Enjoy Holi without worrying about your skin

As you get ready to enjoy the festival of colours, make sure your skin is ready for all the fun and frolic. Colours are important part of Holi, however when they come in contact with your skin, it can be extremely harmful. A little bit of care can go a long way to make you ready for this riot of colors

For your Skin: The hazardous chemicals can cause severe skin allergy or irritation, to prevent this we suggest:

Before Holi: Wear clothes that covers maximum parts of your body

• Apply waterproof sunscreen or coconut oil on all exposed body parts

Trim your nail properly. Apply a thick coat of nail polish and put petroleum jelly under the nail edges

After Holi: Use warm water and a mild soap to scrub off the colours. Apply baby oil or cleanser to remove the leftover colour. Follow this up by applying lots of moisturiser, especially one that is meant for sensitive skin to reduce the dryness and hydrate your skin

• A manicure and pedicure is a must to clean the color from your nails
• A hydrating and de-tanning treatment is also a good option to pamper the damaged skin, post Holi
• If possible visit a dermatologist to get a microdermabrasion or a peel treatment done to strip off the damaged layers followed by a hydrating mask to make the skin soft and supple
• Aqua Fairness Luxe is another good option for getting back the healthy glow. This cooling and refreshing service effectively infuses the glycolic peel, 4.5 mm inside the skin without even touching it, thus leaving the skin moisturized and radiant

For your hair:

Before Holi: Colors can make your hair dry and brittle. You should oil your hair to protect it from the harmful chemicals used in these colours

• Cover your hair while you play Holi, it forms an extra protective layer for your hair

Post Holi:

• Use a gentle shampoo to cleanse post the festival, followed by a protective conditioner that restores your hair to its healthy state
• Avoid shampooing repeatedly to remove color
• A salon or spa treatment will help reduce the stress on the hair

To make your Holi truly colorful: While most of the dry colours are safe and do not cause any long term damage, try to avoid the ones with glitter. These colours contain silica particles which can abrade your skin

• Use water-soluble colours and stay away from "permanent" colours because they contain cheap dyes that cause reactions
• Go natural this Holi - use home-made natural chemical free colours

-The writer is Head Medical Services, Kaya Skin Clinic