Clients with sensitive skin can be tricky to treat. A recent article by Health Site, listed the top 6 ingredients found in skincare products that your sensitive skin clients should avoid.
1. Alcohol
Some toners and creams contain alcohol as an ingredient. Alcohol can strip natural oils from the skin, causing irritation, irritation and sometimes breakouts.
2. Fragrance
There are two camps on fragrance in skincare – some think a natural fragrance adds to the overall experience, others would rather keep their products fragrance fre. But it’s critical for sensitive skin clients to keep fragrance out of their products. Scented products can cause inflammation and irritation. If your products are mostly fragrance free, it’s one less variable to consider.
3. Sulfates
These foaming ingredients can cause dryness and irritation due to their tendency to increase transepidermal water loss in the skin.
4. Chemical Sunscreens
Sun protection is important, and not just for sensitive skin. Choose physical sunscreens (like our Raw Elements for example which contains zinc oxide) over chemical formulations which contain ingredients like avobenzone, octinoxate and oxybenzone.
5. Essential Oils
While essential oils in skincare can be very beneficial, can be sensitizing and allergenic, triggering a reaction in sensitive clients.
6. Harsh Exfoliants
Any manual exfoliants containing jagged crystals or large “beads” can be too aggressive for sensitive skin. That’s true for exfoliants with high levels of AHA or BHA ingredients.
3 Ways to Tell if Products Work
Getting your clients to try new products and treatments can be a gamble, since skin varies so much from person to person. It takes about three to four months to see results from using a particular skincare product or regimen.
How can you tell if your client’s products are working?
1. The skin is hydrated but not greasy.
If the skin is soft and smooth to the touch, it is a good sign that skin is moisturized. If skin is oily, it feels like there is filmy layer on the surface. There should be no irritation, itching or flaking. Oily skin may have a sheen all over the face, while hydrated skin glows from the cheekbones, forehead and cupid’s bow.
2. The skin is not itchy, flaky or irritated.
If your client complains of redness, itching, rashes or irritation after two to three weeks of using a new product, they are experiencing a reaction to the formulation or an ingredient in the formula. They should immediately stop using it.
3. The skin is supple and uniform in color.
If your client is free from irritation or redness, is not dry/flaky or present with excessive oily skin, it’s probably safe to say their skin is hydrated and healthy, and the new products are working properly at least for the present.
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