Dry Hands Remedy
 By Rob Hardwicke, President and Product Master

Dry hands are probably the number one skin care complaint we deal with here at Awakening Skin Care. That's probably why HANDS, our Dead Sea mineral hand cream, is the number one product we sell. There are many high-quality brands of skin care products on the market, and many of them are specifically targeted to treating dry hands. But they typically use oily plant-based ingredients, like shea butter or olive oil, to achieve their benefits.

This presents two big problems for people who are struggling on a daily basis with dry hands. First of all, if you work with your hands, you simply can't use greasy skin care products. Can you imagine trying to maintain your dexterity when your hands are slippery and greasy? Most people who rely on their hands for their trade simply give up on using moisturizers to try to treat their dry hands, because the choices are almost universally slimy and slippery.

Secondly, these products are only doing half the job of hydration. The oily elements in these products protect dry hands from moisture loss by creating a barrier against losing MORE moisture, but they generally do nothing to ADD moisture to your skin. At Awakening Skin Care, we have taken a radically different approach to dry hand care. By creating formulas that are mineral-based rather than plant-based, our products can deliver pure Dead Sea potassium right into the skin cells.

Now you may be wondering, "Why's that so great?" Good question. The reason is that potassium happens to be an essential mineral that the body uses for regulating moisture in all its cells. Without potassium, we would not exist. The presence of potassium in our products gives skin cells a "signal" to hydrate, allowing the healing and moisturizing ingredients in our products to be transported deep into skin cells, where they nourish, regenerate and repair dry hands. The science is somewhat complicated, but the way HANDS feels on your dry hands is not. Best of all, the level of concentration is incredible: a pearl-sized drop on each hand is all you need, and it will absorb completely within 45 seconds of application, leaving your formerly dry hands ready to get back to business.

So with that in mind, here's an easy to follow, 4-step program for getting your dry hands back in shape quickly.

1. Wash gently

If you take a look at your hand soap's ingredients and there's a bunch of stuff you can't pronounce, that's probably a good indication that you should throw it out and get something that will be nicer to your skin. If you're experiencing a lot of trouble with dry hands, harsh, drying soap is probably the number one culprit.

The problem is, many of the people who have the worst trouble with dry hands are the very people who need to wash their hands the most. Nurses and doctors, food industry workers, and laborers of all kinds tend to suffer from dry hands at a level that most of us could scarcely imagine.

Of course, it's not realistic to tell for nurses not to wash their hands, but at a minimum, they can switch to a gentle soap without any of the topical antibacterial agents (like Trioclosan) that are so popular these days. The fact is, 98% of germs are killed by washing in soap and warm water. All those antibacterial soaps and lotions are just marketing B.S. Avoid them and your hands will thank you.

2. Soak in Dead Sea salts

At the end of a hard day of hand abuse, try this: First fill a large bowl or dish pan with warm water (not hot - hot water actually contributes to dehydration, because when the water temperature exceeds your body temperature, the moisture in your skin will travel to the hotter place - that is, out of your skin!). Add a handful of high quality Dead Sea salts (we like the brand Masada, but there are others you can find at the drug store or natural grocer). Stir the water around to dissolve the salts, and then soak your hands for ten or fifteen minutes.

If your dry hands are also dirty and grimy from a hard day's work, you'll find that you hardly have to wash after 10 minutes of soaking. And in addition to the healing properties of the Dead Sea minerals, you'll notice that your hands feel soft and luxurious in a way you may not have thought possible!

3. Hydrate

Our mantra at Awakening Skin Care is "Hydrate & Heal." We have taken years to develop a special formula for our skin care ingredients that isolates potassium and magnesium from Dead Sea minerals, two essential minerals that are absolutely crucial for healing dry hands by providing skin with the materials it needs to remain fully alive and healthy.

Potassium regulates moisture in your skin cells, and magnesium nourishes and heals damage. The combination of these two Dead Sea minerals, combined with the time-honored botanical extracts and essential oils we add to our formulas to accelerate their healing properties, make Awakening Skin Care's products truly unlike anything else on the market. Try them for two weeks, and if you don't agree they're the best thing you've ever put on your dry hands, we'll cheerfully refund your money, no questions asked.

4. Hydrate

Wait, is this déjà vu or something? I know, I already said hydrate, but lest we forget that skin hydration is an inside job as well as an outside one, remember - you have to drink lots of water! Approximately 80% of Americans are chronically hydrated. I personally find that to be one of the more astonishing figures I've ever encountered, since our access to clean drinking water in this country is nearly 100%. And yet, we pass our days drinking coffee, tea, energy drinks, sodas... and most of these end up just dehydrating us more, because caffeine is a diuretic.

Now don't get me wrong, I love a good cup of coffee, but you gotta get some pure water in you - like 6 or so glasses a day - if you want to keep your skin (and the rest of you) hydrated and healthy. Here's a simple test: pinch the skin on the back of your hand, and let it go. If it snaps right back into place, you're good. If it doesn't, you're dehydrated. So go get some water!

5. Play Hard

At Awakening Skin Care, we believe in taking care of your whole Being, not just your skin. A good diet, adequate sleep, and low stress are all key factors in keeping you healthy over the long term. But lets not forget to have fun! Finding the things that give you unbridled joy and pursuing them with a passion bordering on the maniacal can do more for your health and well being than all the supplements you can fit into your medicine cabinet.

So get out there and windsurf, or build a treehouse for your grandkids, or dig a garden, or climb a mountain... but do it. And when your hands start to (ever so gently) remind you that you need to give them a little love, use HANDS - you'll never lose your grip.