Читать книгу The Complete Make-Up and Beauty Book - Leigh Toselli - Страница 29

• This troublesome condition affects every type of skin in the form of redness, scaling, swelling and irritation. Skin can react to skin-care products and detergents just as it can to the sun, wind and pollution.

Do

• Use a sunscreen containing titanium dioxide

• Wash your face with lukewarm, not hot, water

• Use a fragrance-free moisturizer

• Try products that contain anti-inflammatories like camomile

• Use a liquid or gel cleanser low in detergent; the label should say ‘pH balanced’ or ‘non-alkaline’.

Don’t

• Use scented products

• Use astringents or toners that contain alcohol

• Use abrasive facial scrubs

• Smoke, it accelerates loss of elastin and collagen

• Steam or apply ice to the skin

• Use soap bars and bar cleansers

• Use skin-care products that contain preservatives like lanolin and mineral oil.

Stinging is a sign that a product is irritating your skin. It usually occurs immediately, so it’s easy to identify the culprit. If you’re using a potent anti-ageing product, ask for something gentler.

Itching may be an allergic reaction to a medication, cosmetic or skin-care product. Apply cold compresses and try to track down the source.

If your eyelids are itchy, you may have a contact allergy to latex or nickel in your eyelash curler or to formaldehyde in your nail polish.

If your hairline is itchy, red and scaly, your shampoo, conditioner, or hair colour may be responsible. The scalp is fairly resistant but the hairline, ears, and neck are not. Discontinue use.

Blackheads, also known as comedones, occur when sebum dries and hardens before it reaches the surface, blocking the pore in the process. When the sebum and dead cells in the follicle oxidize, they turn dark in colour.

Acne is thought to be triggered by hormonal changes that occur during puberty and times of stress. When this happens, levels of androgen rise and the sebaceous glands go into overdrive. This results in excessive amounts of oil, which ultimately lead to acne. The occasional spot is usually the result of bacteria penetrating the skin and causing infection.

Hyperpigmentation – or sun, age, brown or liver spots – are caused by an excess of melanin, the pigment that gives the skin its colour. Discontinue birth-control tablets or oestrogen-replacement pills and start using sunscreens.