Do you know your skin type? Your hair type? Your eye color? Ok, well that one is a bit of a weirdo question, but the other two are fair game. Just spend a few minutes reading this guide on how to know your skin type and you’ll be mixing up your own batches of skin products in no time. Knowing your skin type helps to influence products you use and your skin care routine generally. Genetics play a role in determining our skin type; however, environmental factors also affect the condition of our skin.
Everyone has one of four different skin types, ranging from dry to oily. Your skin type can be affected by the weather, exposure to the sun, genetics and lots more. However, a skincare routine tailored to your individual skin type will help you take care of your skin and keep it healthy.
Different Skin types
Normal Skin
In general, normal skin (skin that is not influenced by an underlying medical condition) can be described as oily skin that makes enough sebum to hydrate the skin. Normal skin type is a well-balanced skin. It is neither too dry nor oily
How to identify a normal skin type:
They are usually with less visible pores
Blemish free
Smooth texture
Vibrant glow
Dry Skin
People who have dry skin produce less sebum than people with normal skin. Sebum is a natural oil created by the body and is necessary for the health of the skin. Dry skin lacks the lipids that it needs to retain moisture and build a protective shield against external influences. This leads to an impaired barrier function, or dryness.
How to Identify a dry skin type:
Sometimes, it is possible to tell what skin type a person has by looking at them. This happens in obvious cases, and the following are signs you may see in a dry skin:
Dull looking skin
Flaky skin
Saggy and wrinkled skin
Scaly with a rough texture
Causes of dry skin
Genetics
Humidity
Harsh chemicals in cosmetic products
frequently washing the skin
Cold weather
Dry air
Alcohol
Smoking
Treatment of dry skin
Many cases of dry skin can be solved with staying hydrated and using moisturizer daily. Use a moisturizer during the day to keep your skin from drying out. You will want a thicker cream or ointment than you would use for lotion.
Protect with Sunscreen of at least 30
Some Ingredients to look out for include:
Glycerin, Hyaluronic acid, Shea butter, Ceramides, Jojoba oil, and Vitamin E
Oily Skin
For people who have oily skin, their skin’s natural oil production may be overactive and cause excess shine on the skin. Sebum, a naturally occurring oil on the skin, is essential for a healthy skin. However, too much sebum can cause oily skin, clogged pores, and acne.
How to Identify an Oily skin:
Looks shiny and becomes oily after a few hours
Breaks out often
Pores are visible
Causes of oily skin:
Genetics
Hormonal Imbalance
Stress
Comedogenic products (products that clog
Treatment of oily skin
Cleanse: You’d want to cleanse with a gentle, non-stripping face wash twice a day. It is important to resist the urge to always want to wash so often. This can push the sebaceous glands into an overdrive to produce even more sebum than needed.
Tone: Just after washing, toning is important. Apart from balancing the skin’s pH level, it helps to get rid of the extra dirt that was not taken care of during the cleansing phase.
Face masque: This can be beneficial to people with oily skin to keep the oil production in cheque.
Moisturize: Well yes, you should moisturize the skin so it doesn’t have a need to produce the extra moisture itself. Moisturize with an oil free moisturizer. This ensures your skin stays unclogged and chances of breakout is reduced.
Protect with Sunscreen of at least 30 spf
Combination skin type:
This skin type includes a combination of both oily skin and dry skin types. Usually, people with this type of skin will experience oiliness and dryness on different parts of their skin with the T-zone (forehead, nose and chin) slightly oily to very oily.
How to Identify a Combination skin type
Oiliness in the T-zone (forehead, nose and chin) with everywhere else dry
Oiliness and dryness in different locations of the skin
Feeling of tightness and rough texture
Redness
Flaking
Large-looking pores
Causes of Combination skin type:
Genetics
Hormones
Weather
Harsh chemicals in skincare products
Treatment of combination skintype
People with combination skin often experience the greatest indecision when it comes to products to use on the skin. The best way to tackle this type of problem is knowing when and where to layer the products. Knowing that the products that work on the oily areas of your skin may not work for the dry parts, it is important to layer the products accordingly.
Cleanse: Cleansing removes build up of dirt that may cause breakouts. Cle
Tone: Toners remove any oil left behind after cleansing. They also balance your skin’s pH levels. Make sure to choose a toner that is alcohol-free.
Moisturize: For oily areas of the face, use products with light-weight but effective active ingredients. Concentrated amounts of beneficial ingredients in a gel or lotion work well. Use moisturizer, emollient or serum over dry areas, including around the eyes.
Protect with Sunscreen of at least 30 spf
Is Sensitive skin a skin type?
Most times, people include sensitive skin as a type of skin. However, sensitive skin can appear on any type of skin. Sensitive skin is a condition, more than it is a skin type. Sensitive skin describes skin that are prone to inflammation. People with sensitive skin can find relief from itching, tingling or inflammation by identifying and avoiding known triggers.
Treatment of sensitive skin type
Treating sensitive skin typically begins with finding and eliminating possible triggers or causes of discomfort or irritation. It is important to do a patch test if your skin reacts negatively to products. Simple apply a product on a small area of the skin and wait 24 hours before applying on other parts of the skin.
Protect with Sunscreen of at least 30 spf
How to know your skin type:
You can perform a simple test to determine what type of skin you have.
Simply wash your face with a regular, non-drying face wash and wait for about 20-30 minutes. If you notice your face is dry all over and beginning to feel tight, it means you have a dry skin. If you notice a greasy and shiny skin everywhere on your face, you have an oily skin. If skin is only oily along the T-zone, you most likely have a combination. However, if skin feels good and hydrated, neither dry nor oily, then you have a normal skin.
