Know if You Have Sensitive Skin

Proper skin care is important, and when choosing skin care products, it is important to consider your skin type. It is especially important to identify whether or not you have sensitive skin since the wrong products can cause irritation, which can sometimes be severe. Sensitive skin is not a medically serious condition but can cause significant distress and frustration. Sensitive skin is not a medical term, but is often comprised of two different kinds of contact dermatitis, or inflammation of the skin: irritant and allergic contact dermatitis. Both of these conditions can lead to skin that easily becomes red, blotchy, itchy, and irritated with use of normal skincare products.

Steps

Evaluating Your Skin

1. Look for redness and itchiness. Sensitive skin can become red, irritated, and itchy after using normal daily products. Basic cleansers can sometimes be too irritating for people with sensitive skin. Recognizing how your skin reacts to different products will help you to determine what products are safe to use on sensitive skin.
   • You may notice more sensitivity on some areas of the body than others. The face, dorsum of the hands, and finger webs are more prone to irritation from chemical substances than the palms, soles, or back, for example.
2. Pay attention to how your skin feels in extreme weather conditions. Different weather conditions, such as extreme temperatures or harsh winds, can cause problems with sensitive skin.
   • Hot weather can cause heat rash, redness and/or tightness. Additionally, hot weather can lead to oily skin and acne, tempting you to use harsher cleansers. Sticking with gentler cleansers for sensitive skin may in fact improve your skin more so than using harsher soaps that cause further irritation and redness.
   • Cold weather and harsh winds can cause dryness and irritation. Dry skin can cause feelings of tightness and itchiness and lotions may provide some relief. Be sure to invest in natural fragrance-free lotions to prevent any adverse reactions, while still moisturizing your skin.
3. Determine if your skin reacts to normal soaps and cleansers. Sensitive skin can be quite dry and can become irritated by harsh soaps. If the products contain a fragrance, this can further contribute towards irritation. If you've noticed that the fancy smelling soaps leave your skin feeling funny, your skin is probably too sensitive for them, and investing in some gentle, fragrance-free soaps and washes may prove useful.
4. Look at your skin after you’ve shaved. Sensitive skin usually does not react well to shaving or certain shaving products. Often it will turn blotchy, (large red marks), feel itchy or come up in a rash. This is a result of breaking the barrier your skin provides between the underlying layers of skin and the outside world.
   • Shaving can cause small breaks in your skin that allow chemicals to penetrate deeper, causing more problems to sensitive skin. If this happens then you should invest in a hair removal product that is designed for sensitive skin.
5. Notice any burning or tingling sensations after application of new creams or lotions. Most people with sensitive skin have reactions to a wide variety of products that may extend beyond redness and dryness.
   • Some of these products will cause an immediate reaction, but some may only cause irritation after being exposed to sunlight. If your skin feels like it’s burning after only a few minutes in the sun, you may be reacting to your sunscreen and not actually getting sunburned that quickly.

Distinguishing Between Irritant and Allergic Contact Dermatitis

1. Notice what causes symptoms. Irritant contact dermatitis is an inflammatory reaction that occurs in response to various physical and chemical stimuli. Allergic dermatitis is an immune-mediated reaction to foreign objects. Although the symptoms of each kind of reaction can be similar, understanding what kind of reaction you have will help you to deal with your sensitive skin.
   • Irritant contact dermatitis is often caused by exposure to the following irritants:
     • water (prolonged exposure, like dishwashing)
     • detergents, like soap
     • solvents, such as acetone (found in nail polish remover)
     • oxidizing agents, like bleach
     • acids
     • alkalis, like ammonia or sodium hydroxide
     • metal tools
     • wood
     • fiberglass
     • plant parts, like thorns and spines
     • paper
     • dust or soil
   • Allergic contact dermatitis is often caused by exposure to the following allergens:
     • perfumes
     • latex
     • plant products, including leaves (example: poison ivy)
     • glues and cements
     • plastics
     • nickel
     • hair dyes
     • soaps and detergents
     • cosmetics
2. Determine the onset of symptoms. Understanding how long it takes for a reaction to develop will help you to distinguish between irritant and contact dermatitis. Some reactions can take minutes to hours to develop, while other symptoms may appear days after exposure.
   • Irritant contact dermatitis causes symptoms within minutes to hours of contact with the inciting agent.
   • Allergic dermatitis is a delayed-type hypersensitivity reaction that is T cell mediated. This means that the onset of symptoms is often later compared to irritant contact dermatitis. Symptoms typically appear several hours after exposure to an allergen.
3. Determine if you have a break in your skin. A break in your skin could include a cut, burn, or removal of a layer of skin, for example by ripping off an adhesive bandage.
   • Irritant contact dermatitis often involves disruption in the endothelial layer that protects your body from the outside world.
   • Allergic contact dermatitis does not require a break in the skin to elicit a response; however, a break may still be present.
4. Notice the site of reaction. Although some areas of skin may be more or less sensitive than others, some symptoms of sensitive skin can be directly localized to the area of contact, while others can spread.
   • Irritant contact dermatitis is most often localized predominantly to the site of contact or injury. For example, if you have a reaction to adhesive in a band-aid, you may might see a band-aid-shaped rash if you have irritant contact dermatitis.
   • Because allergic dermatitis involves influx of immune cells, the localization of the reaction can extend beyond the borders of the initial injury. This is not always the case, but transfer of the allergen to adjacent sites can cause patchiness. For example, in the case of a reaction to a band-aid, you may notice that a rash spreads past the borders of the band-aid site. This could indicate an allergic reaction.
5. Consult a dermatologist. A dermatologist is a medical professional who specializes in skin conditions. There are many medical conditions that affect the skin and a dermatologist can help you rule out any serious problems. The following is a list of other possible causes of what appears to be sensitive skin:
   • Bedbugs
   • Basal cell carcinoma
   • Chemical peel
   • Acne
   • Atopic dermatitis
   • Dry skin
   • Psoriasis
   • Eczema
   • Scabies
   • Infection

Dealing with Sensitive Skin

1. Identify products that adversely affect your skin. If you are currently using multiple skincare products and are experiencing problems, stop using all of them. Avoiding applying anything to your skin should help clear up any problems associated with application of these products within a few days.
   • Try reintroducing each product, including creams, lotions, and makeup, one at a time. Give it a couple days before adding in a new product.
   • Look for changes in your skin each time you re-introduce a new product (mentioned above).
2. Do a patch test with new products. Whenever you want to try out a new cream, lotion, or makeup product, do a patch test first. Patch testing involves applying a small amount of the new product to a small patch of skin.
   • Try patch testing on the inside of your wrist or forearm. Some areas of skin are more sensitive than others. For example, the underside of your forearm is more sensitive than the topside of your arm.
   • Apply a small amount of product to your skin and don’t wash it off. Leave creams, lotions, and makeup on for 24 to 48 hours. When testing cleansers or soaps, wash thoroughly, rinse, and then pat dry as you would with typical use.
   • Look for signs of irritation, such as redness, itching, or rash. These signs would indicate that your skin is too sensitive for these products.
3. Avoid products that cause irritation. Recognize common ingredients in products that cause adverse reactions with your skin. Some chemical compounds are more likely to cause problems (see above) and you may notice that several products that cause problems contain these same ingredients.
   • For example, you may notice that your skin reacts to a variety of scented products, like lotions or perfumes. If this is the case, you may be sensitive to this particular scent or scented products in general. As a rule of thumb, people with sensitive skin should avoid using any scented products as they contain more ingredients that have the potential to cause reactions.
4. Try topical remedies. Lotions with or without corticosteroids, such as hydrocortisone cream, can help reduce symptoms associated with sensitive skin. These can be particularly helpful to reduce itching and pain and may reduce redness associated with allergic contact dermatitis.
   • Some studies have shown benefit of using topical corticosteroids with irritant contact dermatitis, but these studies are controversial. No randomized trials of corticosteroid use with irritant contact dermatitis exist, but a few small observational studies show no effect or slight improvements. It is possible to have both irritant and allergic contact dermatitis simultaneously. Therefore, using corticosteroids, which do improve the symptoms of allergic contact dermatitis may be useful.
   • Lotions help to keep the skin moisturized and reduce water loss. Studies have shown reductions in scaling, dryness, redness, and itchiness with daily moisturizer use.

Tips

• Avoid scented products. This is often what causes the irritation in most products.
• Body washes without scents or fragrance are best for sensitive skin. These are widely available, and there is a fairly wide choice as well.
• Clothing detergents and conditioners/softeners can rub against your skin and cause a rash or itching. Look for products and brands that are gentler.
• If sensitive skin is a persistent problem that interferes with normal life, seek professional medical advice, as there may be an underlying problem that can be treated.

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Sources and Citations

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