You’d think putting on face cream should come naturally, but it turns out there’s a lot of us who haven’t got the hang of applying moisturizer correctly. It means that, in many cases, we’re not getting the most out of our lotions, which in turn means our face may be suffering more than it needs to. Crazy, right?
The air-drying trend that’s currently taking off on TikTok has brought the issue into sharper focus. The hack sees users letting their skin completely air-dry before going in with skin care. And while there’s logic to the method—especially if you use a towel to pat your face dry, which a) can harbor bacteria and b) can create friction on skin—it turns out air-drying is still not the best way to maximize on moisture.
According to Daniel Isaacs, skin care brand Medik8’s chief product officer, skin care formulator, and director of research, “A common myth is that air-drying your skin is the best way to ensure it is free from irritation and allows it to ‘breathe.’ However, this can lead to moisture loss and dryness.”
Rhysa Phommachanh, skin care specialist at Landys Chemist, concurs. Letting the water dry off your face “contributes to transepidermal water loss, or TEWL, where water evaporates from the skin into the air, accelerating dehydration and leaving the skin feeling tight, rough, and more prone to fine lines and wrinkles,” she says.
Instead, Daniel recommends “applying moisturizer on damp skin, which helps lock in moisture more effectively. When skin is slightly wet, it can absorb hydrating ingredients better, enhancing the product’s efficacy. This practice allows the moisturizer to create a barrier that seals in hydration, resulting in a plumper, more radiant complexion.”
If you’ve always favored a moist moisturizer application, full marks to you, but if not, you heard it here first: Keep your skin damp, people.
This article originally appeared in Glamour UK.
