The excitement for taking part in the celebrations is palpable as Holi approaches. The festival of colors is unquestionably one of the liveliest, most colorful, and most joyful occasions to celebrate. Unfortunately, newer versions contain dashes of artificial coloring, which can irritate our skin, hair, and eyes in addition to potentially being damaging to our health. As a result, exercising some caution is beneficial.
Skincare Tips
Dr. Rashmi Shetty, Cosmetic Dermatologist at Ra Aesthetics and Dermatology – Mumbai and Hyderabad suggested some tips in conversation with HT Lifestyle.
1. Skin protection:
Maintaining your skin barrier is the most important aspect of skincare during Holi, as there are several things that could interfere with it. Thus, stay away from AHA-BHA peels, laser treatments, and bleaching for at least a week prior. For better barrier protection, apply petroleum jelly or cocoa butter to exposed regions.
2. Diet and supplements:
To fortify your body against these, you need to consume more colorful fruits and vegetables, such as night veggies, nuts, and seeds, and less dairy and sugar. A week before to, it’s also critical to begin taking antioxidant and anti-inflammatory supplements like Ra Bright and Ra Defense, which have essential components like vitamin C, hyaluronic acid, xanthin, etc. Milk thistle, tulsi, ginger, piperine, curcumin, and resveratrol are other beneficial components.
3. Moisturize:
Use products such as moisturizers, night repair creams, and nourishing creams to strengthen and moisturize the skin barrier if you have dry, sensitive, or acne-prone skin.
4. Apply sunscreen
Moisturizers with natural ingredients, such as coconut oil, are beneficial to your skin. It is not sufficient to moisturize your face alone; you should moisturize your complete body. It’s imperative to wear sunscreen since the intense heat and color can exacerbate skin damage.
5. Cleanse gently
Using small circular motions with your fingertips, work on your skin, and then use a moist cotton to wipe it off. If you choose a watery, liquid cleanser, soak a cotton ball in it before using it to clean your skin. Continue using a clean cotton pad until your face is completely clean. Use cleansers designed specifically for oily skin if you have really oily skin. After giving your face and body a good wash, liberally apply moisturizer to prevent any irritation or dryness caused by the chemicals in the colors.
6. Medical advice:
To stop skin issues from getting worse, get medical attention right away if you have severe color-related skin responses. Steer clear of medicine and self-treatment as they may make the illness worse.
Haircare Tips
● Start by putting a liberal amount of coconut oil on your scalp and individual hair strands.
● To reduce the possibility of color entanglement and potential harm from both colors and environmental conditions, wear your hair fastened in a sloppy bun or braid.
● Protect your hair from direct sunlight and color exposure by wearing a hat or cap to add an additional layer of protection.
● Think about applying a leave-in conditioner before going to the Holi festivities. This helps to keep color from leaking into the hair shafts by closing the hair cuticles.
● Wash your hair right away after the celebrations. To prevent drying out your hair, you should only need to wash it once.
● Use lukewarm water to thoroughly rinse your hair in order to get rid of any remaining color particles. Hot water should be avoided as it can remove natural oils.
● Use a mild shampoo without sulfates and massage it into your scalp and hair strands, paying special attention to the places where too much color is still present.
● Take a vacation from heat-styling appliances like curling irons, straighteners, and blow dryers for your hair. To avoid more harm, let your hair air dry naturally instead.
