Temperature Control

A friend who runs hot and cold? No, thanks. A skin-care routine that does? Yes, please! Here's how to use heat and iciness for ultimate glow benefits.

- Krista Bennett DeMaio

Ice facials, warming masks, a cryotherapy-a growing number of influencers, TikTokers, and celebrities are experimenting with heat, cold, or both to enhance their skin's radiance and firmness. The combo is said to resurface the skin, promote cell renewal, reduce fine lines and pigmentation, and give you a glow boost.

A cool new trend, for sure, but is it rooted in science? Yes, actually, this one is, say experts. "There are many in-office procedures that use hot and cold and have decades of research behind their effectiveness," says Marie Jhin, MD, a dermatologist in San Carlos, California, and author of K-Beauty Secrets. And now, in addition to profesh treatments like collagen-stimulating lasers and cryotherapy facials, temperature extremes are making their way into at-home skin-care regimens (think: ice rollers and skin-care fridges). Here's how to turn up the dial on your own routine to score some face-changing benefits.

Cold Front

THE USE OF COOLNESS to boost the health of your skin started in professional settings, where extremely frigid temps are used to destroy a lesion or soothe irritation. "Cold temperatures cause the constriction of blood vessels, which leads to a reduction of inflammation and swelling," says Naana Boakye, MD, founder of Bergen Dermatology in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. There's the CO2 Slush Facial, which has been treating acne, acne scars, and redness for more than two decades with a combo of dry ice and acetone in a slush-like mixture. And the new in-office treatment called Glacial Rx promises to shrink pores, reduce redness, and make skin glow using precision cooling technology.