How To Prevent And Treat Windburn, Winter's Overlooked Skin Condition (Huffington Post)

You don't have to hike up mountains to get windburn. Learn how it happens and what you can do about it.
January 12, 2023
How To Prevent And Treat Windburn, Winter's Overlooked Skin Condition

If you’ve ever experienced windburn, you’re familiar with the stinging, burning sensation that can result from a fun-filled winter adventure (or sometimes just a walk to the store). When my skin is windburned — often on my face — it can develop a reddened appearance, taking the “rosy winter cheeks” thing to the extreme. It’s not a look I’m very fond of.

For about a day afterward, my skin also feels extremely dry, slightly warm and somewhat painful — not a sharp pain but an overall tenderness that I try to combat with moisturizer (which is usually moderately successful). Though there have been times when the burning sensation has been pretty intense, most often I’d liken it to what a mild sunburn feels like.

According to the experts I talked to, windburn is pretty common. As little as 15 minutes of exposure can lead to the condition, said Dr. Adam Friedman, a professor and the chair of dermatology at the George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences. It turns out that skin, especially on the face, is quite tender.

 

Read the full article on HuffPost.com

Latest News

November 20, 2023
Division of Renal Disease and Hypertension at GW’s Medical Faculty Associates (GW MFA) was recently selected by Polycystic Kidney Disease Foundation to be a Partner Clinic through the foundation’s autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) Centers of Excellence program.
November 16, 2023
November is National Diabetes Awareness Month. Roughly 37 million Americans, including children and adults, experience either type 1 or type 2 diabetes, and the disease can affect almost every part of the body, including the eyes, kidneys, nerves, and heart, and diabetes can even cause some types…
November 7, 2023
The GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences is pleased to announce that Jillian Catalanotti, MD, MPH, professor of medicine and of health policy and management, will serve as the Associate Dean for Clinical Public Health and Population Health Practice.