Understand my skin

Damaged hands: why is the skin damaged? Discover the causes, our tips & best hand creams

Many of us have damaged hands and the causes can be quite diverse. And yet, whatever we do, we all constantly need to use our hands. It’s therefore better to develop good habits and choose the right care to soothe discomfort and to stop things from getting worse.

Let's first understand the difference between dry hands and damaged hands

It would seem at first that we put both problems into the same category, and yet… If you have damaged hands with micro-cracks and fissures, you know that they’re not at all the same things! Here is a quick guide to tell the difference and a few suggestions to choose the right care for your hands.

Michèle Sayag, Medical Strategy Director - BIODERMA.

With dry hands, skin is flaky and has lines, and it pulls and stings. Skin can be rough and doesn’t feel comfortable. With damaged hands, we’ve moved up a level: skin breaks open, there’s chapping with micro-cracks and splits. Feelings of discomfort can make some movements difficult.

Michèle Sayag, Medical Strategy Director - BIODERMA.

Dry hands Your hands are dry, with fine white lines, red areas, flaking skin as if it were peeling, thicker skin in some spots.
Your skin pulls, stings and is uncomfortable.

Damaged hands Your hands are deeply dehydrated, very rough and red. The lines have changed into tiny cracks, sometimes deep, that turn into micro (small in size and surface area) or big (bigger and deeper) fissures or splits.
Your skin is deeply uncomfortable and can be itchy, making it very complicated to use your hands for certain tasks.
You can’t bear hot water or hydroalcoholic gel.

Dry hands Your hands need a gentle moisturiser, silky with a light texture.
Use a moisturising hand cream several times a day & each time after you wash your hands.

Damaged hands Your hands need to be repaired to avoid any risk of infection. You need to protect your skin thanks to a rich and enveloping texture.
Apply a repairing cream for cracked hands several times a day, even between hand washings.
Choose a soothing and nourishing balm.
If your hands are very damaged, your doctor can prescribe corticosteroids as well.

Focus on hands skin damanged

Dr Michèle Sayag, Allergist, Medical Strategy Director - BIODERMA.

Every day, hands are exposed to external aggressions, are washed frequently, used constantly for an incredible number of tasks. With their fragile skin, they are often naturally very dry. Very dry hands can quickly turn to damaged, cracked hands with micro-fissures. Even the most basic daily tasks can become excruciating.

Dr Michèle Sayag, Allergist, Medical Strategy Director - BIODERMA.

Who is affected by damaged hands?

Healthcare professionals often spring to mind when discussions arise about damaged hands, however they are not the only ones! Anyone’s hands can be affected, both women and men, at any age and in any country. Let’s first look at the different and habitual symptoms of damaged hands, to be able to identify them and understand how serious the problem is. Then we’ll look at the causes, which can sometimes be tied to a particular professional context. Finally, some people are more at risk than others, and must take preventive measures.

Why are hands so fragile?

Used constantly during daily life, hands have specific biological characteristics, which make them notably fragile.

Lack of sebum The palm’s skin may be thick, but not so with the skin on the back of hands, where there are very few sebaceous glands. Less sebum also means less protection and a hydrolipidic film that is less effective.

Lack of moisture The natural moisturising factors are four to five times less active on hands compared to the face. This phenomenon shows that hands are almost always dehydrated, leading to feelings of discomfort and the need to compensate for the lack of moisture by applying creams.

This is why we all have hands that are dry on a temporary basis. But having dry hands doesn’t mean that our hands are damaged. They are two different stages. Indeed, damaged hands go further in that symptoms longer and are more intense, much more than simply skin that pulls and minor discomfort.

Dr Michèle Sayag, Allergist, Medical Strategy Director - BIODERMA.

Hands become sensitive to hot water, soap and hydroalcoholic gel. With each contact, they sting. The situation can worsen to chapping, cracks and splits so that hands can no longer be used normally. Sometimes you can’t use them at all, you can’t bend your fingers, hold a pen or type on a keyboard…

Dr Michèle Sayag, Allergist, Medical Strategy Director - BIODERMA.

Behind damaged hands, actual dermatosis

When all of these signs are combined and get worse, your doctor may diagnose dermatosis. There are two kinds:

Irritative contact dermatitis (ICD)

It represents 80% of cases and happens when your hands come into contact with an irritating substance. ‘Household dermatitis’ is caused by repeated contact with detergent products used for cleaning and housework. Hands are constantly red and feel painful. This can occur at work or at home.

Allergic contact dermatitis (ACD)

Rarer (20% of cases), it develops progressively following repeated contact with an allergen that sensitises skin over time.

Dr Michèle Sayag, Allergist, Medical Strategy Director - BIODERMA.

Irritated hands that are typical of irritative contact dermatitis make skin more permeable. It no longer acts as a barrier and allergens can penetrate.

In some cases, irritative contact dermatitis changes into allergic contact dermatitis, but not always. It all depends on how much of the allergen was received and the immune system’s response. This is why it is important to restore the skin’s barrier with a repairing balm for damaged hands, like Cicabio Mains.

Dr Michèle Sayag, Allergist, Medical Strategy Director - BIODERMA.

Our hands are the extension of our intelligence: our most precious aid for knowledge, action, creation, communication and expression. We can thank our hands for the greatest human masterpieces that have been created. We can thank them for bringing us into contact with the world and with others, through the sense of touch.

Our hands nonetheless endure a certain amount of wear and tear every day, which can be the direct cause of damaged hands or a compounding factor:

Professional context and specific lifestyle conditions
Weather conditions, especially intense cold
Hygiene measures, including repeated washing of hands and disinfecting with hydroalcoholic gel

When our hands are damaged, everyday life is often deeply affected since we have to use our hands all the time. We feel the consequences at work, during daily activities with children or at home, and even in our social relations.

Four major risk factors for damaged hands

Having hands frequently in the water (care givers, cooks, hairdressers…)
Regularly using cleaning and chemical products without gloves (factory work, cleaning professionals, bodyworkers…)
Over-using hands at work (woodworkers, masons, gardeners, tile-setters…)
Having a chronic or allergic skin disease (atopic dermatitis, contact eczema)

How do you care for damaged hands on a daily basis?

A minor problem can quickly get worse, and very dry hands can become damaged, cracked hands if nothing is done to stop it. Preventing the change is therefore extremely important, to avoid having discomfort insert itself into daily life.

The right hygiene habits

Wash your hands with warm water, never hot, to not dissolve even more the fragile hydrolipidic film that protects your skin. Warm water preserves the thin layer of sebum that covers the epidermis. Always choose a gentle cleansing product that doesn’t irritate the skin. Pat your hands dry, without rubbing, to not irritate them. Be sure to take all the water off.

The right care habits

Both as treatment and prevention, applying a repairing balm for hands is essential, not only after each time you wash your hands but throughout the day as well, when your hands feel like they need it. Choose a nourishing and soothing cream in a rich, protective texture. The more cracks your hands have, with chapping and split skin, the more bacteria can get in. A dermatological cream helps to recreate the skin barrier to protect skin from irritants in the environment and from dehydrating.

Four tips that work

The night cream-plaster: apply a thick swab of nourishing cream on your hands and slip on a pair of light cotton gloves before going to bed. The fabric will block the cream and help the skin absorb it.
Wear gloves as soon as it gets cold out, without waiting until you get to the stage where hands feel uncomfortable.
Humidify the air at home so that skin doesn’t dry out excessively.
If your hands have been very damaged over a long period of time without improving in any way, don’t hesitate to consult a dermatologist who can prescribe corticosteroids.

What does BIODERMA offer as ideal hand cream care?

To care for your hands, choose the product most adapted to your situation:

If your hands are dry or very dry: Atoderm Hands & Nails

The nourishing cream for soft and supple hands. 8h hydration. With a light and unctuous texture, it moisturises, strengthens the skin’s barrier function and nourishes.

The key parts of its formula:

The hydro-absorbent technology strengthens the skin barrier. Glycerin helps correct the lack of cutaneous hydration
Vitamin PP to strengthen the barrier function
3% shea butter to nourish
+ the DAF patent that increases skin’s tolerance level.

Who can use it?

Adults and children from 10 years old
Apply as often as necessary

Discover Atoderm Hands & Nails

If you have damaged hands with micro-fissures and cracks: Atoderm Intensive Balm

Intensively anti-itching and replenishing care. Ultra-soothing & ultra-nourishing. Its formula soothes feelings of discomfort and itching, protects, & nourishes. Instant absorption.