De Ultieme Gids voor Dove Zelfbruiner Lotion

The best lotion

Lighter and drier-feeling than competitors, once rubbed in. Better for people with normal to oily skin.

Buying Options

Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion was the favorite lotion among our panel of testers, in fact, it was the only product that every person liked. Though some lotions were too thick or too thin, Aveeno was just right: It’s thick enough that it doesn’t run everywhere, but thin enough to rub in smoothly. Unlike many of its competitors, it dries nicely, leaving behind little or no waxy or greasy residue to bother you throughout the day. And it hit all of our main criteria: It’s fragrance-free, affordable (less than 50¢ per ounce), and available in a pump dispenser.

Aveeno’s texture struck the best balance between thick and thin. When you pump it into your hand, it’s solid enough to hold its shape without threatening to spill onto the floor or run between your fingers. But the magic is in the rub-in: Aveeno nearly liquefies on the skin, turning from opaque to translucent, and spreads to cover a wide area without clumping or leaving streaks. Then it dries quickly. Some testers noted a light waxy residue, but it was nothing compared with the greasiness of some of its competitors.

Aveeno nearly liquefies on the skin, turning from opaque to translucent, and spreads to cover a wide area without clumping or leaving streaks.

What we also liked about Aveeno is that it doesn’t smell like much, one Amazon reviewer describes it as “one part Elmer’s glue and 10 parts water and 10 parts oatmeal,” and that sounds about right. The scent is unnoticeable under clothes and doesn’t come from added fragrances, a common cause of irritation and allergies. All of this might not sound like high praise, but it is when compared with the scents of some competitors, which our testers described as “perfumey,” “horrible,” “awful,” and “disgusting.” We’d pick neutral over “weird” any day.

How we picked

You have thousands of lotions to choose from. They come in all manner of scents and colors and promise a swath of therapeutic benefits. No major dermatological society offers a list of recommended brands or products, so we had to start from scratch.

We don’t want to use it unless we have to (when our skin is dry and damaged), but by the time we have to, a normal lotion can’t help us.

Research and interviews taught us two main lessons about lotion. Despite newer ingredients that “absorb” into the skin to add moisture, the main way that lotion prevents and heals dry skin is by adding a thin layer of oil to the surface to prevent water loss. So the only thing our best lotion needs is an oil (or another occlusive, like petrolatum).

Even people with chronic skin conditions that cause them to suffer from itchy, red skin throughout the year struggle to find the motivation to apply lotion every day. In two studies, only 20 percent of people with diagnosed dry skin conditions managed to stick to a daily regimen. Why? Because it takes too much time and lotion feels bad on their skin. “Make sure you like the way it feels on your skin,” said dermatologist Dr. Angela J. Lamb. “If it doesn’t [feel good], you aren’t going to put it on.” Our mission was clear.

After scraping “top lotions” lists of nine major publications, we accumulated nearly 100 products. The lists rarely overlapped in their recommendations, and few of the lists presented any evidence or explanation for why the recommended products were good products. Given the recommendations’ lack of transparency, we did not consider them further, except for noting the rare repeats for further testing.

We ignored all claims of antioxidants, ceramides, amino acids, or other therapeutic additives because evidence doesn’t exist that off-the-shelf moisturizers contain enough of these ingredients to make a difference.

What’s in there

All lotions do the same basic thing: Combine ingredients that protect your skin with ingredients that make the product easy—and even pleasant—to use. Though packaging may promise vast differences between one lotion and another, they all include the same basic types of ingredients.

Petrolatum was a common occlusive ingredient among lotions we liked. Lotions that were greasier and harder to rub in, like Lubriderm, contained mineral oil (liquid petrolatum) instead of petrolatum proper. (See The Competition.)

This isn’t a foolproof rule, though: One petrolatum lotion (Gold Bond Ultimate Healing Lotion) was thick and waxy, as if it had too much petrolatum in the formula. The one product with both petrolatum and mineral oil—Nivea Essentially Enriched Lotion—landed on the greasy end of the spectrum.

To make occlusives feel less greasy, manufacturers add water. This basic addition gives you the wide variety of lotions, creams, and ointments available. Lotions have the most water, creams have less, and ointments have even less.

Some lotions include humectants, ingredients that draw water from deep skin layers to the surface. If a product claims to be “long-lasting,” the manufacturer is probably referring to humectant ingredients like glycerin, hyaluronic acid, alpha-hydroxy acids, urea, or lactic acid, according to Dr. Bailey.

Many off-the-shelf moisturizers now include additional ingredients to convince you to buy them. But this new stuff isn’t necessary.

Manufacturers often add fragrances and dyes to lotions to make products smell and look better. Lotions are a particularly problematic vehicle for fragrances because they are rubbed into dry skin that is more sensitive to irritants, which fragrances can be for some people. Another problem is that if people will be allergic to anything, it will most likely be a fragrance or dye. “[Fragrances are] one of the top allergens, including natural fragrances like citrus,” said Dr. Bailey, warning, “Don’t taunt your skin’s immune system.” The American Academy of Dermatology and our consulted experts recommend using only fragrance-free lotions to avoid allergic reactions. But even then, you can’t necessarily trust the label on the bottle, some manufacturers add fragrances to make their lotion smell “unscented” or “fragrance-free.” A general rule of thumb is that if the lotion makes your skin feel worse (such as itching or burning), throw that lotion out and try a new one.

The purpose that powers it

Dove wants to change beauty into a positive experience for every woman and for the next generation.

In 2004, after its survey of 3,000 women across ten countries revealed just 2% considered themselves beautiful, Dove launched its Campaign for Real Beauty.

Since then, the brand has become the leading global provider of self-esteem education through the Dove Self-Esteem Project – a global movement to build body confidence among young people all over the world. By 2030, the Dove Self-Esteem Project will have reached a quarter of a billion young people through schools, NGOs, youth leaders, parents and campaigns.

Most recently, Dove has been working to challenge harmful social media practices that perpetuate unattainable beauty standards. Dove has a long-term commitment to bring about positive change in beauty and is taking action towards making social media a more positive place with campaigns like #ReverseSelfie, #DetoxYourFeed and #CostOfBeauty.

With the launch of its No Digital Distortion Mark , Dove promises to never present the unachievable and manipulated. The No Digital Distortion Mark serves as a tool to help women and girls identify reality and relieve some of the pressure to look a certain way.

Kun je een zelfbruiner gebruiken tijdens de zwangerschap?

Tot slot: juist als je zwanger bent wil je misschien zon vermijden. Is een zelfbruiner dan veilig te gebruiken? Begin vorig jaar is er een rapport van de SCCS (Scientific Committee for Consumer Safety) uitgekomen waaruit blijkt dat een maximale concentratie van 10% DHA veilig te gebruiken is. Toch zijn er soms nog zorgen dat DHA iets verder de huid kan doordringen. Dat zou in principe niet moeten gebeuren. Voelt het voor jou niet fijn, laat je kleurtje dan lekker achterwege.

Spray tans (in een salon) zou ik je wel afraden. Het effect van het inademen van DHA is (nog) niet goed bekend. De meeste salons bieden trouwens sowieso al geen spray tan aan in de eerste drie maanden van de zwangerschap.