Why baths dry skin out
Hot water and long soaks dissolve the natural oils that hold water in your skin. Once they're gone, water evaporates from the skin as you dry off, and that's the tight, itchy feeling. Dermatologists usually suggest baths of about 5 to 10 minutes in warm rather than hot water, followed straight away by moisturiser.
What to look for
- Fragrance-free. Perfume and essential oils are among the most common causes of skin irritation. Dry skin is often already irritated.
- A floating oil. Floating oils leave more oil on your skin than dispersing ones. Mineral oil, sunflower, sesame and almond oils are all good.
- Short ingredient list. Oil, maybe vitamin E, and little else.
- Colloidal oatmeal as an alternative. Oat baths are widely used for itchy skin and can be combined with a little plain oil.
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Good simple options
Plain body oil in the bath
A light sesame or sweet almond body oil (Neutrogena's sesame body oil is a long-standing example) can go straight into the water as a floating bath oil, or onto damp skin afterwards. Avoid almond oil if you have a nut allergy.
Emollient bath additives
Pharmacy emollient bath oils (common in the UK under names like Oilatum and Balneum) are fragrance-free, mineral-oil-based and designed for dry skin conditions.
What the eczema research says
A large UK trial (BATHE, published in the BMJ in 2018) looked at children with eczema and found that adding emollient oil to the bath gave no extra benefit on top of standard leave-on moisturisers. Many people still enjoy bath oils and find them comfortable. The bigger lesson is that the moisturiser after the bath does the heavy lifting. If you or your child has eczema, follow the plan from your doctor.
The routine
- Warm water, 5 to 10 minutes. Not hot, not an hour.
- One tablespoon of fragrance-free oil under the tap, or oil massaged onto damp skin before you get in.
- Use a gentle, soap-free wash only where needed.
- Pat dry. Don't rub.
- Moisturise within three minutes, while skin is still slightly damp.