Skin Care: What’s Your Type?

Do you know your skin type? Is it normal (no signs of oily or dry areas), oily (shine appears on skin, no dry areas), dry (flaking can occur, no oily areas), or a combination (oily and dry or normal areas)? Some women are quite aware of their skin type while for others it’s a complete mystery. Understanding skin type is important, but not in the way we’ve been indoctrinated to think about it by the cosmetics industry. Many times the information about what your skin needs as analyzed by a salesperson is wrong or incomplete at best.

Not unlike the rest of our bodies, skin is constantly changing. Even women with seemingly perfect complexions go through times when their skin is oily, dry, or blemish-prone. Realistically, no one is likely to have normal skin for very long, and chasing after normal skin can have you running around in circles.

Skin-care routines are strongly influenced by skin type, but you can’t focus on skin type alone. In order to effectively evaluate your skin and determine the correct skin-care routine, you must consider factors which influence the way your skin looks and feels.

Internal factors include:
• Genetic predisposition (sensitive skin, prone to breakouts, oily vs. dry)
• Hormonal changes such as pregnancy, menstrual cycle, or menopause.
• Health problems like thyroid disorders, psoriasis, or rosacea.
• Medication you may be taking.

External factors include:
• Sun exposure
• Climate/ Weather (dry, warm, cold, moist)
• Skin Care (using irritating or drying products, exfoliating)

These circumstances all contribute to what takes place on and under your skin. If your skin-care routine focuses on skin type alone, it can become obsolete the moment the season changes, your body experiences hormonal fluctuations, your life becomes stressful, and anything else life may drop in your lap.

To further complicate things, you may experience many skin types in any given period. It is not unusual for women to have a little bit of each skin type at different times of the month or week. You must look at how your skin behaves and changes in order to access your skin needs.

The bottom line is you know your skin better than anyone else. In a way, skin care is simple; pay attention to what is taking place with your skin, and that varies from person to person.