How to Treat Dry Skin During the Winter

February 11, 2025|5 min. read

Women's hands with dry skin and red fingers in the cold in winter.

Key Takeaways

Washing your hands and using hand sanitizer can remove the natural oils from your hands, leaving them dry.
Using emollient cream, specific hand lotions and creams, and sunlight can help your skin stay healthy.
If these remedies don’t help, then ask a dermatologist for advice on what to do next.

Dry, cracked hands are a common affliction during the winter months. Your hands are exposed to dry air causing your skin to crack, peel, and in serious cases, bleed.

Unfortunately, washing your hands and using hand sanitizer to keep winter illnesses at bay can also causes dry skin. If you wash your hands too much or use sanitizer with certain chemicals, it can serve as an irritant and make dry skin worse.

“When water comes in contact with the skin, it rinses off the skin’s natural oils, and when chemicals in hand sanitizer evaporates, your hand’s natural oils go too,” said Beth Lertzman, MD, a board-certified dermatologist with Rochester Regional Health.

Dr. Lertzman serves as a diplomate of the American Board of Dermatology and the National Board of Medical Examiners. She shares things you can do to treat your hands while still maintaining proper hand hygiene.

Soothe dry skin with unscented emollient cream

Emollients are substances that soften and moisturize the skin and decrease itching and flaking.

If dry, cracked skin persists and goes untreated, it can cause an infection. Emollient cream is the best way to treat dry skin.

“You can never put too much lotion on your hands,” Dr. Lertzman said. “Lotion locks in moisture and keeps your hands hydrated, preventing infections and serious damage.”

Dry skin is the most common among older adults. Seniors should take extra precaution to moisturize their skin because they are more prone to skin problems like dryness or irritation.

If dry skin persists, consult a dermatologist. They can help work through your medical history and health to find potential causes of eczema, which is the medical term for any dry skin. They also provide treatment options.

Understanding the cause of your dry skin can give insight into the changes in behavior that will prevent or reduce symptoms.

Can foot cream be used to treat dry hands?

Under the right circumstances, Dr. Lertzman says foot cream can be an acceptable substitute for hand lotion.

“Most foot creams will have urea, which can serve as a humectant to lock in moisture and keratolytic to smooth out dry scaling area,” Dr. Lertzman said.

If you don’t have hand or foot lotion nearby, body lotion is also a good substitute for hand lotion.

Does the sun help with dry skin?

The sun may good on your skin, and it can help treat dry skin in a controlled environment with protection.

Spending some time in the sunlight with the right skin protection can help reduce dry, cracked, and irritated skin. If your hands are severely dry or cracked, they can become inflamed. Light therapy can bring T cells out of the tissue, which can lead to less of an inflammatory reaction.

“Dermatologists try to replicate the effects of sunlight as treatment with phototherapy, or light therapy,” Dr. Lertzman said. “The lights use UV rays to treat a variety of skin disorders.”

in general, however, dermatologists warn against sun exposure on a regular basis because of its negative effects, including skin cancer and the breakdown of collagen.