The Effects of Hard Water on Your Skin and Hair

If you’ve ever gone on vacation or moved house and found that your shampoo doesn’t froth and your skin feels, well, tight and pretty rubbish after what should’ve been a refreshing shower, then the likely culprit is the quality of the H2O pouring from the faucet.

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If you’ve ever gone on vacation or moved house and found that your shampoo doesn’t froth and your skin feels, well, tight and pretty rubbish after what should’ve been a refreshing shower, then the likely culprit is the quality of the H2O pouring from the faucet.

There are some very significant links between hard water and what it does to your skin and hair. Aside from moving house (somewhat extreme!) there are some steps you can take to combat and reduce the unwanted hard water skin effects.

But first, let’s look at what hard water is and why it causes problems…

  • It’s full of dissolved minerals: Hard water contains excessive magnesium and calcium that’s leached from the rocks as it runs through the water table. This is the reason why glass washed in hard water ends up with a chalky, whitish-colored film.
  • Soaps and shower products are more difficult to rinse away: The minerals in hard water don’t react well to cleaning and cleansing products. However hard you wash and rinse, this can leave a residue that leaves skin feeling tight and hair feeling dry and crispy.
  • When heated, it creates solid deposits of calcium carbonate: You might notice these as white spots on newly washed glass items from the dishwasher or clothes that feel hard when taken out of the washing machine.

There is one plus point... The WHO states that those who have low or marginal levels of calcium and magnesium may positively benefit from drinking hard water.

Soaps, shampoos, and other cleaning products contain fatty acids. These react with the minerals in hard water and form chemicals that thicken (something that’s further exacerbated when heat is added to the mix). This forms a residue on the skin. Over time, this can cause many issues, both with your skin and hair, including:

  • Dryness: The residue left on the skin can be hard to wash away. This can lead to over-washing and also can prevent the natural absorption of moisture into the skin.
  • Irritation: Magnesium and calcium can cause sensitive skin to become itchy, red, and cause rashes.
  • Blocked pores: The soap scum residue can settle into the pores, exacerbating breakouts, whiteheads, blackheads, or more serious acne.
  • Reduced natural oils: The skin relies on a careful balance of natural oils to keep it moisturized and create a barrier against the environment. Constant hard water can damage this process, further increasing all the above-mentioned skin challenges.
  • Dry hair and a flaky scalp: Which, in turn, can lead to issues with frizziness, breakage, tangles, thinning, color-loss, brassiness, or a green-ish tinge.
  • Exacerbation of pre-existing conditions: Like eczema, psoriasis, and dermatitis.

Skincare tips for hard water areas

While all this sounds somewhat doom and gloom, there’s loads of easy, positive actions you can take to reduce or negate the effects of hard water on skin and hair.

These include:

  • Ditch the hot water: Wash using warm or tepid water, rather than turning that dial to full heat. Hot water also dries out skin, so when it’s combined with hard water it’s a recipe for skin and hair disasters.
  • Choose your cleansing products carefully: Micellar water is a good option for cleansing your face and, if you don’t already use one, add a toner into your skincare regime too. Using these together should allow you to thoroughly clean your face without resorting to tap water.
  • Dry gently: Pat your skin dry. Don’t rub or scrub with your towel—and the same applies to your hair.
  • Moisturize when the skin is damp: Use a quality product that contains ingredients, such as ceramides and niacinamide to improve the skin barrier.
  • Use a clarifying shampoo every 7-14 days: These contain chelating products, like apple cider vinegar, that are effective at breaking down the mineral film build-up on the hair shaft. This means the shampoo can actually do the job it’s meant to do, and effectively clean the hair.

You can also look at adding a water softener to your home, although these are expensive. A more cost-effective option is to fit a water-softening/scale-removing shower head. Some of these also have the added benefit of increasing water pressure—and you’ll save a heap of time having to de-clog the holes from limescale build-up too…

Want more information about the link between dermatology and hard water? Visit https://www.bayoucitydermatology.com/services to see our many treatments and call today to discuss the next steps to rediscovering your most beautiful skin.