Hot and cold therapies are no new treatments for skincare. However, knowing when to use them can help your skin immensely.
According to Dr Kok Wai Leong, dermatologist at DS Skin & Wellness Clinic, heat therapy may be useful for wound healing as it boosts blood flow to the skin, bringing more oxygen and nutrients for skin repair. “Heat also alleviates swelling in skin inflammation or infections. And there has been research to show that skin permeability increases with heating of the skin. Theoretically, this will increase the absorption of treatment products that are applied.”
In simpler terms, heat is known to increase skin permeability, which helps better absorption of your skincare, allowing your products to penetrate deeper layers of your skin.
Cold therapy, on the other hand, is best used to combat inflammation and irritation due to its numbing and soothing effects. “Cooling products like sheet masks and massagers do temporarily relieve skin inflammation and itching. They also help to address dark circles and eye fatigue, which can be partially caused by vasodilation or enlargement of blood vessels in the skin around eyes,” says Dr Low Chai Ling, founder of SW1 Clinic
While popping into an aesthetic clinic for either therapy might not always be a viable option, beauty brands have found ways to help you cool down or turn the heat up at home. Scroll down to check out our picks for the beauty picks that will help keep your skin in tip-top condition, even without a dermatologist or aesthetician on speed dial.