Sensitive skin: causes and natural care

First of all: Sensitive skin is not a skin type, like dry skin, but a skin condition. Skin conditions are temporary and indicate that your skin is currently out of step. With the right care, the condition can be normalized. How do you restore balance? And can the problem even be avoided?

Care by skin condition, why important?

Identifying your skin type is often not that easy. Especially if you often suffer from different skin conditions (sometimes sensitive, sometimes impure) you may be unsure what the normal condition of your skin was like. That's why it doesn't help much to care for the skin only according to Scheme-F. But if you react correctly to the different skin conditions, you can restore the balance - and finally ... breathe a sigh of relief!

Sensitive skin? A self check...

The – albeit small – consolation: There is rarely uncertainty when it comes to the condition of the skin. Sensitive skin? Blemished skin? This is clearly noticeable. If you frequently or currently suffer from sensitive skin, you will be familiar with at least some of these symptoms:

Your skin often and quickly reacts to external influences such as cold, UV rays, stress and cosmetic products with...

• stains
• tensions
• redness
• irritation

Does that sound familiar to you? Then you've come to the right place. Let's get to the root of the problem! First of all, it is important to understand why your skin reacts sensitively.

Why does the skin overreact?

There are various causes, but the mechanism of sensitive facial skin remains the same. The skin barrier , which forms your skin's natural protective barrier, has become permeable. It consists of skin cells and lipids (fats), which connect them elastically. In a healthy state, this barrier protects the underlying layers of skin from moisture loss, repels bacteria and impurities, and prevents free radicals from destroying your cells.

If this lipid layer becomes too thin or even full of holes, your skin is more and more at the mercy of external influences. Wind and heating air accelerate the loss of moisture. There are noticeably and visibly dry patches. Bacteria and free radicals have an easy time of it. They cause inflammation and cell damage that penetrate deep into the skin.

Sensitive skin rarely comes out of nowhere

Sensitive skin can have several causes. Cause #1 : You may have inherited the tendency. Your skin simply produces a little less sebum (sebum) to maintain a stable barrier and is more prone to irritation. Proper care is essential. But there is a danger lurking here: Resist the urge to overwhelm your sensitive skin with too many cosmetics!

This is cause number 2 and is becoming increasingly important. Sensitive skin is often the result of over-care . Too much care products and make-up pushes the skin to its limits. It can no longer process the many different ingredients and weaken its protective mechanisms. At the same time, aggressive cleaning quickly removes moisture from it.

Why overcare makes your skin sensitive

In recent years, cosmetic trends have prevailed in which several layers of care and make-up are literally "stacked" on the skin in the morning and evening. It is not uncommon for it to be confronted with well over 100 different ingredients ! And that several times a day.

For comparison, imagine if each of your meals consisted of over 100 different ingredients—sweet, sour, salty, spicy, fatty, stuffing, all at once and in significant amounts. Feeling of fullness pre-programmed! Skin cells can also become oversaturated and simply no longer digest all the well-intentioned “food”. And in the skin, too, whether the cell metabolism works well or not so well has a direct effect on the immune system.

More on this in the article Applied too thickly – why too much cream is not good for sensitive skin.

What sensitive skin really needs now

The first impulse, of course, is to put out the fire burning on your irritated skin. Radical action is often taken here with a lot of heavy maintenance. But what about extinguishing a fire? If you use the wrong liquid, the flames will shoot up. In the same way, unsuitable care products can also fuel your problem. A minimal program is the order of the day here.

If it is severe, a drastic treatment will help first, see our instructions . It gives your skin time to recover. Then switch to a care routine that doesn't overstrain your skin. The aim is to provide them with good moisture and lipids for an intact skin barrier. Many of our customers have had very good experiences with the drastic cure , even if it was difficult to convince them at first. Because for many, the idea of ​​not being able to apply lotion to the face after cleaning is absolutely unimaginable. It is easy to forget that the face is not tight because the skin is made that way, but that something is wrong with the cleaning or the products used. You can read more about this in the article Tension from the cream tube: How emulsifiers dry out your skin .

Recommended for sensitive skin

• Be natural: go without makeup (as often as possible) and let your skin breathe.
• Natural oils with high skin compatibility provide material for a healthy lipid layer.
• Support your skin with moisture-binding substances such as hyaluronic acid or glycerin.
• Use products with few ingredients so as not to overload your skin.

Not recommended for sensitive skin

• Foaming washing gels and mechanical peelings attack the skin barrier.
• Complex care routines overwhelm your skin's cell metabolism.
• Heavy night creams discourage your skin from repairing itself.
• Alcohol and emulsifiers in skin care products dry out your skin.
  
  
  

Sensitive skin - your care routine with FIVE in the morning

1. CLEAN: Wash your face with lukewarm water only.
2. CARE: Care for the day is provided by the light facial oil - Dry Skin or, if it can be a little more in the colder months, our nourishing Shea Cream . Its slightly occlusive effect provides long-lasting protection against drying out. The facial serum provides you with additional moisture .
   Avoid makeup and powder if possible - especially if you're feeling signs of sensitivity.
   
   
   

Sensitive skin - your care routine with FIVE in the evening

1. CLEANING: If you have no make-up, washing your face with lukewarm water is sufficient. You can remove make-up gently and thoroughly with the make-up remover .
2. CARE: Your skin repairs its protective layer overnight. Do not suppress this mechanism by taking away the sebum production with a rich night care. It would react lazily and with a reduction in its own production. The face serum with soothing rose water and moisture-binding hyaluronic acid provides you with an oil-free moisture kick for the night .
   
   
   

Our care products for sensitive skin

The ultimate goal is to bring your skin back into balance. It needs moisture and lipids for an intact skin barrier. At the same time, you don't want to overload them, otherwise the problem will take a lap of honor. Care without burdening - that's why the FIVE products were developed with only a handful of ingredients.