Incredibly dry hands - help!

[babysaurus]

Not sure if this ought to be health rather than beauty, it's somewhere in between! Due to bottles, looking after the dog and the baby etc my hands are bloody dry. The skin feels taught and they look worn and tired and some parts are also getting sore.
I can't be the only one who has had this, can anyone tell me what helped them? I have been using Moa Green Balm but it takes a while to sink in so isn't practical during the day.

[Pancakeflipper]

Try Hemp hand lotion by Body Shop.
Stinks but it is brilliant. Farmers use it a lot as its good stuff.
Soaks in well for daily use and deffo put some on at bedtime - super soft hands in the morning!

And it's not that expensive.

[CatchingMockingbirds]

Stick on a pair of moisturising gloves at night time. You just lather your hands in moisturiser and put on a pair of gloves that look like Mickey Mouse gloves and sleep with them on. You can get them from boots, SuperDrig etc, but I got mine from the pound shop and they work just the same.

[babysaurus]

Thank you. Have used the hemp stuff before but a long time ago, and wondered if it would to too greasy.

Gloves are an excellent idea!

[SparklySanta]

Soap and glory hand food!! Amazing stuff!!

[MadameCastafiore]

Have tried hundreds of hand creams and the best for really dry hands is the one used by Norwegian fisherman, neutragena or something like that I think it called.

[Zwitterion]

If you're not already, stop using squeezy hand soap and switch to bar soap.

This made an enormous difference to the state of my hands.

[BranchingOut]

Try exfoliating your hands, then applying hand cream as a mini treatment.

[MrsPresley]

I second Soap and Glory, it's great!

At the moment I'm using Aveeno which is really good too, I can see a definate improvement!

[MooseyMoo]

I often get very dry knuckles which then split (from washing hands, forgetting to moisturise and pushing pushchair around every day). Once they are sore/split, the only thing works for me is sudocream.

I now have different hand creams dotted around the house. I'm using Soap and Glory Hand Food and L'occitane when downstairs. In bathroom is L'occitane Shea hand cream and hand scrub (to use at night) and by my bed is the Bodyshop almond hand cream.

[priscilla101]

Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream!

Use the proper stuff at night and the hand cream during the day....it's the bees knees!

[chutneypig]

I've used the Body Shop hemp hand wash instead instead of soap, much less drying. Then the hemp cream or L'Occitane Shea cream at night,

[impty]

Astral cream. Its cheap and comes in massive pots. I have used it this winter and its as good if not better than anything else I've ever used.

[babySophieRose]

Atrixo enriched moisturising creme at home, the protective one before going out and put gloves when outing. That is the only one that healed my dry and cracked hands.

[knitknack]

I had this problem, a bit of effort (and posting here, see my posts about rubbish nails!) and now I don't recognise my hands! Firstly, I have hand dream everywhere!! Pump bottles by all sinks, the bodyshop almond hand cream (which personally I find much MUCH better than the smelly hemp stuff) in my drawer at work and in my handbag, and a pump of la source from Crabtree next to the bed. This and the blue bottle of mavala magic-whatever-it's-called for my nails and my hands are unrecognisable!!

[knitknack]

Cream not dream!

[Twinklestarstwinklestars]

Aveeno lotion is great, I have eczema and it soaks in quick and doesn't feel all sticky.

[dazzlingdeborahrose]

Almond oil. Take a small handful off salt, add some almond oil and start rubbing. Wash hands, then some more almond oil and pair of cotton gloves. You can combine this with housework by putting rubber gloves over the cotton ones. An hour later take them off and bingo - lovely hands!

[ChristmasEvie]

E45-brilliant for this!

[aroomofherown]

I use almond oil which works a treat (good for cuticles too) and costs almost nothing.

[NuzzleandScratch]

I also find Aveeno very good, it was recommended to me on here a while ago. A dermatologist also recommended something for hand washing when they're very sore & cracked called Cetaphil Restoraderm body wash. Using that instead of soap has helped my cracked hands to heal.

[christmosschops30]

Yes Aveeno is fab and recommended to me by dematologist

[PackItInNow]

I've found that wearing cotton gloves was useless as the gloves absorbed some of the moisturiser instead of the whole lot soaking into my hands. I never wore them after that.

I've found that Cracked Heel Cream by Kingsley House (normally found in the pound shops but any of that cream will do) did the best job as I would have my hands in all sorts of chemicals like bleach, disinfectants, multi-purpose cleaners etc, and the cracked heel cream worked as an all purpose moisturiser. I even use it on my chapped lips and it works a treat.

HTH

[PackItInNow]

Meant to say that I use Avon Anew Platinum night cream on my hands for overnight moisturisation.

The one thing I always do is slather my hands with suncream. Even in winter time.

[MoottonBun]

I swear by Flexitol, having tried every other handcream under the sun - free sample available on their site: www.flexitol.com/products/hand-care/hand-balm

[lifeintheolddogyet]

Big thumbs up to the night time cotton gloves. Slather, I mean slather your hands in your moisturiser and stick them on. You can wash them with everything else.

Moisturisers that work are trial and error imo. What one person swears by just won't work for you and vice versa. I'm an Aveeno fan and steer well clear of anything that contains lanolin.