Chapped-Hand Care

Chapped hands require proper care, as the condition can lead to itching, bleeding and infections. Your hands can become chapped for a number of reasons, from change of weather to frequent use of water with soaps and detergents that are harsh on skin. Properly care for your hands by keeping them moisturized.

Appearance and Symptoms

• When you have chapped hands, the skin on your hands appears cracked, flaky, and you may even have bleeding if it is severe. Your skin is also rough to the touch and may easily get caught in fabrics because of scaling on the skin. Certain parts of the hand may be more chapped than others, resulting in spots of redness due to inflammation. Dry, chapped skin can also itch.

Cause

• As you age, your skin's ability to secrete oil declines, which makes it more difficult to keep skin moisturized. Aside from age, weather and frequent water handling can also impact skin. Dry weather with low humidity and frequent washing of hands, especially when using soaps and detergents, makes it difficult to retain moisture in skin. Natural skin oils are removed, creating chapped hands.

Prevention

• Reduce chapping on hands by retaining moisture in the skin. This can be done by minimizing water exposure. When washing items with your hands, wear gloves. There are also mild soap products that contain cream to help keep your hands hydrated. Also, use warm water rather than hot and pat dry your hands, as suggested by WebMD.

Remedies

• There are a number of moisturizers and lotions that can help with chapped hands, but moisture is retained most easily when you apply moisturizer or lotion immediately after each hand washing. Continue to moisturize your skin throughout the day, before it has a chance to feel dry, suggests WebMD. You may also apply petroleum jelly to your hands before bed and wear gloves overnight to help retain moisture.