This is why your skin always breaks out when you travel

"Our skin hates surprises. One minute it's used to your home routine, the next it's being hit with blasts of air conditioning, dodgy water, climate swings, less sleep, more stress and whatever you ate at the airport. In other words, all those changes confuse your skin's natural balance. Sometimes it dries out, sometimes it floods with oil. Either way, the result is the same: unwelcome breakouts."

"Angela Taylor, Elemis global director of education, explains: "Air travel dehydrates the skin due to the dry, recycled air in the cabin. When your skin loses moisture, it often compensates by producing more oil, which can clog pores and lead to breakouts." Add in a few in-flight wines and a late-night room service pizza, and your skin is primed for pimples."

"It's also about exposure. New climates, plane blankets, and even the constant hand-to-face contact of dragging luggage, touching screens, or applying make-up on the go introduce bacteria your skin isn't used to. "Frequent hand-to-face contact can transfer bacteria, increasing the chance of clogged pores," says founder of The Glow Clinic and aesthetics educator, Dr Jennifer Owens. In short, your immune system is busy keeping you upright through jet lag, so your skin barrier takes the hit."

Travel creates abrupt environmental and routine changes that destabilize skin. Dry, recycled cabin air dehydrates skin, which can respond by producing excess oil and clogging pores. Alcohol, airport food choices, climate swings, and unfamiliar water or fabrics increase skin stress. Frequent hand-to-face contact with luggage, screens, or makeup transfers bacteria and raises breakout risk. Disrupted sleep and altered routines disturb hormone balance and the skin barrier. Immune resources shift during jet lag, reducing skin resilience and making breakouts more likely when away from home.

Read at CN Traveller