Sample these cooling beauty treatments to keep your skin and hair hydrated and healthy through the hot summer months.

As anyone who's ever had a sunburn or pimple problems can attest, summer can be hard on the skin. It's warm to touch; it feels taut and definitely dehydrated.

The pores are overactive and oozing oil.

Summer can be hard on the skin

Sweat, grime, grease and dehydration all work together to create a mess of your skin and hair. Luckily, most of the summer skin damage is easy to remedy. Here are fast fixes and summer skincare tips that will see you through June, July, August and most of September.

Soak up moisture

First things first, before you start taking care of your skin and hair from the outside, make them strong from the inside. Focus on hydration. The more water and other mineral and vitamin-enriched fluids you drink, the more your skin and hair will be able to deal with heat and sweat's torture. You can drink water or even sip cold herb or spice teas for therapeutic benefit. Try mint, watermelon, cucumber and pomegranate juices to refresh yourself internally. Milk, too, has a cooling effect on the body.


The summer sun ravages the skin and disturbs its natural pH balance. So you find yourself oozing oil on one part of your face and peeling or patchy skin on the other. Need of the hour: customized skin care.

Make sure your skin feels cool from the inside, and the outside is protected with products that have a cooling effect. Switch to moisturizing gels and deep cleansing mud masks to restore balance.

Adopt a gentle exfoliation routine

Other active ingredients that have a soothing effect on sun-ravaged skin include botanical extracts like green tea, white tea, peppermint, cucumber, aloe and seaweed. These ingredients keep your skin cool and prevent redness and inflammation. Try these: Lakme Pure Defense Moisturizing Day Lotion; Aroma Magic Cucumber Sunscreen, SPF 30; H2O+ Green Tea Antioxidant Serum, VLCC Sunscreen Gel.

Another way to soothe skin that's been exposed to the hot sun is a cold facial spray. It will not only wash off grime but also banish redness and keep your makeup intact. You can stash them in your handbag for freshening up instantly. Citrus, mint and rose water feel especially refreshing, and lavender works best on oily or acne-prone skin (it's a natural antibacterial). Try these: Dabur Rose Touch Face Freshener; Clinique Moisture Surge Face Spray Thirsty Skin Relief; Vichy Thermal Spa Water; Forest Essentials Dehydrating Facial Tonic Mist Cucumber & Mint.




Once you are back from the sun, you can wipe your skin with cold milk to reduce skin irritation and redness.

"When watermelons are in season, freeze the peels and rub them all over the skin whenever you come back indoors. It will hydrate and tone the skin. If you get dry peeling skin, take 1 tsp of milk powder, 1 tsp sandalwood powder and massage gently on the skin. Wash off for a smooth and nourished complexion. If you get heat rash on your face, keep a bowl of fuller's earth soaked in rose water and add 1 tsp of powdered camphor. Wash your face with this each time you are exposed to the outdoors.

Treatment for that perfect skin

Cool off tired, puffy eyes with chilled eye pads-easily available at drug stores such as 98.4 and Fortis Health World. Or, try from products such as Aroma Magic Eye Gel; H2O + Eye Oasis Moisture Replenishing Treatment; The Body Shop Elderflower Cooling Eye Gel. Refrigerate them after opening.

Body relief

Your body, too, needs to stay cool.

Go for a gentle exfoliation routine: Use a body wash with exfoliating beads (or, preferably a gel wash) to slough off dead skin. Use a soft back brush to lather up and wash off the soap. Start your bath, or shower routine, with dry body brushing using long and circular strokes to stimulate blood circulation and remove toxins from the body. Try these: Dove Cool Moisture Beauty Bar or Body Wash with cucumber and green tea; VLCC Shower Gel Sensual, with mint Aloe Vera. Once you have washed up, slather your body with a cooling gel or light lotion that does double duty: hydrating and revitalizing skin. Try Vaseline Body Lotion With Cucumber & Aloe.

Bath works: Once back from the scorching sun; cool yourself down in a relaxing bath. Soak fresh herbs like mint, coriander, herbal leaves and lemon slices in your bath water; or add a few drops of an essential oil and potassium permanganate to it.

Foot care: As soon as you get back home after work, soak your feet in a tub of tepid water to which some peppermint foot soak has been added. This will relieve stress, tiredness and foot odor. Try Forest Essentials Sandalwood & Mint Foot Soak.

To cool a 'hot head'

Products the summer sun leads to a sweaty scalp. And the unwashed sweat can give rise to bad odor. The best way to deal with this is to use a clear shampoo every day to wash off sweat from the scalp. Try Pantene Clean & Clear.


strong>STEP 1 Use a cleansing gel with exfoliating beads

STEP 2 Cool your skin and restore balance with a chilled rosewater-based toner

STEP 3 Apply a gel-based sunscreen or a regular oil-control one if you have oily or combination skin type

STEP 4 Use a face mist at mid day to cool and moisturize the skin

STEP 5 Remove make-ups and apply cold milk to the skin to soothe redness

STEP 6 Use a mild, foaming face wash

STEP 7 Apply a home-made face mask

STEP 8 Finish off with a light night cream

Home Rx some quick tips

* Add the juice of a lemon and half a cup of rose water to a mug of water and use as a last rinse while bathing.

* Pour some eau de cologne on a clean cloth. Wrap it around the bristles of your hair brush and run it through the hair; it will soak up oil, dirt and odor from the hair. Or, add cologne to a mug of water and use it as a last rinse to reduce excess oil and odor, and for cooling.

Hair is more prone to UV damage. Exposure to the sun makes the cuticle rougher and the hair more fragile and dried out. Condition your hair regularly to deal with this problem.

Easy conditioning

* Go for regular, deep-conditioning treatments with protein-infused products at salons.

* Use a solution of vinegar and water as the last rinse after shampoo.

* Use leave-in conditioners. They work better in summer as heat activates their ingredients to penetrate the hair better.

Stay cool and pretty this summer!

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