This is what really happens to your skin on a plane

If you've ever flown thousands of miles across the globe and two days later watched as your skin broke out into handfuls of tiny spots, bags appeared under your eyes and your skin managed to look dryer than the chicken you had onboard, then you're not alone.

Not only does cruising at 30,000 feet wreak havoc with your body clock, but it also causes your skin a lot of distress and pressure, leaving it looking lacklustre, dull and crying out for some TLC.

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So what exactly happens to your skin when you're sleeping high up in the sky and how can you ease the damage caused by your globetrotting?

We spoke to Sylvie Hutchings, Founder and Creative Director of SCOUT Cosmetics, for her top tips on keeping you skin in shape while you take to the skies.

Dry, flaky skin

"Traveling in a pressurized cabin at 30,000 feet up in the air causes all sorts of things to happen to our body," Sylvie told Be.

"Cabin air is dry and humidity is around 20%. Normal humidity is 40 – 70%. This can play havoc with your skin by causing it to be dry, irritated and flaky."

According to Sylvie you need to make sure your skin is super healthy before your flight by exfoliating at least once a week prior to your trip.

"This ensures that the products you are using to hydrate the skin can penetrate and do their job. If you have a long flight coming up, exfoliate and apply a mask the night before," she said.

Using a moisturiser which contains hyaluronic acid - which is an ingredient naturally present in the body - enables the skin to retain water.

Prior to moisturising, Sylvie recommends dabbing a serum into your skin to help hydrate while you fly and keeping your make-up to a minimum while up in the air.

"If you must wear makeup, keep it light. Mineral foundations are the best as they allow your skin to breathe. Nourishing natural lipstick can help to keep your lips hydrated," she said.

Sylvie's personal favourite is the SCOUT Cosmetics Mineral Pressed Powder Compact, which is non-drying and gives great coverage.

Irritated eyes and nose

Most airplanes have a humidity level of almost half what we're used to and naturally it causes an adverse effect on our bodies.

The dry air can leave your eyes and nose irritated, which can even cause you to have a nosebleeds if you're prone to them.

"To help prevent red, irritated eyes use moisturising eye drops," Sylvie said.

"Using a saline nasal spray or drops can help to alleviate nosebleeds."

Oily T-Zone

As our skin tries to balance out the dryness of the air on the plane, our oil glands go in to overdrive and we can be left with excess oil covering our T-Zone.

A good skincare routine will help prevent this from happening and if you have a tried-and-tested skincare routine that's working for you at home, don't forget to carry it on while onboard the plane, as your skin needs familiarity.

"Using a Vitamin C gel I find helps with healthy skin function and keeping the oil at bay. Mid flight, use a tissue to blot the excess oil and press some gel on the affected areas," she said.

Interestingly she is against using facial mists in the air as she claims while they are commonly thought to hydrate the skin, in fact as the water evaporated, they can actually increase the dryness.

Flaky lips

Just like a hot day in the sun, a couple of hours on a plane can cause dry, flakey, chapped lips.

Sylvie says carrying a hydrating lip balm in your carry-on luggage and applying it as often as you can, recommending Natural Paw Paw Ointment or SCOUT Cosmetics Lipstick in Love to hydrate the lips.

"At home, when I am exfoliating my face I also exfoliate my lips," she said.

Drink water

While we think this is pretty self-explanatory, keeping you body hydrated with water is one of the most important things you can do to retain your glow whilst flying.

A lot of planes these days don't hand out water bottles and will only distribute tiny plastic cups of water.

The best thing to do is bring your own reusable water bottle with you, fill it up at a fountain right before you get on the plane and ask the cabin crew if you can refill it in the kitchen throughout the flight.

Your skin will than you for it later.

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