Air conditioning in Dubai: the silent effect of AC on your body and how to care for yourself

In Dubai, air conditioning is not a luxury: it is a constant companion for six or seven months of the year. Home, car, office, supermarket, gym, mall. We spend almost the entire summer breathing dry, cold, recirculated air. And although it may seem a minor detail — after all, without AC this life wouldn’t be possible — the body registers it. Drier skin, lighter sleep, fluids that don’t move, dropping energy, a clouded mood. In this article I tell you what I see every August at my Arabian Ranches studio and, above all, what you can do to sustain your body through these months with simple, real care.

The companions of summer at my studio: sweet almond and jojoba oils, a soft candle for the diffuser, a glass of warm water with lemon. What the body asks for when the AC has taken it too far.

Why Dubai’s AC dries you from inside and outside

The air we breathe inside a Dubai building usually has a very low relative humidity — well below the body’s comfortable range. On top of that, many central systems constantly recirculate the air. The result is an environment that literally pulls moisture out of everything it touches: your skin, the mucous membranes of nose and eyes, your hair, plants, wooden furniture.

At the physiological level, what happens is simple. Skin and mucous membranes lose water by evaporation faster than the body can replace it. Natural defences — the hydrolipidic film of the skin, the protective mucus of the airways, the tear film — get thinner. And the body, unable to sweat as it would outdoors, stops fulfilling one of its most important elimination functions.

This doesn’t mean AC is “bad”. In Dubai, in summer, it is essential. What I want to share is that the body pays a silent toll for those months, and it is worth accompanying it consciously.

The signals the body gives you after a summer of AC

In consultation, every August and September I hear almost the same things. If these resonate with you, it’s not coincidence — it’s the body sending alerts:

• Dull, tight skin, especially on cheeks and elbows, even if you use cream.
• More brittle, frizzy hair, split ends appearing more easily.
• Dry, irritated eyes, a “sandy” feeling at the end of the day.
• Dry nose, crusting, the odd drop of blood when you blow it.
• Sore throat in the morning, a raspy voice on waking.
• Lighter sleep, waking up at 3 or 4 in the morning.
• Heavy legs and swollen ankles without much walking.
• Strange thirst: you drink water and don’t feel it.
• Tiredness without clear cause, a persistent mental fog.
• More emotional sensitivity: irritability, tears arriving with no specific reason.

If you recognise three or more of these, your body is most likely asking for a few more conscious gestures of care. Let’s go.

Internal hydration: more than drinking water

The first thing we all do is drink more water. That’s good — but it isn’t enough, and it can even be counterproductive if we drink it very cold and all at once. In this context, the body needs something more nuanced:

• Room-temperature or warm water, in sips throughout the day. Ice water enters and leaves without hydrating well.
• Natural electrolytes: a pinch of Himalayan or unrefined sea salt in the first glass of the day, or natural coconut water.
• Warm infusions: chamomile, lemon balm, hibiscus, rosemary. Warm, not boiling.
• Hydrating foods: cucumber, watermelon, ripe tomato, courgette, lettuce, natural yogurt, kefir.
• Gentle broths at night, even in the heat: warm broth nourishes the mucous membranes better than water alone.
• Reduce the invisible diuretics: coffee after coffee, soft drinks, alcohol. Each one takes more water out of you than you think.

A simple rule I give my clients: for every coffee, two extra glasses of water; for every hour of strong AC, one glass of warm water. It’s not exact science — but it works as a reminder.

Skin care from outside: vegetable oils and clinical aromatherapy

Here enters one of my favourite tools. Commercial creams hydrate the surface layer. Pure vegetable oils nourish more deeply and repair the skin barrier that AC has been eroding. In summer I work a lot with these:

• Sweet almond — soft, light, perfect for daily use.
• Jojoba — closest to the skin’s natural sebum; balances even combination skin.
• Argan — dense, nourishing, ideal for very dry areas (elbows, heels, hands).
• Rosehip — for regeneration, ideal at night and on more mature skin.
• Fractionated coconut — light, antimicrobial, very pleasant after the shower.

On top of these oils, essential oils can be added in very low dilution (1-2 %). The ones I use most in summer:

• Geranium — rebalances dehydrated skins and brings calm.
• Lavender — calms, repairs, helps sleep if you oil yourself before bed.
• Roman chamomile — for very reactive skins.
• Frankincense (olibanum) — regenerates, especially beautiful on the face.
• Furocoumarin-free bergamot — refreshes the mood (don’t use before sun exposure).

A personalised formula — a roll-on for wrists and plexus, a body oil after the shower — becomes a daily companion the body welcomes. If you want to go deeper, my article on aromatherapy for the female hormonal system explains more about how we work with oils adapted to each moment.

How AC affects your lymphatic system and your energy

This is the part almost no one tells you. Sweat is not only thermoregulation: it is a drainage pathway for the body. When you spend months without truly sweating — because going from car to mall and from mall to home never produces sweat — the lymphatic system slows down. The most visible consequence is fluid retention: heavier legs, swollen ankles at the end of the day, darker under-eye shadows, that diffuse “I don’t feel myself”.

Vegetable and essential oils on the studio table: the foundation of skin care when you’ve been breathing AC for months.

A manual lymphatic drainage in August or September — when summer has been active for weeks — helps to:

• Reactivate lymphatic circulation slowed by indoor sedentary life.
• Reduce retention in ankles, legs and abdomen.
• Improve the skin of the face by decongesting the area.
• Ease the diffuse tiredness many clients describe as “as if I were dragging myself”.
• Improve sleep in the nights following the session.

It isn’t magic and it doesn’t replace a good lifestyle — but after four months of AC, it tends to be one of the most useful gifts you can give yourself. If you want to know more, my article on facial lymphatic drainage explains how we work the face area, which at this time of year needs special attention.

Simple home rituals to rebalance the body

Beyond punctual sessions, what really sustains the body in these months are the small daily gestures. These are the ones I most recommend:

1. Warm — not cold — shower at the end of the day. The ice-cold shower seems like a good idea but contracts the vessels and alters sleep.
2. Body oil right out of the shower, while skin is still damp. It’s the moment of maximum absorption.
3. Diffuser with two drops of lavender + one of sweet orange in the bedroom an hour before sleep.
4. A humidifier in the bedroom if you can — it changes sleep quality radically.
5. Step outside for five minutes twice a day, even very early morning or at sunset. The body needs to remember an “outside” exists.
6. Raise the AC by one degree in the car and in the bedroom. Small gesture, big difference.
7. Thin cotton socks for sleeping if your feet are very cold in bed.
8. A warm bath with Himalayan salt once a week, with two drops of geranium or lavender. If you want to go deeper, my article on the holistic bath ritual gives the detail.

None of this is revolutionary. That is precisely why it works — because you can integrate it into the day without turning it into a project.

The Bach Flowers I use most at this moment of summer

There is an emotional part of the long Dubai summer that almost no one names. After weeks of living “from indoors to indoors”, diffuse sensations appear: irritability without cause, a feeling of confinement even in a large home, a soft melancholy for the natural light that doesn’t touch the skin. Bach Flowers are a very gentle tool to accompany this:

• Walnut — for changes and to protect you from environments that drain you.
• Olive — for deep tiredness, physical and mental, after sustained effort.
• Mustard — for that soft sadness arriving without a clear reason.
• Impatiens — for irritability and the inner rush heat amplifies.
• Crab Apple — for the sense of “not feeling clean”, very common when the body doesn’t sweat.
• Wild Rose — when the feeling is more resignation than sadness.

A personalised Bach formula is taken four times a day for three weeks, and works beautifully alongside the other care points of this article.

About my treatments at Arabian Ranches

If you’d like to go deeper into any of the topics covered in this article, at my Arabian Ranches studio I offer several treatments: Reiki with chakra balancing, therapeutic and aromatherapy massages, manual lymphatic drainage, Bach Flower therapy and personalised essential oil formulas, among others.

📋 See the full list and up-to-date pricing at Treatments.

✨ First visit: includes a free 15-minute initial consultation to understand your case and tailor the treatment. New clients also receive a 10% discount on their first treatment.

Book your session here or contact me if you have any prior questions.

Frequently asked questions

Does AC really dry the skin that much?

Yes. Central air conditioning, especially when high and constant, keeps relative humidity well below the comfortable range for the human body. The skin loses water by evaporation faster than you can replace it by drinking. That’s why many women notice their cream “isn’t working anymore” in August: it isn’t the cream — it’s that the skin barrier is more exposed.

Is a humidifier at home a good idea?

Yes, especially in the bedroom. It very clearly changes the quality of sleep and reduces awakenings from a dry throat. Keep the water clean and empty the tank every day.

How many litres of water should I drink?

I don’t love fixed numbers because they depend on weight, activity and diet. The practical rule that works: look at the colour of your urine at midday. If it’s pale like very diluted lemon, you’re doing well. If it’s darker, add warm water or infusions.

When is the best moment for a lymphatic drainage?

Any time between July and October is excellent. If you can only do one session in the whole summer, I’d recommend late August or early September, when the accumulated tiredness is more visible. If you can do a cycle of three sessions across the summer, even better.

Do people with oily skin also need oils?

Yes, and they often need it more than they realise. Dehydrated oily skin produces even more sebum trying to protect itself. A light oil like jojoba — very similar to natural sebum — balances and calms it.

Can I use essential oils if I’m pregnant?

The list and dilution need to be adapted. In general, lavender and geranium in low dilution are safe, but it’s best to avoid others (clary sage, rosemary, fennel, among others). The safest is to work with a personalised formula prepared by a therapist who knows your stage.

What about children?

Children are even more sensitive to environmental dryness and to essential oils. For them I use very diluted formulas, with very soft oils (lavender, mandarin), and always in a vegetable carrier oil. A good night routine with a gentle foot massage helps them sleep better.