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From genetics and hormonal imbalances to the weather and environmental allergens, there is so much out there that can cause sensitive skin. While a lucky few may be able to get their skin back to ‘normal’ relatively quickly, others end up dealing with sensitivities for years, making it important to have a skincare routine that supports your skin as much as possible.
That leads to the question: how do you go about choosing the right skincare products for sensitive skin? Read on as Lionesse explains!
Avoid Irritants That Trigger Your Skin
There are so many ingredients out there that are known for being irritants to sensitive skin. Why are they still used in skincare products? Because other skin types can usually tolerate them without any issues. Plus, even if you have sensitive skin, this doesn’t mean that you’ll automatically exacerbate your complexion by using a known irritant. Sensitivities vary between individuals – what’s irritating to you may not be irritating to the next person.
Unfortunately, the only way to know which irritants to avoid is with trial and error. Start by cutting them all out of your routine, before introducing them one by one to see which specific ingredients your skin takes offence to.
Some of the most common irritants used in skincare products include:
- Sulfates – these are cleansing agents that damage the skin barrier.
- Parabens – these preservatives can quickly lead to sensitivities.
- Other preservatives – ingredients like Diazolidinyl urea and methylisothiazolinone can be very irritating.
- Fragrances – both natural and synthetic fragrances can cause problems in sensitive skin.
- Synthetic dyes – these frequently lead to irritation.
- Chemical sunscreen ingredients – although they may perform an important role, chemical UV filters often irritate sensitive skin.
Seek Out Products Containing Minimal Ingredients
It’s not just the above irritants that can cause problems for sensitive skin. Other ingredients – ones that aren’t known for being irritating – can do the same. It can often be really difficult to pinpoint which specific ingredients your skin is reacting to, which is why the easiest way forward tends to be to opt for skincare products that come with minimal ingredient lists. The fewer ingredients you expose your skin to, the lower your chances of causing irritation.
Don’t worry, this doesn’t mean that your skin will end up missing out. There are plenty of products out there that only contain a handful of ingredients, yet each of those ingredients is enough of a multi-tasker to be able to produce some big results.
Take the Lionesse Diamond De-Puffer, for example. There are only 12 ingredients in this specialized, fragrance-free blend. However, they come together to produce magic for the complexion. Apply this solution to the skin underneath your eyes and, in a matter of mere seconds, your eye area will look smoother, tighter, and less puffy.
Know Which Ingredients Your Skin Needs
While the tips above will help to prevent your skin from reacting to your skincare products, it goes without saying that you’ll also want to use formulas that’ll help your skin feel less sensitive in the long run. For that to happen, you’ll need to prioritize certain ingredients:
Barrier-Loving Compounds
First up, let’s talk about what your skin barrier needs. Since sensitive skin is caused by a compromised skin barrier that allows irritants to enter the skin, giving your skin barrier a stronger and thicker finish will go a long way in calming your complexion down for good.
Some of the best ingredients for leaving the skin barrier feeling fortified are:
- Ceramides
- Peptides
- Vitamin E
- Niacinamide
- Allantoin
- Plant oils
- Sodium hyaluronate
Hydrating Ingredients
If you have sensitive skin, there’s a good chance that your skin will also be dehydrated. With your skin barrier not functioning in the way that it should, it won’t be able to properly retain moisture. Moisture evaporates at a much faster rate out of sensitive skin, and the lack of moisture only exacerbates your skin’s reaction to irritants.
- Hyaluronic acid or one of its other forms, like sodium hyaluronate
- Glycerin
- Plant oils
- Squalane
- Aloe vera
- Peptides
- Ceramides
- Shea butter
Complexion Soothers
In addition to hydrating your skin and leaving your skin barrier feeling bolstered, your focus should also be on soothing the appearance of inflammation. Sensitive skin ends up inflamed very quickly. Allow this to fester and not only do you run the risk of deeper damage, but it will also take much longer for your skin to finally calm down.
- Aloe vera
- Green tea extract
- Niacinamide
- Calendula extract
- Seaweed extract
- Shea butter
- Ceramides
- Hyaluronic acid
Ideally, you want to be using skincare products that are able to do all three of the above; hydrate, soothe, and strengthen your complexion. So, look for formulas that combine some of the ingredients from those three groups, just like the Lionesse Golden Sapphire Cream. A good moisturizer is a must for sensitive skin, and this formula meets the mark on many fronts. Not only will it do all of those three tasks we’ve just discussed, but it’s also brimming with antioxidants to leave your skin feeling wonderfully healthy.
Know How to Choose and Use Actives
We’ve already talked about the importance of choosing skincare products that don’t contain irritants. However, irritants aren’t always ‘bad’ ingredients. Sometimes, beneficial ingredients can be irritating too, particularly when it comes to powerful actives. Many actives are just a little too potent for sensitive skin, meaning that those who struggle with sensitivities tend to find themselves missing out on the various benefits that those ingredients provide.
The good news? It doesn’t need to be this way. If there’s an active ingredient that you want to add to your routine, there are a few ways in which you can do this, even if you have very sensitive skin:
Find a Gentler Derivative
Usually, active ingredients are available in different forms. Take vitamin C, for example. Ascorbic acid would be the purest form of the antioxidant. However, this can be quite irritating to sensitive skin. Fortunately, there are gentler versions of vitamin C available too, such as the 3-O-ethyl ascorbic acid that you’ll find in the Lionesse Morganite Transforming Serum. The fact that this fragrance-free serum also contains some of the other ingredients recommended above, such as peptides and sodium hyaluronate, makes it a must-have!
Try Skin Cycling
If you’re adamant about using a certain active and don’t want to start off with a gentler version, skin cycling would be a good way to go. This technique involves exfoliating on night one, using your chosen active on night two, and then sticking to hydrating and replenishing skincare products on nights three and four. After this, you’d start the cycle from the beginning again.
The purpose of this is to give your skin two nights to recover from whatever your chosen active throws at it. This greatly reduces the chances of irritation and long-lasting sensitivities. It means that you can go ahead and use a skincare product containing an active that wouldn’t be suitable for daily use on sensitive skin.
Keep It Simple
We’ve already talked about how vital it is to go for skincare products that contain short and simple ingredient lists. However, that simplified approach needs to extend to your entire skincare routine too. While a long skincare routine that crams in numerous products may seem like a good way to give your sensitive skin a whole host of soothing ingredients, you’ll only end up overloading and damaging your skin’s natural barrier. This barrier is already compromised in sensitive skin, so more damage is the last thing it needs.
Instead, when choosing skincare products for sensitive skin, stick with the essentials and limit yourself to just one or two extras. The simpler your skincare routine is, the easier it will be for your skin barrier to heal over time, saving you from dealing with sensitivities for life.
Always Patch Test and Introduce Gradually
Now that you have some new knowledge on how to pick the perfect products for your sensitive skin, you may be tempted to completely overhaul your skincare routine with formulas that fall in line with this information. However, again, this is a big no-no.
When dealing with sensitive skin, you should always take things very slowly. This begins by never slathering your face with a new skincare product. Every new formula that you use should always be patch-tested first. This means applying it to a small area of skin on your arm and waiting for 24-48 hours. If you don’t see a reaction, repeat the process with a small patch of skin on your face. Only if your skin continues to tolerate the product should you move on to applying it to the entirety of your face.
Of course, that doesn’t mean that you should patch test and then apply multiple products at the same time either. Your skin will need time to grow accustomed to a new product and, once again, you don’t want to overload it. Usually, it’s recommended that people wait two weeks after adding a new product to their routine before incorporating another new formula. However, since you’re dealing with sensitive skin, you may want to wait a little longer. Your skin will need extra time to get used to a product – giving it this will encourage it to be more receptive to that product.
Caring for Sensitive Skin With Lionesse
There’s no getting away from the fact that sensitive skin needs special care. This is why plenty of thought and attention needs to be put into selecting skincare products. Make the right choices and not only will you be able to quickly calm the look of your skin but, in the long run, you’ll also be able to give your skin what it needs to swing away from the sensitive end of the scale!
Click here to pamper your sensitive skin with more bestselling skincare products from Lionesse.
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