How to prevent dermatitis

Here's how to wave goodbye to bad hand days. Five small steps to prevent dermatitis becoming a big problem:

1. Step 1: Wear disposable non-latex gloves when rinsing, shampooing, colouring, bleaching, etc.
2. Step 2: Dry your hands thoroughly with a soft cotton or paper towel.
3. Step 3: Moisturise after washing your hands, as well as at the start and end of each day. It's easy to miss fingertips, finger webs and wrists. See 'Skin care' for more information.
4. Step 4: Change gloves between clients. Make sure you don't contaminate your hands when you take them off. See 'Correct removal of gloves' for more information.
5. Step 5: Check skin regularly for early signs of dermatitis. See 'Skin checks' for more information.

Further reading

• Myths, misunderstandings and prevention checklist
• Information on creams
  Recommended product types and information on suppliers.
• Information on gloves
  Recommended product types and information on suppliers.
• Skin care
  Method for using hand cream, soap and cleanser.
• Skin checks for dermatitis
  Regularly check your skin for early signs of dermatitis.
• Correct removal of gloves
  Remove gloves carefully to protect your skin from contamination.
• SR11 - Hairdressing: Harm via skin or eye contact [149KB]
• SR12 - Electrolysis, piercing, tattooing and micro-pigmentation: General ventilation [136KB]
• SR13 - Nail bars: Engineering control [155KB]