Why does Hard Water Make your Skin Dull?

Water is the only natural ingredient that works wonders for your skin. Loaded with essential minerals, water can make your skin glow. However, when the essential minerals are present in excess, it makes water hard and causes dull skin tone. The minerals present in hard water make it difficult to rinse away soap from the surface of the skin leaving it dry and irritated. People with sensitive skin are at a higher risk of facing problems like psoriasis and eczema. Hard water can have a lot of negative effects on your skin. So, in this blog, we discuss the side effects of hard water on the skin and how to deal with the hard water problem.

What is Hard Water?

The water that you get doesn’t just have hydrogen and oxygen, it also contains calcium, and magnesium, which seep in when groundwater runs through limestone and chalk. Depending on the area, your water may also contain iron, aluminum, and magnesium.

A lot of you are not concerned about the quality of water that you use for daily chores unless it affects your hair, skin, or utensils. If your utensils have stains or your hair is excessively dry even after using the best products, it’s because of hard water, which contains a high concentration of minerals.

How to Determine if you get Hard Water?

Almost every household chore- from cooking to bathing and cleaning- needs water. High levels of hardness make your clothes dull, skin dry and leave chalky stains on your utensils. Some of the signs of hard water are:

• Soap doesn’t lather
• Clothes feel rough
• Low water pressure
• Higher electricity bills
• Scale buildup on faucets and porcelain stains
• Thin film of soap on skin
• Dry, itchy, and irritated skin
• Film on shower doors, walls, and bathtubs.

You can also get your water tested to find out if you get hard water at home. KENT provides water quality at your doorstep.

What are the effects of hard water on the skin?

In addition to your plumbing fixtures and appliances, hard water has a negative effect on your skin. So, if you are facing skin problems even after following a strict diet and using the best products, you need to check the quality of water. Some of the common skin problems caused by hard water are:

1. Hard Water Makes Skin Itchy

The presence of excess sodium in water makes your skin tight and sticky. When you use hard water, it becomes difficult to wash off the excess salt from your skin. As a result, your skin becomes itchy and red. Hard water also makes it difficult to wash off the skincare products, which also has an adverse effect on your skin. The excess minerals in hard water work up with the shower gel or soap making it difficult to wash off the residue. The soap residue irritates your skin and makes it itchy.

2. Makes Skin Dry

In addition to making your skin itchy and red, hard water also makes your skin dry. The reason is the chemicals left on your skin interfere with the natural barrier of the skin. As a result, your skin gets dry. Secondly, hard water has an alkaline pH level and our skin is acidic. The alkaline and acidic are not a great combination which is the reason why your skin becomes dry, flaky, and dull.

3. Increases Acne

Acne is a problem that almost everyone has faced. As water consists of undissolved minerals, breakouts are quite common. Hard water has a drying effect on your skin, thereby depriving it of natural oils. This, in turn, causes skin irritation and leads to frequent acne breakouts.

4. Damages Healthy Skin Cells

This is another serious side effect of using hard water. Using hard water on regular basis damages the healthy skin cells. Elements such as zinc, lead, calcium, and magnesium are present in hard water that break down the collagen and elastin present in healthy skin cells. This also makes your skin vulnerable to sun damage when exposed to harmful ultraviolet rays.

5. Leaves Spots on your Skin

If you are tired of spot-prone skin even after eating healthy and using the best products, the water quality is at fault. A lot of minerals present in hard water and product residue stick to the open pores of your skin. This leaves an ugly spot on your skin and also leads to breakouts.

Also Read: 3 Possible effects of hard water on the human body

So, how to protect the skin from hard water?

The only way to protect skin from hard water is to install a bathroom water softener. The water softener can be installed with the inlet of the geyser. Installing a water softener for the shower ensures that you get soft water so that you have healthy skin. The best part is you can install the water softener with sanitary settings. Visit our website to find out more about KENT water softeners.