Air conditioning is a lifesaver during summer heat, helping us sleep better, focus more at work, and feel better. However, spending a whole day indoors with air conditioning can cause abnormal skin dryness, throat itchiness, or nasal congestion. Air conditioners not only lower temperature but also remove humidity, reducing indoor humidity levels often below what the body prefers. Ideal indoor humidity ranges from 30% to 50%, but air conditioning can lower it significantly, causing the air to draw moisture from the body. This leads to tight, flaky, itchy, or dull skin and can worsen conditions like eczema or psoriasis. Even oily skin can become dry on the surface, triggering excess oil production and pimples. Dry nasal passages can cause throat irritation, dry cough, nosebleeds, nasal blockage or runny nose, and increase risk of respiratory infections. Dry sinuses are more prone to infections and allergens.

Most people spend much of their day in air-conditioned environments, which can disrupt the body’s internal moisture balance, causing eye irritation, chapped lips, and the need for intensive skin hydration. Dry environments may also worsen asthma or sinusitis, especially for allergy sufferers. Simple ways to balance comfort and health include staying hydrated by drinking plenty of water and consuming water-rich fruits, using humidifiers especially during sleep, regularly moisturizing skin, using saline nasal sprays to prevent nasal dryness, spending time outdoors or opening windows when possible, and monitoring indoor humidity levels to keep them above 30%.