Why Are My Hands Peeling?
When people look at their hands some people may ask the question why are my hands peeling. Our hands are perhaps the part of our body that is most exposed to things that can irritate it. Things that can irritate our hands range from the sun, water to allergens.
Essentially the reason the skin on our hands peels is due to dry skin. All the irritants we mentioned earlier such as water, sun and allergens cause the skin on our hands to dry up and that is why the skin peels.
In most cases you can manage dry skin that causes peeling with moisturizers to treat the damaged skin which helps to hydrate the skin.
In our earlier article about the most common causes behind skin peeling we discussed some general causes of skin peeling but here we will look at those effecting our hands.
Let’s now look at some of the most common causes why skin on hands can peel.
Washing Your Hands Often
Hand washing is an excellent method of cleanliness and hygiene. During the COVID pandemic hand washing was highly recommended as a form of protection.
But although washing your hands is a great way of hygiene doing it too often can cause the skin on our hands to dry up and eventually peel. Furthermore, washing your hands with harsh soaps and hot water can cause the skin on the hands to dry up and peel. As with other treatments when it comes to skincare overdoing is not good.
One important fact about hand washing many may not be aware of is that although hand washing is a great way to clean our hands it also removes those natural oils that keep our skin moisturized. The job of these natural oils is to hydrate the skin and keep it healthy and by washing your hands too often or using harsh soaps you are removing them.
While we are discussing hands washing, we must also mention another practice that became popular during COVID which is using sanitizers. Since most sanitizers are made from alcohol, they tend to cause the skin on our hands to become dry which leads to skin peeling.
Weather and Temperature
As written in previous article on our blog the climate can impact our skin in many forms. When it comes to our hands due to the decrease of humidity in the air during the winter months the skin on our hands can become dry, and crack which eventually can lead to skin peeling.
In has also been observed that for some people whose hands become sweaty in hot weather peeling can occur also. The sweat can cause irritation and peeling on the hands.
Sunburn
We have talked about the damage the sun can cause on our skin many times. When it comes to our hands when they are exposed to the sun too much it can lead to sunburn. Make sure to read our great article about how to repair sun damages skin.
After the sunburn heals skin peeling can appear due to the skin getting rid of the damaged skin and creating a top layer of skin. If you suffer from sunburn, it is recommended that you take frequent cool baths and shower to reduce the pain. Furthermore, you should try to apply moisturizers to your skin after showering to reduce the dryness.
