Last updated: September 14, 2026
I’m a doctor. I have eczema. It’s worst on my hands. And it tends to flare in the autumn and winter months.
My specialty is pediatrics, which means I’m cranking out dozens of visits a day rife with contaminated snot and skin whose best friend is a diaper—and washing twice for each encounter: once before, once after.
In other words, I’ve got the bona fides for everything I’m about to say.
5 KEY TAKEAWAYS
- You may not be able to wash less—but you can make each wash less punishing. Frequent washing can repeatedly strip the skin’s protective lipids before the barrier has time to recover.
- What you wash with matters more when you wash 20, 30 or 60 times a shift. Small differences in cleanser formulation can become big differences when they are repeated all day.
- Think lukewarm water, gentle cleansing and less friction. Hot water and rough drying can add unnecessary stress to already-vulnerable skin.
- Moisturizing matters more than perfect moisturizing. Don’t let complicated rules about exactly when to moisturize stop you from doing it consistently.
- Your workday routine should help your skin reset between unavoidable exposures. The goal isn’t to stop necessary hand hygiene. It’s to reduce unnecessary barrier stress around it.
Being a pediatrician is not the only job that requires washing your hands twenty or thirty—or sixty—times a shift. Nursing, food service, childcare, dentistry, cleaning and veterinary work can all put hands through the same cycle.
If your hands are prone to eczema, that requirement collides with your skin every single day. By Thursday, the cracks around your knuckles may be splitting when you make a fist.
You cannot simply wash less. That’s not on the table.
What you can change is what you wash with—and what happens to your hands during the hours in between.
Why does frequent hand washing make eczema worse?
Every wash removes some of the lipid layer that helps keep water inside the skin. If washes come faster than the skin can rebuild that barrier, the effects can accumulate.
That cumulative irritant exposure, layered on top of an individual susceptibility such as eczema or very dry skin, helps explain why hand eczema is so common in occupations involving frequent “wet work.”
Hands are also exposed in a way much of the rest of the body is not. There’s thin skin over the knuckles, constant bending and flexing, repeated contact with surfaces and very little opportunity to protect the skin during the working day.
There’s no equivalent of pulling on a jumper for your hands halfway through a shift.
What is workplace soap actually made to do?
Institutional hand soap has to work for a lot of people, at high volume, at a reasonable cost. But the cleanser in the wall dispenser may not be the cleanser your eczema-prone hands would choose.
Some cleansers contain stronger surfactants or ingredients such as fragrance that may be problematic for already-sensitive skin. Add hot water and repeated drying with paper towels, and you can create a cycle of cleansing, stripping and friction dozens of times a day.
Gloves don’t necessarily solve the problem. Long periods inside gloves can trap heat and excessive moisture against the skin, while glove materials themselves can sometimes become another source of irritation or sensitivity.
So if the number of washes isn’t negotiable, the next question is obvious:
Can you make the wash itself gentler?
Why does the formulation matter so much when you wash frequently?
At two washes a day, you might never notice the difference between two cleansers.
At thirty washes a shift, small differences can add up.
This is one of the places in skincare where the arithmetic is genuinely stark.
CLn HandWash contains sodium hypochlorite and glycerin and is formulated for effective cleansing that respects a healthy skin barrier. For people prone to dryness, dermatitis and eczema, changing the cleanser can be a practical place to start thinking differently about the daily routine.
Think of it as a Skin Reset™ approach to hand washing: cleansing effectively while being mindful of a skin barrier that is already being asked to do a lot.
And there is one decidedly unscientific consideration that matters enormously: where you put the bottle.
Keeping your own cleanser at your station matters more than it sounds. The dispenser by the door will always be closer. A bottle you have to walk for is a bottle you’ll probably stop using by Wednesday.
So make the better behavior the easier behavior.
Bring your own cleanser if your workplace permits it. Use lukewarm rather than hot water. Pat rather than aggressively rub your hands dry. And make moisturizing part of the routine somewhere in your day.
How do you fit moisturizer into a working shift?
This part of a skincare routine is actually easier in practice than we sometimes make it sound.
The bottom line is: you have to moisturize.
You’ll find plenty of guidance suggesting you should moisturize immediately after washing, preferably while your hands are still a little damp. But don’t let an obsession with perfect timing become the reason you don’t moisturize at all.
If keeping a moisturizer in your locker means you’ll use it during the day, great. If your job makes that impractical and you moisturize before leaving home and again when you get back, that’s useful too.
The important thing is to make moisturizing a regular habit.
A reasonable complement to CLn HandWash is CLn Body Moisturizer. Moisturizers can use several types of ingredients to support dry skin, including humectants, occlusives, emollients and ceramides.
CLn Body Moisturizer combines glycerin, vitamin E, colloidal oatmeal and ceramides in a single formulation—giving eczema-prone hands several forms of moisturizing and barrier support in one step.
What can you do when a daytime routine isn’t enough?
Sometimes your working day simply doesn’t give your hands much of a recovery window.
That’s where nighttime becomes useful.
A more generous application of moisturizer before bed gives your hands a long stretch without another wash, another pair of gloves, another paper towel or another patient encounter.
Think of the day as damage limitation and the night as recovery time.
And know when skincare isn’t enough. If cracking, bleeding or pain persists despite a consistent routine, talk to a dermatologist or other healthcare provider. Occupational hand dermatitis may require a clinical care plan. A gentler cleansing and moisturizing routine can support that plan, but it doesn’t replace medical treatment when treatment is needed.
THE HAND-WASHING RESET: A QUICK SUMMARY
If you have eczema and a job that requires constant hand washing, the goal isn’t to avoid necessary hand hygiene. It’s to remove as much unnecessary stress from your skin as possible.
Frequent washing can be especially tough on eczema-prone hands by:
· Removing lipids faster than the skin can replace them
· Exposing already-compromised skin to potentially irritating ingredients such as fragrance or dye
· Combining repeated cleansing with hot rather than lukewarm water
· Leaving very little recovery time between washes
So concentrate on the things you can control: choose a gentler cleanser when possible, use lukewarm water, reduce unnecessary friction when drying, moisturize consistently and use nighttime as an opportunity for recovery.
You may not be able to change how often your job requires you to wash your hands.
But you can change what those washes do to your skin.
Frequently asked questions
Can frequent hand washing make eczema worse?
It can. Repeated washing can remove skin-surface lipids and contribute to barrier disruption, particularly in people who already have eczema or very dry skin. The more frequently you wash, the more important it becomes to minimize avoidable irritation.
Should I wash my hands less if I have eczema?
Not when hand washing is required for hygiene, infection prevention or your work. The more practical approach is to make necessary washing as skin-conscious as possible by considering the cleanser, water temperature, drying technique and your moisturizing routine.
Is hot water better at cleaning my hands?
Hot water isn’t necessary for routine hand washing and can be harder on dry, eczema-prone skin. Lukewarm water is generally the better choice when you’re washing frequently.
What should I look for in a hand wash if I have eczema?
For eczema-prone hands, look for a cleanser designed to cleanse effectively without unnecessarily stressing already-dry or sensitive skin. Fragrance and other potential irritants may also be worth considering, particularly if you have known sensitivities.
Do I have to moisturize immediately after every hand wash?
Don’t let perfect timing become the enemy of actually moisturizing. If your work allows you to moisturize regularly during the day, that’s useful. If it doesn’t, establish a routine you can realistically maintain, such as before work, during a break and after your shift.
Can wearing gloves protect eczema-prone hands?
Gloves are essential for many jobs and exposures, but prolonged glove use can also trap heat and excessive moisture. If gloves seem to worsen your symptoms, discuss glove choice and hand-care strategies with your healthcare provider or occupational health team rather than simply avoiding required protective equipment.
What can I do for badly cracked hands overnight?
Nighttime provides something your hands rarely get during a busy shift: an uninterrupted recovery window. Applying moisturizer before bed can support dry skin while avoiding the repeated washing, drying and friction of the working day.
When should I see a dermatologist about hand eczema?
Seek medical advice if your hands remain persistently painful, cracked, bleeding or inflamed despite a consistent skincare routine, or if symptoms interfere with your work or daily activities. Persistent occupational hand dermatitis may need diagnosis and treatment beyond changes to cleansing and moisturizing.
About the author
| Dr. Douglas Krohn is a board-certified pediatrician with extensive experience in neonatal care, pediatric medicine, cognitive behavioral therapy, and narrative medicine. He earned his medical degree from Albert Einstein College of Medicine and completed his pediatric internship and residency at Montefiore Medical Center in New York, followed by leadership training with OptumCare, executive healthcare education through eCornell, and CBT certification from Harvard Medical School. |