Is men's skin on the hands really different?
Partly, yes. A Hamburg study of 300 healthy women and men aged 20 to 74 measured water loss, stratum corneum hydration, sebum and pH at five sites, including the back of the hand (Luebberding et al. 2013). Up to about age 50, men's water loss was lower than that of women of the same age, sebum production was higher in all age groups and the skin surface pH was below 5. In men, stratum corneum hydration gradually decreased from about age 40.
For hand care this changes little. The palms have hardly any sebaceous glands and the backs of the hands only a few, so extra sebum plays almost no role on the hands. Why hands generally dry out faster than other skin is explained in Why hands dry out faster. What counts is what your hands go through every day: cleaning agents, oil and dust at work, barbells at the gym, cold wind on the bike, hot water when washing. In a measurement on 50 healthy volunteers, hot water increased the skin's water loss much more than cold water (Herrero-Fernandez et al. 2022).
What bothers people about hand cream, and why
| What bothers you | The cause | What you can change |
|---|---|---|
| Hands feel greasy, tools slip | too much cream still sitting on the surface | use less, work it in thoroughly, wait a few minutes |
| Cream smells of perfume | added fragrance or essential oils | check the INCI list: no "Parfum", no essential oils |
| Cream does not absorb | rich balms stay on the surface longer than light creams | lighter care during the day, richer care in the evening |
| Tube leaks in your bag | liquid texture, cap comes open | solid cream in a tin, fits in a jacket or toolbox |
| You forget it | no fixed habit | keep the cream where you wash your hands or sit in the evening |
Whether a cream feels greasy depends less on a "for men" label than on the amount and on how the formula is built. Why a care film feels greasy at first and not after a few minutes is explained in Greasy or cared for?.
Grip: do moisturised hands slip?
Right after applying, yes; afterwards, rather not. Freshly applied cream sits on the surface as fat and makes handles slippery. Once it is worked in, cared-for skin tends to grip better than very dry skin. Measurements of skin friction show that the coefficient of friction rises when the skin holds more moisture, whether from water or from a moisturiser; very dry skin has less friction (Sivamani et al. 2003). In a gripping experiment, participants needed the least grip force when the moisture of their fingertips was in the favourable range (André et al. 2010).
In practice: before work or training, use only a little and rub it in well, or none at all. The real care belongs to the end of the day. For workshop and garden, see Hand care for manual work and gardening; for work gloves, Hand cream under gloves.
No perfume: how to spot it on the label
Many men look for a hand cream that does not smell of flowers. The ingredients list on the label helps. Fragrance and aromatic compounds must be listed there as "Parfum" or "Aroma"; certain fragrance substances that can trigger allergies are also named individually, for example Limonene or Linalool (Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009, Article 19). Essential oils appear under their Latin plant names, such as "Citrus Limon Peel Oil".
- No parfum, no essential oils: the cream smells of its raw materials, for example slightly of beeswax.
- Essential oils only: scent from plants, but still scent. If your skin is sensitive, look out for the individually listed fragrance substances.
- Parfum: the composition is not disclosed.
More in No fragrance and no essential oils and How to read an INCI list.
A routine that works
- Washing: lukewarm rather than hot, rinse thoroughly, dry your hands completely, including between the fingers.
- During the day: a small amount after washing, especially on knuckles, fingertips and cuticles. How much is enough is covered in How to apply a solid cream.
- In the evening: a little more, massaged in thoroughly. Overnight the care film has time to work without anything slipping.
- Outdoors: gloves in cold and wind, work gloves when handling cleaners, solvents and rough materials.
- Calluses: do not tear off calluses from training or the guitar; keep them flat. More in Calluses from strength training and Fingertips and guitar playing.
A note on work: skin protection in the workplace, meaning barrier creams before work and gloves based on the risk assessment, is set out by your employer in the skin protection plan. A care cream after work does not replace it. If cracks bleed, if the skin stays red, swollen or painful for a longer time, or if the problem is linked to your work, have it checked by a doctor, and if it is work-related, by the occupational physician as well.
Frequently asked questions
Do men need a special men's hand cream?
No. The skin differences between men and women are small on the hands. Scent, texture and how often you wash your hands matter more.
Which hand cream is not greasy?
Any cream feels greasy if too much of it sits on the skin. Take a small amount and work it in thoroughly. Solid creams are easy to dose because you only pick up as much as melts when you rub.
Which hand cream for rough working hands?
A rich cream or balm in the evening, very little during the day. For cracked skin from frequent washing, see Dry, cracked hands from washing.
Can I use beard balm on my hands?
It is built in a similar way, from oil and wax. If it contains essential oils, your hands will smell of them. The differences are explained in Beard balm or beard oil.
How often should I moisturise?
After washing your hands and in the evening. If you wash often, moisturise more often, each time with a little cream.
At forpeople
The Solid Hand Cream - Beeswax (30 g, €9.90) contains beeswax, olive and sunflower oil, St. John's wort and aloe extract according to its INCI list, with no added fragrance and no essential oils. It smells slightly of beeswax. In the customer reviews for this cream, 54 statements such as "absorbs well" or "not greasy" compare with 4 critical ones; of the reviews that mention work or manual jobs, 40 per cent are about this cream. You can refill it with the Solid Hand Cream Refill - Beeswax (€7.90), and two tins come in the Hand Care Set – For Rough, Cracked Hands (2× Solid Hand Cream) (€16.90), for example one for the workshop and one for home. If you like a fresh scent, choose the Solid Vegan Hand Cream - Bergamot (30 g, €9.90) with lemon and bergamot oil. For very rough patches there is the SOS Pitch Salve - Larch Resin in a Glass Jar (50 g, €16.90); it smells clearly of resin, see Allergy to tree resin. For outdoors, the Outdoor Set – Sun Protection & SOS Care for Stressed Skin (€79.90) combines sun protection and care. More on this: Dry despite moisturising · Sun protection for the backs of your hands · Refillable hand cream
Sources
- Luebberding S, Krueger N, Kerscher M (2013): Skin physiology in men and women: in vivo evaluation of 300 people including TEWL, SC hydration, sebum content and skin surface pH. Int J Cosmet Sci 35(5): 477–483. https://doi.org/10.1111/ics.12068
- Herrero-Fernandez M, Montero-Vilchez T, Diaz-Calvillo P, Romera-Vilchez M, Buendia-Eisman A, Arias-Santiago S (2022): Impact of Water Exposure and Temperature Changes on Skin Barrier Function. J Clin Med 11(2): 298. https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm11020298
- Sivamani RK, Goodman J, Gitis NV, Maibach HI (2003): Coefficient of friction: tribological studies in man – an overview. Skin Res Technol 9(3): 227–234. https://doi.org/10.1034/j.1600-0846.2003.02366.x
- André T, Lefèvre P, Thonnard JL (2010): Fingertip moisture is optimally modulated during object manipulation. J Neurophysiol 103(1): 402–408. https://doi.org/10.1152/jn.00901.2009
- Europäisches Parlament und Rat (2009): Verordnung (EG) Nr. 1223/2009 über kosmetische Mittel, Artikel 19. ABl. L 342: 59. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2009/1223/oj
