Main Types Of Skin Sensitivities

 “Normal” balanced skin has a solid skin barrier that shields the skin cells, keeping allergens and irritating substances from the deeper skin layers. Unless sunburned, your skin rarely stings, reddens, or develops acne, allowing normal skin types to use most products without reacting. However, the irony is that many products may not be potent enough to penetrate the “thick” barrier and deliver results.

According to leading dermatologist Dr. Leslie Baumann, sensitive skin – which is reported by over 40 percent of people – has a weaker barrier, making it vulnerable to many kinds of skin reactions. While many products target sensitive skin, there are four very different subtypes of sensitive skin, so your treatments and products must address your unique subtype:

Acne subtype: Develops acne, blackheads, or whiteheads

Rosacea subtype: Develops recurring flushing, facial redness, and hot sensation

Stinging subtype: Develops stinging or burning of skin

Allergic subtype: Develops redness, itching, and flaking of skin.

All of these sensitive skin subtypes have one thing in common: inflammation. That’s why all the treatments for sensitive skin are designed to reduce inflammation and reduce its cause.

Celebrity Acne

It doesn’t matter if you are rich and famous or not – acne does not discriminate. In fact, some very notable and beautiful celebrities have struggled with acne in the past, or even occasionally may show up on the red carpet with a blemish!  Of course, this is rare when they have any dermatologist they want at their disposal before major events, but we all know how newsworthy it is when one is photographed with a zit!

Take for example, poor Katie Holmes.  I’m not sure what it was on her face, but it was a blemish of some sort, although it may not have been acne but rather perhaps a cold sore of some type.  Boy, you would have thought that was international news that a celebrity actually had – gulp – a visible imperfection.  Or how about when you see nowadays a beautiful actor of actress on that great new high definition television, with a big plump zit on their forehead?

I recently was watching a TV series and saw a particular actress with a definite zit on her forehead.  You could tell the cameramen were advised to shoot around it and light it so that it was less noticeable, but when the light caught it just right, there was no mistaking it was a raging pimple.  But it’s not just the occasional zit that celebrities may struggle with.  Some of them have talked about how they suffered horrible hormonal acne in the past, in their teen years.

One successful celebrity has said that she suffered from acne when she was younger, and still has to watch her naturally oily skin even as a woman in her thirties.  That actress is Cameron Diaz. Vanessa Williams, who won a beauty queen title and went on to a successful singing career and is known as a great beauty, has suffered from acne since she was a teen.  There is a little bit of noticeable pitting in her face, but in general her face has recovered beautifully from her earlier acne struggles.  She is actually a spokeswoman for a major brand of acne treatments currently, which fits perfectly since she really did struggle with this skin condition as a youth, and may even still struggle with it today, although you’d never know by looking at her.

Another notable star, Victoria Beckham, and the lucky woman who snagged the highly desirable, gorgeous David Beckham, had acne when she was younger and her skin emerged unscathed, although you can tell she has naturally oily skin when you look at some of her photographs, so she may suffer a breakout or two here and there still.

Alicia Keyes, another woman with flawless skin today, had acne problems in the past.  Jessica Simpson has also said that she suffered from acne in her teens, but now keeps it under control as an adult.  By the way, she also happens to be a spokesperson for Proactive as well.  I don’t think I’ve ever actually seen her with a zit, but I’ll have to take her word for it.

What you have to remember with celebrities is that since they have an army of skin care specialists at their disposal if they so choose, if they happen to have a horrible acne breakout before an event where they will definitely be photographed, they can get this taken care of with a shot of cortisone, which usually makes a large, inflamed acne postule go down almost immediately, so don’t feel bad when they seem to have perfect skin all the time, it’s because they have the resources to look like that at all times, and it literally means their career sometimes to keep perfect skin all the time.

Now, onto the male celebrities.  There are actually a lot of male celebrities that have had acne in the past, and because their skin tends to show acne scarring and pitting a lot more for some reason, or maybe they just weren’t as cognizant of getting it corrected, you can tell that these men have acne scars now in their adulthood and probably had acne as teens.  One of the more noticeable ones is Ray Liotta.  His handsome face has acne pitting on the sides of his cheeks, and yet it somehow fits his features.

Another is James Woods, and Brad Pitt.  You wouldn’t know it to look at Brad unless you see a close up, but there is definitely some acne scarring going on there, although his face still looks irresistible to most women!  Teen idol Ricky Martin had struggled with acne, but his pretty face still looks great today, so it is hard to tell.  Most men are beginning to wriggle with discomfort as the tables continue to turn and the world is starting to pick apart their every body part just as they have with women. More men are becoming self conscious about their skin, especially the ones before the camera. 

I always appreciate when actresses and actors that are in the spotlight and admired by so many are honest about their imperfections. It makes the rest of us more realistic about our struggles with cosmetic imperfections. Furthermore, celebs spend an average of $100 000 EVERY YEAR on cosmetic tune-ups, from facials to line fillers to the best brow shapers, hair dressers, and so on. If we spent that on our appearance, we would also look like a million bucks, hands down.

Acne Terms and Causes

Acne: Words to Know
Androgen:
A male sex hormone found in both males and females.
Anti-androgen:
A drug that slows down the production of androgens.
Antibiotic:
A drug that kills bacteria.
Comedo:
A hard plug that develops in the pores of the skin composed of sebum and dead skin cells. The mildest form of acne.
Comedolytic:
Drugs that break up comedos and open clogged pores.
Isotretinoin:
A drug that decreases sebum production and dries up acne pimples.
Sebum:
An oily material produced by sebaceous glands that keeps the skin moist.
Tretinoin:
A drug that increases the rate at which skin cells are formed and die.
CAUSES
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The exact cause of acne is not known, however, several risk factors have been identified.
• Age. Because of the effect of sex hormones, teenagers are quite likely to develop acne.
• Cosmetics. Make-up and hair sprays that contain oils can make acne worse.
• Diet. Acne is not caused by diet, but some foods can make the disease more serious.
• Disease. Hormonal disorders can increase the severity of acne problems in girls.
• Drugs. Acne can develop as a result of using certain drugs, such as tranquilizers, antibiotics, oral contraceptives, and anabolic steroids. Steroids are synthetic hormones that may sometimes be abused by athletes to increase the size of their muscles.
• Environment. Acne can become worse as a result of exposure to oils, greases, and polluted air. Sweating in hot weather can also make the condition worse.
• Gender. Boys are more likely to develop acne and tend to have more serious cases than girls.
• Heredity. Acne is more common in some families than in others.
• Hormonal changes. Acne can flare up during menstruation, pregnancy, and menopause. Menopause is the period in a woman’s life when her body stops producing certain hormones.
• Personal hygiene. Strong soaps, hard scrubbing, and picking at pimples can make acne worse.
• Stress. Emotional stress can contribute to acne.

Skin Care – Improve How Your Skin Looks

I have researched botanicals for over 20 years and have came across much valuable information. I am fascinated by the power of herbs. I found that herbs can naturally improve many skin conditions.

You have Hidden “Assault Intruders” in your body. Herbs can blast them away.

There are so many skin ailments in our society today. There are habits that we engage in that may be causing many of our skin problems.

Many have acne problems who blame these unsightly “Zits” on oil build-up, dirt and clogged pores. These may be the least likely suspects. The major problem of many skin ailments is “Toxin build-up” in the body. Many of these toxins come from the very foods that we eat. There are hidden “Assault intruders” in the very foods we eat. And yes, the industry knows that they are in there and that they are bad for you. Hence, why your body tries to spit them out.

Our bodies are bombarded with 100’s even thousands of these “assault intruders” everyday. Toxins can come from our environment. But, mainly from the foods that we are eating. Take the time to read the ingredient labels on your food purchases before thinking about putting them in your mouth. If you can’t pronounce an ingredient, then there is a good chance it is not organic food. It is an un-welcomed chemical additive. Next time you see one of these intruders listed on your ingredient label, Google it. Find out what it is. See what it is used for and the negative chemical reactions that it can have on your body.

When there is an overload of toxins in your body, what your body tries to do is get rid of them. Some may come out by regular everyday elimination. But, many toxins are bombarding your system every day and the regular everyday elimination may not be enough.

Your skin is your body’s largest organ. The skin, through it’s pores helps eliminate toxins. The more you sweat, the more your body is ridding itself of these intruders. But, considering the overload of these “assault intruders”, the skin tries to eliminate such huge amounts that skin problems do occur physically on your skin. One large cause of acne is body toxin waste showing up on the surface of your skin.

Herbs to the Rescue.

There are herbs that even when taken topically through the skin can eliminate toxins right out the skin and giving you a healthier look and radiant skin.

Here are some beneficial herbs that can eliminate these toxins, right out of your skin. Acne can be easily cleared up in a matter of a few days, as well as many of your skin ailments.

Dandelion has been given a bad wrap by the media and weed killer industries. Dandelion is a very therapeutic herb for our body. Dandelion is not an unsightly weed with no purpose, but to haunt your lawns. Did you know that dandelion eliminates cancer cells from your body when taken internally ? Topically, it is beneficial in soothing and repairing sun-damaged skin. Dandelion with Sage, which is another therapeutic herb eliminates toxins out of the skin and clears acne.

Best Acne Skin Care Treatments

If like many others you are desperate to get your acne treated in order to regain the skin you once had then using an acne skin care treatment is essential to the process. By reading through the tips provided below you should soon be back on the road to have that beautiful skin you had before you suffered from acne.

However it is important that first of all you know what acne is and then you will be able to treat it much better. A person suffers from acne because their sebaceous glands begin to produce too much oil and when combined with dead skin cells a person’s pores will then become blocked. As the pores are blocked they are unable to breathe correctly and then bacteria sets in and so blackheads and whiteheads will begin to erupt on the person’s skin.

In order to clean your face effectively whilst treating acne of any form you should not scrub it but rather gently wash it using a mild anti-bacterial soap or lotion.

Next you need to look at what you are eating and drinking. Many people do not realize this but what they eat and drink seriously affects their acne further. Therefore you should drink lots of fresh water each day. Not only will it help to remove all those unwanted toxins (which make a person’s acne worse) from the body but it is probably the most inexpensive form of acne skin care treatment.

You should also eat vegetables which contain high amounts of Vitamin A and will normally be bright orange or yellow or green in color. By eating plenty of these vegetables such as carrots, sweet corn and broccoli, cabbage etc, it will help you achieve a much better complexion on your skin.

Besides keeping the above points in mind, you should also consult your doctor.

They will be able to prescribe acne skin care treatment medications that you will not be able to find or purchase elsewhere. But as well as using the medication provided by your doctor you should look more closely at your dietary habits and make the necessary changes and do not forget to drink plenty of fresh water also.

By taking these steps in your acne skin care treatment program you should be on the road to seeing the results of your work in the mirror in a very short period of time.