You probably think you’ve got summer skin care figured out: just slather on some sunscreen in the morning. But ask a dermatologist what they actually do once the temperature climbs, and you’ll find a long list of small, surprising habits most of us haven’t considered.
“We are so regimented and we are so particular—it’s so funny,” says Dr. Purvisha Patel, a dermatologist and founder of Advanced Dermatology & Skin Cancer Associates in Memphis. The people who examine skin for a living, it turns out, tend to be meticulous about their own.
Here are the habits they employ once summer hits.
They apply antiperspirant at night—not in the morning
If you’re swiping on antiperspirant as you run out the door, you’re doing it wrong. Antiperspirants work by using aluminum to gradually plug your sweat glands, and that takes hours to happen—which is why dermatologists put it on before bed, not before work. “If people take showers in the evenings, then you dab dry your armpits, put your [antiperspirant] on, and go to sleep,” says Dr. Viktoryia Kazlouskaya, a dermatologist and founder of Dermatology Circle in New York. Applied overnight on dry skin, it has time to build up its strength instead of just smearing onto your shirt. “It needs time to work,” she says. “Most people don’t know that.” Worried your antiperspirant will wear off during a hot day? It’s perfectly fine to reapply it during the day, Kazlouskaya says.
They wear tinted sunscreen indoors and in the car
Plain sunscreen is designed to block ultraviolet radiation. But it offers relatively little protection against visible light—the wavelengths your eyes can actually see. Growing evidence suggests visible light, particularly high-energy visible (blue) light from sunlight, can worsen pigmentation in people prone to melasma and in those with darker skin tones.
Dermatologists say a dedicated tinted sunscreen—not just a tinted foundation with SPF—is the better choice, since most people don’t apply enough foundation to achieve its labeled sun protection. A tinted formula has iron oxides that give it color and also help protect against visible light. “I’m a dermatologist and I have melasma—I feel like I’m in confessional,” says Dr. Melanie Palm of Art of Skin MD in San Diego, who blends a couple of tinted sunscreens together in her palm each morning, “like making a pancake.” The light that aggravates her pigmentation isn’t only coming from the sky. “Visible light really can cause pigmentation, and blue light can as well, particularly in people who are prone to melasma,” she says. “The sun is the most potent source, but if you’re under bright lights, that’s going to play a role too.”
They layer antioxidant serum under sunscreen
In skin care, order matters more than people realize. An antioxidant serum—a skin-care product that often contains vitamin C or other ingredients that help neutralize free radicals generated by UV rays and pollution—goes on before sunscreen. It’s not a substitute for sunscreen, but dermatologists often use it as an extra layer of defense against environmental damage. Palm is partial to a fat-soluble form of vitamin C called THD ascorbate, because the skin’s surface is itself fat-soluble, so the two pair naturally. A fat-soluble formula “is going to be absorbed more readily, and you could use lower relative concentrations but have higher effective absorption,” she says. The payoff is a layer of defense against the environmental stress your skin takes on during long days outside. “During the summer, people tend to be outside more, we get more sun exposure—there’s just more stress put on the skin,” Palm says.
They reach for dandruff shampoo when summer skin acts up
Here’s one that sounds strange until you hear the science. Dandruff, tinea versicolor (a brownish summer rash), and fungal acne are all caused by the same yeast: one that feeds on oil and sweat and multiplies in the heat. “It’s all the same fungus,” Kazlouskaya says. “It likes oil. So when we sweat, it becomes more active.” It’s common for young people to break out in the tinea versicolor rash every summer, she adds: “I already had one patient today.” An over-the-counter antifungal shampoo, used as a body wash, can knock it back. She sometimes uses it after swimming to prevent rashes. “I like to use it after going to the public beach,” she says.
They postpone pigmentation lasers until fall
If you’ve been eyeing a laser treatment for sun spots or melasma, dermatologists will often tell you to wait until a less sunny season. Summer sun can worsen pigmentation, which means a pricey laser session now can be undone in a matter of weeks. “It could be a little bit of a waste of money,” says Kazlouskaya, who often reschedules those appointments for autumn, particularly for patients prone to melasma. “I try not to schedule those procedures in summertime.”
They don’t quit their retinoid—they outsmart it
A common belief—especially on social media—is that you should stop using retinoids during the summer because of increased sun exposure. Dermatologists say that’s usually unnecessary. Quitting and restarting, Kazlouskaya notes, only forces your skin through the irritation-and-dryness adjustment all over again. “If you take a break, you’ll have to learn how to use it again,” she says. “You can go through cycles of breakouts. You can have a cycle of dryness.”
The exception is if you’re spending serious time in the water and can’t reliably reapply sunscreen; in that case, Palm suggests switching to or adding in bakuchiol, a plant-derived retinol alternative. Used alongside a retinoid, bakuchiol can make it more tolerable. “They augment each other’s activity—they’ve got a synergistic effect,” Palm says. “People tend to get less red and less irritated.”
They hit the spots everyone else forgets
Sunscreen failures tend to happen in the same overlooked places, and dermatologists are vigilant about all of them: the tops and backs of the ears, the scalp and part line, the tops of the feet, the backs of the legs, and even under the chin, which catches sun on the water. “It’s not just the sun from above—you’re getting the reflection of the water,” Palm says. Don’t forget your lips, either; Palm recommends a balm with zinc. And mind your toes. “You don’t want to have little sausage beans of red digits at the end of the day,” she says.
The legs also deserve special attention. “They’re the most dangerous place, because we wear shorts and short skirts and we forget about them,” Kazlouskaya says. “Melanomas can be really, really tiny on the legs.” She recently diagnosed melanoma on an 18-year-old’s leg—a spot that’s easy to miss because no one thinks to check it. For the scalp, she reaches for a wide-brim hat—including one with a detachable flap that shields the back of her neck on hikes—or a liquid sunscreen spray made for the hairline.
They treat sunglasses as skin care
Sunscreen stops at the eyes, but the sun doesn’t—and dermatologists don’t think of sunglasses as a fashion accessory. Cumulative UV exposure is linked to cataracts and growths on the sclera, or the white of the eye, which Palm says she sees in longtime surfers. It can also lead to melanoma of the eye, which is why she looks for sunglass lenses with broad coverage against both UVA and UVB, as well as polarization if you’re around water.
“Just look at the stickers, and it should have broad coverage against UVA and UVB,” she says. She stashes pairs in her car so she’s never caught squinting—which, she notes, does you no favors either. Squint in bright light day after day, and you etch in crow’s feet, or “wrinkles around the eyes” that are easier to prevent than they are to undo.
They let everything breathe
Summer is prime time for trapped moisture, and dermatologists are picky about what they wear. Patel steers clear of tight synthetic fabrics, especially underwear, which can set you up for rashes, ingrown hairs, and yeast infections. “Everything needs to breathe,” she says. Her rule of thumb is to choose cotton, which is breathable and wicks moisture away from the skin, while synthetics like polyester tend to trap heat and sweat against it—creating warm, damp conditions that encourage the growth of yeast and bacteria. The same logic applies below the ankles—she’s a fan of letting your feet breathe in sandals rather than sealing them into socks and shoes all day, which is how athlete’s foot gets started. “Let it all hang out,” she says.
They rinse off the second they stop sweating
Letting sweat dry on your skin isn’t harmless. As it evaporates, it leaves behind salt that can irritate sensitive or eczema-prone skin, and the lingering moisture can encourage the growth of bacteria on the skin. As the salt sits there, “it starts creating an environment that’s more acidic, and you can be more prone to things like folliculitis and breakouts,” Palm says, which is why a quick rinse after a workout or a hot afternoon is a good idea
They ease up on exfoliation
It’s tempting to scrub your way to a summer glow, but dermatologists pump the brakes—gritty scrubs and aggressive dry brushing can be too harsh when sun exposure is already stressing your skin barrier. Palm favors a gentle chemical exfoliant over a physical one on the face, and no more than once a week on the body.
They leave a peeling sunburn alone
When a burn starts to peel, the most dermatologist-approved move is to resist the urge to pick, and never pop a blister—peel it too soon and you risk uneven pigmentation, discoloration, and even scarring. “Just let it alone,” Kazlouskaya says. Allow it to slough off on its own, and in the meantime, soothe the burn with a cool shower, aloe, or a plain moisturizer made for sensitive skin. One caveat: A severe burn—blistering over a large area, accompanied by fever or chills—is a reason to call a doctor, not wait it out at home.
If something looks off, they investigate
Because we’re all showing more skin this time of year, your partner or friend might notice a suspicious spot (or you might notice one on them). If you do, say something. And “if something doesn’t match the rest of your spots and moles, it might be worth mentioning” to your doctor, Palm says.
Dermatologists check moles by the ABCDEs: asymmetry, border, color, diameter, and—the one Palm singles out—evolving. “E, I think, is the most important,” she says. A fresh pair of eyes can flag a spot that looks off, but whether it’s new or changing is something only you would know, which is why it’s worth checking your own skin, too.
