Is your skin going through a bout of cold weather blues? It happens to most of us when the days turn cold and we begin to rely on our HVACs to provide warmth.

Extreme weather changes can play havoc on one’s skin. Seasonal weather needs to be managed in addition to your regular skincare routine. Because during this time, your skin has needs that might not be an issue during milder weather months.

Here’s what you should do…

Be extra alert for winter breakouts

It’s not only in the summer that you need to be careful of acne breakouts. In the winter, we crave salt and sugar. Perhaps you have experienced these cravings of late? How did you respond? With a bag of chips? It also does not help that the winter season greets us with many parties to attend and tempting foods galore. The type of food we eat does affect the clarity of our skin and how vibrant it looks the next day. And if you are eating extremely greasy foods, or foods laden with sugar, you could be lining yourself up for an acne breakout.

While it is near to impossible to avoid the party buffet table, there are things you can do to guard against breakouts. Make sure that you are washing your face daily with ingredients that target the P. acnes bacteria. Look for probiotic cleanser types. The American Academy of Dermatology says using probiotics on one’s skin is effective in acne prevention.

Guard against dryness and patchiness

Two common skincare complains during colder weather? Dry skin and red patchiness.

During the winter, we go from cold to hot spaces all the time. We step out of our toasty living rooms and into the freezing outdoors and then into our soon to be warmer cars. And then back into a warm mall. All that indoor heating sucks the moisture right out of the air. Unless you do as the Korean beauty mavens like to do, which is have a humidifier in every living space. If you don’t want to shell out money for a humidifier, look for a moisturizer that can be sprayed on top of your makeup and use it a lot.

A side note, eating foods that are high in anti-inflammatory properties will keep that red winter patchiness on your skin down to a minimum. Replace your cup of cocoa with soothing green tea. Eat dark greens, mushrooms, pears, ginger, and turmeric. Give your body the nutrients it needs to do the repair work on your cells that will keep you radiant even

Chill it on the alcohol consumption

For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, cold weather means the holiday season is here. And aside from feasting, there are other ways that winter can be mean to one’s skin. Perhaps it’s the days off from work, or the time hanging out with family and friends, but whatever the case… One tends to drink more during the holidays than at other times in the year. In a survey by Yahoo, Americans listed New Years and Christmas as their favorite times of year to drink. And among the top 3 items that respondents to the poll bought on Christmas day? Chinese food, movie tickets, and booze.

What’s so bad about alcohol? It’s the fastest way to age your skin, and make yourself look older than you are. If you want to attend that upcoming New Year party looking your best, you might want to ease up on the booze and give your skin its best chance to help you shine.

The best skin treatment of them all. 

Finally, sleep is one of the most important skin treatment activities of all. Not sleeping enough is not something your skin can hide. It’s one of the most obvious ways that you make your lack of sleep known to the world. Your skin looks dull, rough, and it loses vibrancy when you have been putting in too many late nights.

When you sleep, your body uses this precious time to do repair work on skin cells. And it pushes more blood throughout the body, which is why your skin always looks its very best after a night of full, uninterrupted sleep.

Make your beauty sleep a priority this winter. Cut down on substances that will keep you tossing and turning in bed. Start to practice better sleep hygiene habits. Your face will thank you for it, and you will be pleased with the results.