The essential cleansers, moisturizers and serums that dermatologists use to stay hydrated in dry indoor air and the windy outdoors

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The word “moist” is one of the most reviled in the English language. Some researchers even found that up to 20% of people squirm at the sound of it. The New Yorker once voted it its readers’ “least favorite word.” People magazine once called it the “most cringe-worthy word” and even rounded up a passel of Sexiest Men Alive to try – and fail – to rehabilitate it.

According to our dermatologist experts, however, moist is one of the most important words, especially in winter. Dry, heated indoor air and the whipping winds outdoors tend to slurp all the moisture out of your skin. The result: chapped lips, ashy or itchy skin, rough hands and cracked feet.

Oyetewa B Asempa, MD, FAAD, an assistant professor of dermatology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.

Jeanine B Downie, MD, a board-certified dermatologist based in Montclair, New Jersey.

Lauren Payne, MD, MS, FAAD, a board-certified medical, surgical and cosmetic dermatologist based in New Orleans.