When Skin Drinks: TEWL, Hormones, Climate, and the Stories Our Barrier Carries

When skin absorbs product instantly, it isn’t being greedy — it’s communicating. This article explores the science of transepidermal water loss (TEWL) through the lens of melanin-rich skin, climate acclimatization, postpartum hormonal shifts, and culturally rooted hydration patterns. By understanding how the barrier remembers stress and expresses inflammation over time, we move beyond fear and into literacy: learning to read the rhythms of skin that drinks, adapts, and heals.