that doesn’t feel like sunscreen
We get it— you know you need to wear sunscreen year-round, but sometimes you hate the way it feels. Thicker sunscreens can feel like a chore to apply, get all over clothing and can feel oppressive, especially in the summer’s sweltering heat!
This distaste for the texture and finish of a sunscreen can lead to skipping this step or skimping on application, but that’s a mistake. Innovations in sunscreen have allowed for lighter, more refreshing textures that inspire everyday wear.
If you want a water-light facial SPF, try our RESIST Youth-Extending Daily Hydrating Fluid SPF 15. Don’t be fooled by the weightless texture; it not only protects skin from sun damage, but also is loaded with beneficial antioxidants to help fight off pollutants. Many brands sold in drugstores now offer impressively light sunscreens for the body: we’re talking silky-smooth applications and a powder-soft, non-greasy finish.
Add vitamin C to your summer skin care routine
Vitamin C (AKA ascorbic acid) is a superstar skin care ingredient that protects against environmental stressors, firms, reduces the look of discolourations and combats the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
If this naturally-occurring vitamin isn’t already present in your skin care routine, you should make some room for it! Board-certified dermatologist Dr. Debra Jaliman recommends “adding vitamin C to your daily morning skin care routine as it will increase the effectiveness of your sunscreen.” Studies prove that vitamin C helps boost the effectiveness of sunscreens, leading to increased protection from harmful UV rays (6).
You can find various vitamin C products, from moisturisers to serums, allowing easy integration into your daytime routine.
Use a lightweight moisturiser
Swapping your creamier moisturiser out for a lightweight moisturiser with a thinner texture can provide a more enjoyable sensorial experience when humidity, sweat and heat take over.
Although not necessary, a gel, serum-like or water-light moisturiser might be a great change of pace for summer! If you find your skin needs more moisture, try layering a lightweight moisturiser with a water-based serum for extra hydration without heaviness.
You might also want to consider incorporating a hydrating serum that sinks down into skin’s layers to defend against dehydration (which is more likely with increased heat and sun exposure during summer).
Stop shiny skin in its tracks
The heat and humidity that comes along with warmer months can cause us to sweat more. Beyond needing to reapply deodorant more frequently, more sweat can mean melted makeup and greasy-looking skin.
Solve these predicaments with the SHINE STOPPER Instant Matte Finish. This summer skin care essential gives you a silky, powder-like finish that controls oil and helps makeup stay put despite those high temps. The icing on the cake? It also minimises the appearance of pores.
Fight back blemishes
Body breakouts become more noticeable with the onset of skin-baring hot weather, especially when it comes to back blemishes. It also doesn’t help that sweat, oil and debris can mix and cause more body breakouts during warm months.
The first thing to remember is that body blemishes are normal and is nothing to be ashamed about. However, if you want to minimise your back blemishes, exfoliation and treatments powered with blemish-fighting ingredients are key.
Our CLEAR Exfoliating Body Spray With 2% Salicylic Acid is an easy-to-use exfoliant that features a unique spray nozzle you can hold at any angle for those hard-to-reach areas on your back. After an easy dousing, follow up with our CLEAR Extra Strength Daily Skin Clearing Treatment With 5% Benzoyl Peroxide to stop stubborn blemishes in their tracks.
Banish annoying body bumps
In summertime, shaving your legs and bikini area more often can result in unflattering red or otherwise dark bumps most often caused by razor burn. Tackling the discolouration, irritation and bumps that often go hand-in-hand with shaving is as easy as seeking out an ingredient that soothes and exfoliates.
Beta hydroxy acid (AKA BHA and salicylic acid) soothes temperamental skin and diminishes shaving-related bumps, plus its potent, yet gentle, exfoliating action removes the buildup of dead skin and helps unclog plugged pores for a softer, smoother surface. Try our Weightless Body Treatment 2% BHA for bumps and soothing hair removal irritations. This treatment also significantly lessens the appearance of reddened, hard bumps that many people with light skin tones have on their arms and legs, and is even suitable for those with keratosis pilaris.
Learn more about skin care tips.
References for this information:
- World Health Organization, Accessed May 2023, Webpage
- Library of Congress, Accessed May 2023, Webpage
- American Journal of Epidemiology, May 2016, pages 824-833
- Saudi Journal of Engineering and Technology, November 2022, pages 533-54
- American Academy of Dermatology Association, Accessed May 2023, Webpage
- International Dermatology Online Journal, April-June 2013, pages 143-146
