Dry vs. Dehydrated Skin? How to tell the difference & the best treatments

Do you ever feel like your skin is still dry even after your skincare routine? If so, before deciding to switch up your routine, let us help you navigate if your skin is dry or dehydrated! There’s a big difference between the two, but it can be a bit tricky to navigate which category your skin falls into. To make this process easier, we created the ultimate guide to tell the difference between the two categories and the best treatments to achieve your best skin yet!

Dry vs. Dehydrated Skin?

The difference between dry and dehydrated skin is that dryness refers to a skin type, while dehydration refers to a skin condition. So if you have a dry skin type, this means that you were born lacking oil in your complexion. If you have a dehydrated skin condition, this means that your body is lacking water. This can be a result of a number of factors such as your diet, weather, or usage of incorrect products.

How To Tell If You Have Dry Or Dehydrated Skin

A good way to tell if you have dehydrated skin is by trying the pinch test. To conduct, pinch a small amount of skin on your cheek or the back of your hand and hold for a few seconds. If your skin takes a few moments to bounce back, this could mean that you’re dehydrated. With dehydrated skin, you might also notice dullness, dark under-eye circles, and congestion. 

If it’s dry skin you’re dealing with, some of the signs might be things such as a scaly appearance, redness, white flakes, and increased incidence of psoriasis, eczema, or dermatitis. Since dry skin is a skin type, you may also notice that you experience dryness everywhere else on your body.

Treatments for Dehydrated Skin

• Drink Water: Drinking water is key for curing dehydrated skin. If you know that you don’t drink enough water, start with trying to drink at least eight glasses of water per day. Proper hydration levels help the skin to become plump, improve elasticity, and reduce blemishes.
• Apply An Essence: Use an essence to aid your other products to absorb better into your skin. Vintner’s Daughter Active Treatment Essence is a must-have as it is composed of 70+ water-soluble nutrients to deliver radiance and renewal to the skin.
• Avoid Caffeine & Alcohol: Try to reduce your caffeine and alcohol consumption as both of these things can further dehydrate the skin. Instead, try increasing your intake of water-rich veggies and fruits such as celery and watermelon.
• Use a Gentle Cleanser: Skip harsh exfoliants and instead use a super gentle cleanser such as the Doctor Rogers Restore Face Wash. Dehydrated skin takes longer to renew itself naturally, so we recommend being gentle as possible to avoid additional skin irritations.

Treatments for Dry Skin

• Add a Serum: Serums are known to boost hydration within the skin, so incorporating one into your skincare routine is very beneficial! RéVive Moisturizing Renewal Hydrogel is the perfect serum to implement as it is powered by 4D hyaluronic acid to deliver intense hydration and nourishment. Read more about hyaluronic acid, an ultra-hydrating ingredient in our blog here!
• Apple a Heavy Cream Before Bed: Using a heavy cream at night can help the skin retain the moisture it loses while you sleep. A thick, luxurious cream such as the Sisley-Paris Black Rose Skin Infusion Cream will seal moisture into the skin so you can wake up glowing!
• Exfoliate: By exfoliating at least once a week, it will help remove the build-up of dead skin cells. Exfoliating can even allow your moisturizer to work better and smoothen your complexion. La Mer Replenish Oil Exfoliator is our favorite way to exfoliate dry skin while the Miracle Broth™ oils replenish, soften and smooth.
• Try a Humidifier: By using a humidifier, it allows constant moisture to be produced and circulating in the air. A humidifier is especially important during the winter as heaters are known to withdraw moisture out of the air. Having a humidifier will allow enough water in the air to keep your skin vibrant!

The difference between dry or dehydrated skin can be a bit confusing but we hope this guide helped you distinguish between the two! After learning about the different treatments, we encourage you to explore a new routine to help you heal dry or dehydrated skin!