London, UK — 23 June 2026 — With the Met Office issuing a rare red extreme heat warning — its highest alert level — and temperatures forecast to climb as high as 38°C this week, PureShowers, the UK's original ionic shower filter brand, has issued practical guidance for showering during the heatwave without drying out skin and hair.

The red warning covers parts of central and southern England and Wales, with the heat expected to peak on Wednesday and Thursday. Red warnings are the Met Office's highest alert level, issued only for the most severe weather — and the agency has been unusually direct about the danger, stating that a red alert signals a "significant risk to life for even the healthy population," not only those normally most vulnerable to heat.

Met Office Deputy Chief Forecaster Mark Sidaway has warned that the heatwave will bring serious and widespread impacts, with health effects likely for many, even beyond those usually most at risk in hot weather. It marks the UK's second official heatwave of the year, and forecasters say the June temperature record of 35.6°C is very likely to be broken. The UK Health Security Agency has issued accompanying Heat Health Alerts, and overnight "tropical nights" — where temperatures stay above 20°C — are forecast widely across England and Wales, particularly in towns and cities.

Staying safe and hydrated comes first, and PureShowers urges everyone to follow Met Office and UKHSA guidance during the warning. But the company also notes a smaller, everyday side-effect of the heat: when it's this hot, many people shower more often — sometimes two or three times a day — simply to cool down and sleep. Each of those showers also means more exposure to chemicals like chlorine and the hard-water minerals found in ordinary UK tap water which, alongside sun and heat, can strip away the natural oils in skin and hair, leaving skin feeling tight and hair looking dull.

As the original shower filter brand in the UK and shower filter specialists since 2008, PureShowers shares a few simple ways to keep showering kinder on skin and hair through the hot spell:

PureShowers' tips for showering in a heatwave


A cool rinse, not a full scrub. Cool showers are one of the best ways to take the edge off the heat — but you don't need soap or shower gel every single time. A quick rinse cools you down just as well, without stripping skin of its natural oils.
Keep them brief. More frequent showering means more contact with the chlorine and minerals in tap water. Keeping each rinse short helps limit that exposure.
Don't over-wash your hair. A quick cool-down rinse doesn't have to mean shampooing every time — over-washing can leave hair drier than the weather already does.
Moisturise while damp. Applying moisturiser straight after a shower helps lock in hydration before the heat draws it back out.
Filter the shower water. Hot, dry weather already draws moisture from skin and hair — and showering several times a day only accelerates that drying. Contaminants such as chlorine, chloramines, hard-water minerals and other impurities in tap water can strip away the skin's natural oils. A shower filter reduces those contaminants, so more frequent showering stays gentler on skin and hair.
Hydrate and stay heat-aware. None of the above replaces the basics: drink plenty of water, stay out of the midday sun, and follow official heat-health advice.


"There is a certain irony to a heatwave," said a Shower Filter Expert from PureShowers. "Public attention rightly turns to staying hydrated, yet the water people stand under two or three times a day is rarely given a second thought. The extra showers taken to cool down are among the most overlooked contributors to dry skin in hot weather — and among the simplest to address. A shower filter is fitted once and then requires no further attention; from that point on, every shower is gentler on the skin, whether a brief midday rinse or the last one before bed."

Households looking to make those changes will also find it a timelier moment than usual: PureShowers' Mid Year Clearance is running now, with up to 20% off its full range of shower filters and replacement cartridges, plus a free chrome squeegee on orders over £45. The clearance ends on 28 June — the same week the heat is forecast to peak — making it a practical window for anyone wanting to stock up. Full details are available at https://www.pureshowers.co.uk