Dermatologists Swear By These Hand Creams For Baby Soft Skin

Has incessant hand washing and use of sanitizer dried out your hands? If so, you're definitely not alone. The pandemic has left all of our hands (including my own!) in dire need of repair. But with so many hand creams and lotions on the market, it might be difficult to gauge what works and what doesn’t.

That’s precisely why I spoke with a few experts who told me which hand creams and lotions are the best, and what exactly makes them so good. Dermatologist and author of Beyond Soap, Dr. Sandy Skotnicki, MD explains that a good moisturizer, whether for the hands or full body, needs humectants or emollients to be hydrated. If you're not super familiar with those terms, humectants and emollients include ingredients you're probably already super familiar with, like honey, aloe vera, shea butter, and squalane, just to name a few.

Basically, reading ingredients labels carefully is the key to finding an ideal hand cream, explains Rachna Bhandari, MD. She emphasizes that ingredients like glycerin and hyaluronic acid are great at hydrating the skin, while petrolatum and oils lock in that moisture. After you find the right hand lotion, Bhandari's biggest tip to maintain soft hands is to always keep some cream on you—ideally, you're using it after every hand wash.

All of the products below tick the boxes for the ingredient must-haves stressed by both Skotnicki and Bhandari. See below for the best doctor-approved hand creams and lotions in 2022—welcome to the baby-soft hands of your dreams!