ELIMINATING IRRITANTS
Having sensitive skin doesn’t mean that you have to refrain from being a cosmetic junkie as the problem may keep you searching for soothing formulas — many of them offered by drugstore brands.
Besides claiming themselves as dermatologist-recommended brands, they often label their products as hypo-allergenic, non-comedogenic and free from fragrances, preservatives, alcohol, colourants and lanolin.
The sensitivity though is often confused with an allergy, which is triggered by a specific allergen requiring a patch test to identify the culprit. Prone to irritation but without an allergic reaction, sensitive skin expresses discomfort through symptoms such as redness, dryness, tightness, prickling and peeling.
Some drugstore brands even develop different formulas for sensitive and hypersensitive (intolerant) skin, with the gentle formulas, ranging from cleanser and sunscreen to BB cream and make-up, building a complete beauty regime.
Featuring a skin-calming mineral composition, thermal spring water serves as a signature ingredient in products from Avene, Vichy and La Roche-Posay, named after French spa towns renowned for their therapeutic waters.
A spritz of the spring water alone can help in lessening redness, whereas the whole range of skincare products, some containing anti-irritant agents, work together to calm the skin.
Eucerin and Physiogel, on the other hand, emphasise respecting the skin’s physiological balance and strengthening the skin’s natural protective barrier, which when compromised results in water loss while welcoming irritants.
Besides barrier defects, Eucerin identified hyperreactive sensory fibres and inflammation as the root of the problem. Its product development considered using a limited number of ingredients and anti-contamination packaging to reduce the risk of reaction.
Cetaphil is another dermatologist-recommended brand notable for it soap-free and non-irritating cleanser. The range now extends to Daylong solar protection and after-sun products for sensitive skin, even for kids from the age of one.