We refer to sensitive skin as simply being prone to environmental sensitivities and not as a medical diagnosis. Rosacea, eczema, and allergic contact dermatitis are some conditions that are commonly mistaken for sensitive skin.
Sensitive skin needs oils to relieve and prevent irritation.
We use sunflower, hemp, watermelon, pomegranate, argan, red raspberry, meadowfoam, olive, tamanu, and rosehip in our blends for sensitive skin. Read more about them in Carrier Oils for Custom Blends.
Sensitive Skin Treatments
Skin prone to environmental sensitivities like extreme heat, wind, detergents and fragrances responds well to simple ingredients and products. Here are a few of our suggestions for treating sensitive skin. Simple, clean, and fragrance-free products are best to use on your skin. Your environment, cleansing, exfoliating, and moisturizing habits all contribute to how you remedy sensitive skin.
Cleanse Skin Naturally
- Minimal skincare is vital for managing your sensitive skin. The fewer ingredients in a soap or cleanser, the better. Honey, coconut oil, aloe, and castile soap are all gentle alternatives that do not exacerbate skin sensitivities.
- Follow with a toner to remove excess sebum from your skin, restore pH level, and leave your skin feeling fresh and clean. Toners could be used at least twice a week, or if your skin does not have a reaction. Some natural toners for sensitive skin are hydrosols, glycerin, apple cider vinegar, or witch hazel. Apple cider vinegar and witch hazel are more astringent toners and should be used sparingly (at most every two days) and are more suitable for oily and acne-prone skin types.
Use Gentle Exfoliants Regularly
- All skin needs exfoliation, but sensitive skin types can be damaged by the ingredients in many scrubs. Skin prone to sensitivities should avoid scrubs with harsh acids, salt, or large particle ingredients.
- Adzuki Bean Scrub is a simple natural exfoliant that is gentle without irritating and our go-to exfoliator for daily use. Other simple exfoliators sensitive skin could benefit from are sugar, honey, yogurt, banana, and ground coffee or oatmeal.
- Exfoliating sensitive skin once or twice is recommended for sensitive skin, and more often if your skin can tolerate it.
Moisturize Daily
- Sensitive skin is even more prone to problems from environmental elements like pollution, dry air, sunburn, and wind, and is often dry. Moisturizing helps protect the skin from water loss and helps maintain a healthy barrier from environmental factors
- Choose moisturizing products with simple, natural ingredients that will hydrate and soothe skin. Natural creams, salves, serums, and body and face oils are calming and gentle to sensitive skin.
- The goal of a moisturizer is to relieve and prevent irritation, and should be reapplied as necessary throughout the day.
Bathing In Warm Water
- Make sure water is not too hot. Hot water is definitely a culprit for exacerbating sensitive skin, especially during cold, dry months. Try to keep bathing to under ten minutes if possible, and follow up with a moisturizer when skin is still damp. Damp skin helps absorb oils and creams better than if you applied them to dry skin.
Products & Practices to Avoid
- We suggest you use products with no added synthetic fragrances. Fragrance in products is not recommended since the FDA does not require ingredients to be broken down within a single unit, such as a fragrance or color. There could be multiple chemicals elements that are not disclosed, and transparency is essential when it comes to ingredient lists. Fragrance is a term that was actually created to hide the formula! You should know exactly what you are putting on your skin, even among natural products.
- Essential oils are a good fragrance alternative with additional perks for your hair and skin. We use a 1% dilution to avoid irritation and sensitizing, and all essential oils we use and recommend in our sensitive blends are beneficial for sensitive skin such as geranium, chamomile, lavender, or rose.
- Avoid ingredients with preservatives and other artificial additives, such as sulfates, parabens, phthalates, and synthetic colors. Vitamin E, rosemary antioxidant extract, grapefruit seed extract, and citric acid are examples of natural preservatives that are advantageous in skincare.
- Products with alcohol are drying, and could lead to skin irritation and redness, especially for those with sensitive skin.
- Harsh chemicals and synthetic ingredients, and detergent soaps (check your laundry detergent) are harmful for all skin, and could be the featured cause of sensitive skin. Formaldehyde, phenoxyethanol, and PEG are other additives that must be avoided in your products.
- Heavy foundation can clog pores, and thick formulas with matte ingredients could irritate sensitive skin. Try tinted sunscreens or powders, which are lighter. While powder is not helpful for dry skin or on large pores, there are tinted natural sunscreens that correct tone and texture, which long-term could relieve you from the need for heavy makeup.
Check out our go-to exfoliator in our post Adzuki Beans, Essential Oil Blends for Custom Oils for more information on our essential oil blends formulated for sensitive skin, and Natural Face Oils for oil application instructions and ways to incorporate oils into your routine.