Did you know? There is an optimal water temperature for your bath or shower. Excessively hot water can injure or burn your skin and bathing in water that is too hot can damage your skin’s moisture barrier. “The optimal temperature to wash away environmental dirt and bacteria…is 112 degrees [Fahrenheit] or lower…The epidermis has an outside fatty lipid layer for protection…[Cleveland Clinic dermatologist Dr. Melissa Piliang] compares the fatty layer to butter on a knife: It stays put if held under cold water but melts away under a hot stream. That is similar to what a hot shower over 112 degrees does to the protective layer of people’s skin, she says.” While young skin can replenish faster, Dr. Piliang encourages everyone to follow the 112 degree rule to protect their skin from dryness and damage from the aging process.