As winter is just upon us, nurses often find themselves with dry and cracked hands.
And It’s not just the weather, the amount of work they do and the type of work they greatly affect their hands.
Being a nurse means that their hand creams are their most important tool and they regularly need to wash their hands and not just once or twice a day but at least 100 times a day! It is to follow proper infection control regulation as there are risks for infection.
Their responsibility includes always working with medicines, alcohols and disinfected patients thus making their hands rough, dry and cracked.
Dry or cracked hands are no joke, that’s why it is important to ensure that their hands are covered with moisturizer.
Why do you think the skins crack? The ideal reason would be because of the outer layer of the skin. Skins are automatically able to regenerate themselves and keep moisture in them but getting exposed to too much cold air, Sun, dirt, wind and chemicals can damage, thus making the skin lose moisture and making the outer skin rough and dry.
Below is a list of hand creams or lotions suitable for nurses and other healthcare members!
1. Eucerin Intensive Hand Cream
Eucerin is the only hand cream that has 5% urea, but one might be asking how exactly urea is helpful?
Urea is a natural component of our skin’s tissue and it usually makes up around 7% of our natural moisture. When a skin starts to lose its natural urea, it tends to become dry and cracked, urea contains a huge volume of water inside it, maybe it’s not visible to the naked eye but it sure does have it in it!
Applying Eucerin intensive hand cream will allow the skin to rejuvenate itself and bring back the moisture; the urea in the cream helps with cellular renewal process and accelerates the regeneration.
2. Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Hand Cream
The cream is not about the smell or the outlook, it’s about how efficiently it works.
The cream has glycerin-rich formula that allows the skin to become smooth and not just the hands but the feet as well! The cream works best in rejuvenating cracked and irritated hands. The cream doesn’t take time; it works instantly and keeps the hand moisturized even after washing hands several times, the only drawback of the cream would be that it leaves a slightly sticky feeling after washing your hands, to some it might feel uncomfortable but this only means the cream works deep inside the skin is one of the best creams for the winter.
3. Vaseline Intensive Care Advanced Repair
This cream is one of the most renowned creams in the world since 1872 and also one of the trusted brands in the world, Vaseline has one of the most loyal fan bases in the cream and lotion industry, if you can’t decide what to buy for your skin, just buy a Vaseline! That is what most people do. This cream is a significant healer of dry skin.
The cream makes the hands smooth without causing any irritation and keep the hands moisturized for 6 hours+. This inexpensive cream is still keeping its value to the consumers by keeping its product quality standard. The fragrance of the cream is also nice, their different products have different smell and all of them tend to be pleasant and sweet.
4. Avon basics silicone glove hand cream
The best thing about this cream is that it is not sticky! Unlike many other cream this cream does not stick to the hand and thus making this cream the most efficient one on the list, you can basically use this cream anywhere whether at work or at any party or just simply in the house. Since the nurses have busy schedules, this cream can help their hands regain moisture in a short period of time without being sticky, thus they can work right away.
This cream is also very inexpensive; the price tag of this cream is on par with Vaseline, therefore making it a tough competitor. The cream is heavy silicon based thus making it non-sticky and it also has a pleasant scent. The only problem with the cream is that it doesn’t stay too long as the moisture is not long lasting so you may have to re-apply often.
5. Corn Husker’s Oil-Free Hand Lotion
Corn Huskers Lotion is the only gel-like lotion on the list which is also highly recommended in the nursing industry. This lotion has been around for a really long time, the product quality and reliability have earned many consumers credibility and thus made loyal customers. This lotion is almost as perfect for the winter season as it can be applied anywhere in the body, not just the hands.
This lotion is able to make the skin smooth and clear up the dryness without causing any irritation. This lotion is oil free therefore no sticky feeling is left in the hand and the skin can absorb it faster. The lotion has a fading scent and is close to odorless therefore making it the perfect lotion for those who prefer smooth skin and does not quite like the smell of a cream/lotion.
6. Aquaphor Healing Ointment
The cream is as what the name says, it truly is a healing ointment. This cream is a bit different than the others in the list the cream is not for the regular lotion users.
Aquaphor is the #1 ointment for Eczesevema, Psoriasis & Rosacea Care.
This cream is very heavy and greasy compared to the other lotions or creams but it also works like a charm, those who irritation or the above problems can try applying this cream. This works better for the elders rather than the teens or adults as they have severe rashes or irritation. Working in a nursing clinic or hospital can develop similar rashes as they work with various infected patients and medicines, this cream will be efficient for them if their skin start to show similar symptoms.