Holi marks the onset of summer and is a time of festivity & colour. Playing with colors and gulal is fun, but also affects your skin, nails and hair. To ensure your safety, we share with you a few skin care tips to enjoy this Holi without any worries.

Dr. Monika Misra

MBBS, MD, Consultant cosmetologist at Dermacosm Clinic

Skin care tips before going out to play Holi

  • While you find old clothes to wear on Holi, make sure your clothes should cover your body entirely (like high necks, full sleeves). The more you cover your body, less you to wash off stains from your body.
  • Herbal and natural colours are safer, hence a good choice for playing Holi. Wherever possible use herbal colours.
  • Apply oil (coconut oil/olive oil) or Vaseline over your entire body especially the exposed parts at night before and also in the morning. This makes your skin greasy and slippery, preventing colors from settling down skin deep and also ease in removing colours.
  • Apply a thick layer of waterproof sunscreen lotion before stepping out. It is very important as you play Holi outdoors under sun and also because harsh chemicals can also induce suntan.
  • Trim your nails and then apply nail polish, once it dries apply Vaseline over it, to protect your nails from colours. Also, apply a thick layer of Vaseline under nail tips, behind ears and lips and other delicate parts of body
  • Its better to tie your hair while stepping out to play Holi. Hair should also be massaged with oil before going out
  • Drink a lot of water, as skin tends to get dehydrated while playing in sun. It should be kept in mind that the chemicals snatch moisture from our body leaving you dehydrated, so drinking water at regular intervals is highly recommended.
  • If any irritation develops due to use if colours, wash the area with cold water and apply calamine lotion and moisturiser. If irritation continues or aggravates, do consult your dermatologist.

Skin care tips after playing with Holi colours

  • Use dry hand or cloth to remove dry colours (gulal, abeer) rather than water as it would spread even more with water
  • Some holi colours are oil soluble, they can be removed by rubbing with home-made face pack of besan, turmeric, curd and oil.
  • Use mild cleansers, not soaps or detergents to remove colour as they are less drying and harmful to skin. Rub you skin gently to remove colour, over rubbing or scrubbing would rather cause penetration of colours. The colors would anyways fade in a day or two.
  • Use a mild shampoo to wash your hair. Do not try to shampoo your hair several times in a day in order to remove the entire color in a single day. Apply conditioner after shampooing to prevent it drying
  • Moisturise your skin after bathing and washing off colours to prevent it from drying
Do follow our skin care tips and have a happy and healthy Holi!

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