Dry, Flaky Skin Around the Nose: Causes and Fixes

Dry, flaky skin around the nose is usually dehydrated skin whose barrier has been worn thin: by cold air and indoor heating, by a cold and a week of tissues, by a cleanser or exfoliant that is too strong for the area, or by sunscreen and make-up skipped on the one spot that gets the most sun. It clears in one to two weeks with a soft cleanser, a hydrating serum and a cream that seals moisture in, and no exfoliation until the flakes are gone. Flaking that comes with redness and greasy yellow scale in the creases of the nose, and that keeps coming back, is more likely seborrhoeic dermatitis and worth a visit to a doctor.

What it looks like, and what else it could be

The skin on either side of the nose and in the folds where the nostrils meet the cheeks turns tight, rough and matte. Fine flakes lift at the edges, make-up catches on them, and the area can sting when a serum goes on. There may be a little pinkness. This is the ordinary dry-and-irritated picture, and it responds to the routine below within days.

Three look-alikes change the plan:

• Seborrhoeic dermatitis. Redness and greasy, yellowish flakes in the nasal folds, often with the same at the eyebrows, hairline or behind the ears. It comes and goes, worsens with stress and cold weather, and does not clear with moisturiser alone. A doctor can confirm it and prescribe the right cream.
• Contact irritation. Flaking that started within a day or two of a new product, a scented tissue, a nasal spray or a new make-up, and that sits exactly where the product goes. Stop the product; it settles within a week.
• Over-exfoliation or a retinoid. Dryness, shine, tightness and peeling across the nose and cheeks after starting an acid, a scrub or a retinoid, or after using them too often. The fix is to pause, not to add more.

Why the nose dries out first

The nose has the thinnest barrier of the face at its sides and folds, the most sun, and the most handling. The usual causes, often several at once:

• Cold air and central heating. Low humidity pulls water out of the skin; the nose, which is always exposed, loses it fastest.
• Colds, allergies and tissues. A few days of wiping strips the surface oils and scuffs the skin. Hay fever does the same every spring.
• Harsh cleansing. Foaming cleansers, hot water and alcohol toners remove the lipids that hold moisture in.
• Exfoliating too often. Scrubs and acids concentrated on the nose to clear pores take the barrier with them.
• Sun. The nose burns first and peels first. Sunscreen is often applied everywhere except right up against the nostrils.
• Blemish products. Benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid dabbed on the nose dry the surrounding skin.
• Glasses and masks. Nose pads and a mask edge rub the same spot all day.

How to fix dry, flaky skin around the nose

1. Stop exfoliating the area. No scrubs, acids or retinoids on the nose until it has been smooth for a week. Flakes are not dead skin to be removed; they are a damaged barrier to be repaired.
2. Cleanse with a milk or cream, lukewarm. Once in the evening is enough; in the morning, water or a splash of toning lotion. Pat dry rather than rubbing.
3. Hydrate on damp skin. A serum with hyaluronic acid or saccharide isomerate, pressed into the skin while it is still damp, pulls water back into the surface.
4. Seal it in. A cream with humectants and emollients over the serum, morning and evening, with a little extra worked into the folds beside the nostrils. At night, a thin layer of a plain balm over the cream on the flaky patches locks moisture in while you sleep.
5. Protect in the morning. Sunscreen right up to the nostrils, every day, even in winter. If the skin stings, choose a mineral formula until the barrier has recovered.
6. Change the small things. Soft tissues with balm during a cold, a humidifier by the bed, a lower temperature in the shower, no picking at flakes.
7. Make-up is optional. A hydrating primer or a drop of serum under foundation stops it clinging; a damp sponge rather than a brush over the dry area.

A NEODERMA routine for dry skin around the nose

Everything in NEODERMA's dryness and dehydration range is sealed airless, so each formula stays intact and the textures are light enough to layer.

• Cleanse: The Cleansing Milk, a soft, nourishing cleanser for dry and delicate skin, with pre- and probiotics that support the skin's natural balance.
• Tone and hydrate: Skin Energizing Toning-Lotion, toner and hydrating serum in one, on a cotton pad or pressed in by hand.
• Serum: Neo-Hydro Moisturizing Face Serum, with saccharide isomerate for hydration that lasts for hours and hyaluronic acid to hold it; suitable for delicate skin.
• Cream: Neo-Hydro Face Cream, a 24-hour moisturiser that helps the skin hold its moisture, with marshmallow and cornflower extracts to soothe. For dry, delicate skin that stings, Neo-Sense Day Face Cream relieves the feeling of tightness and helps reduce the look of redness.
• Twice a week: Neo-Hydro Intensive Face Mask, fifteen minutes of comfort for dry skin, fragrance free.

Vegan, dermatologically tested. Developed in Switzerland · Made in the EU. The Neo-Hydro line →

How long does it take?

Ordinary dryness from weather, a cold or over-cleansing improves within three to five days of the routine above and is gone in one to two weeks. Flaking from an acid or retinoid takes one to two weeks after stopping, then the product can be reintroduced at a lower frequency. Skin that still flakes after three weeks of gentle care, or that improves and returns in the same place each time, needs a diagnosis rather than another cream.

When to see a doctor

See a GP or dermatologist if the flaking is red and greasy and sits in the nasal folds or spreads to the eyebrows and scalp; if it comes back every few weeks; if the skin cracks, weeps or crusts; if there is a single rough or scaly patch on the nose that does not clear in a month, which on sun-exposed skin should always be checked; or if the dryness started with a new medication. Seborrhoeic dermatitis, eczema and fungal causes all look like dry skin and all need something a moisturiser cannot provide.

Frequently asked questions

Why is the skin on my nose dry and peeling?

Most often because the barrier on the nose has been worn down by cold, dry air, tissues during a cold, a harsh cleanser, too much exfoliation or sun. The nose has thin skin at the sides, gets the most sun and the most handling, so it dries out before the rest of the face. Peeling that is red and greasy in the folds of the nose is more likely seborrhoeic dermatitis.

What could be causing a dry patch on my face that will not go away?

A patch that stays put for more than a month despite moisturising is not ordinary dryness. Common causes are seborrhoeic dermatitis, a patch of eczema, a fungal infection, an irritant that is still being applied, or on sun-exposed skin a sun-damage spot. All of these need a doctor to look at them; a persistent rough patch on the nose in particular should be checked.

What causes redness around the nose?

Dilated small blood vessels in skin that is irritated or thin. Dryness, rubbing, cold, heat, alcohol, spicy food and some skincare all bring it on. Redness with greasy flakes in the folds points to seborrhoeic dermatitis; redness with flushing and visible veins across the nose and cheeks points to a tendency to redness that a gentle routine and daily sunscreen can help calm. More on redness around the nose →

Should I exfoliate dry, flaky skin around the nose?

No, not until it is smooth again. The flakes are a damaged barrier, and scrubbing or acids remove more of it. Hydrate and seal for a week or two; the flakes lift on their own. Exfoliation can return afterwards, once or twice a week, and never on the nose alone.

Can I put petroleum jelly on dry skin around my nose?

Yes, as the last step at night, over a hydrating serum and cream, in a thin layer on the flaky patches. It stops water leaving the skin while the barrier recovers. Used on its own on dry skin it seals in nothing, so hydrate first. Skip it on skin that is prone to blemishes in that area.

Is dry skin around the nose seborrhoeic dermatitis?

Sometimes. The clues are greasy, yellowish flakes rather than fine dry ones, redness in the creases on both sides of the nose, flaking at the eyebrows, hairline or ears at the same time, and a pattern of clearing and returning. If that describes it, a doctor can confirm and prescribe; moisturiser alone will not keep it away.

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