Understanding Your Skin and Assessing Your Skin Care Needs:
Skin Composition
The skin is made up of layers. It consists of a thin outer layer (epidermis), a thicker middle layer (dermis), and the inner layer (subcutaneous tissue or hypodermis).
Epidermis: The Outer Layer of Skin
The outer layer of skin, the epidermis, is a translucent layer made of cells that function to protect us from the environment. The most superficial portion contains dead skin cells that are continually shed. The deepest portion contains basal cells that are responsible for skin renewal. Keratin, a protein made within the cells of the epidermis, protects the skin from harmful substances, such as chemical products and bacteria. The epidermis also contains cells that produce melanin, which gives skin its color.
The epidermis is responsible for the look and health of the skin and it holds a large amount of water. The younger the body, the more water there is in the skin. The capacity of the skin to retain water decreases with age, making the skin more vulnerable to dehydration.
The epidermis is responsible for the look and health of the skin and it holds a large amount of water. The younger the body, the more water there is in the skin. The capacity of the skin to retain water decreases with age, making the skin more vulnerable to dehydration and wrinkles.
- Keratin: Keratin is the strongest protein in your skin. It also gives hair and nails their strength.
Dermis: The Middle Layer
Layers of the Dermis
The two layers of the dermis are the papillary and reticular layers.
- The upper, papillary layer, contains a thin arrangement of collagen fibers.
- The lower, reticular layer, is thicker and made of thick collagen fibers that are arranged parallel to the surface of the skin.
Specialized Dermal Cells
The dermis contains many specialized cells and structures.
- The hair follicles are situated here with the erector pili muscle that attaches to each follicle.
- Sebaceous (oil) glands and apocrine (scent) glands are associated with the follicle.
- This layer also contains eccrine (sweat) glands, but they are not associated with hair follicles.
- Blood vessels and nerves course through this layer. The nerves transmit sensations of pain, itch, and temperature.
- There are also specialized nerve cells called Meissner’s and Vater-Pacini corpuscles that transmit the sensations of touch and pressure.
The dermis contains two types of fibers that lessen in supply with age: elastin, which gives skin its elasticity, and collagen, which provides strength. The dermis also contains blood and lymph vessels, hair follicles, sweat glands, and the sebaceous glands, which produce oil. Nerves in the dermis sense touch and pain.
- Collagen: Collagen is the most abundant protein in the skin. It makes up 75% of your skin. This is also your “fountain of youth,” for it’s responsible for warding off wrinkles and fine lines. Over time, environmental factors and aging diminish your body’s ability to produce collagen.
- Elastin: This protein is found together with collagen and is responsible for giving structure to your skin and organs. As with collagen, elastin is affected by time and the elements. Diminished levels of this protein cause your skin to wrinkle and sag.
What is my Skin Type?
You’ve heard all the commercials. You’ve seen the advertisements in magazines. Everywhere you turn, even on the Internet, companies are selling skin care products that promise to reduce aging lines and provide a younger appearance. All the information can be pretty overwhelming.
Confused? Follow these tips to understand which skin care products are right for your skin.
The most important thing to remember when researching over-the-counter skin care products is to trust yourself: No one knows your skin better than you. There are a lot of skin care products on the market and it’s easy to waste a lot of time and money trying to find the best solution. So take a minute to educate yourself before purchasing skin care products. Remember, this information serves as a guide only. Be sure to check with your dermatologist, internist, or family doctor if you have specific problems with your skin.
Assess Your Skin Before You Buy
Before you consider buying any skin care products, there are a few basic facts about your skin you must know. These include:
- Your skin type. Is it oily, dry, normal, sensitive, or a combination?
- Your skin complexion. Do you have fair skin that burns easily or light to medium skin that may burn? Or do you have a medium tone that usually tans or a darker complexion the only rarely burns? Or is your complexion so dark that you never burn?
- Your skin concerns. Do you want preventative maintenance to avoid premature aging? Do you have a skin problem, such as persistent acne, age spots, melasma (better known as “the mask of pregnancy “– when women get the darkened areas on sun-exposed parts of their face) or rosacea. You may also have large pores, sun damage, facial wrinkles or fine lines that require special attention. Do you have eye puffiness or under eye bags that will require special care?
- Your personal habits. Are you a smoker? Do you spend a lot of time in the sun? Do you take a daily vitamin? Do you consume a well-balanced diet? All these factors will affect how you should care for your skin.
With this information, you can wisely sort through skin care products to find the ones suited for your specific skin type. If you need help, ask a Professional Skin Therapist (Esthetician) at your local health spa or physician’s office for his or her recommendations.
An Esthetician is specially trained to assess your skin type and condition, answer your questions regarding any concerns you have with your skin as well as take into consideration your health history and personal habits when making choices for treatments and skin care products best suited for your needs.
Note: Skin cancer is not addressed in this article. It is advisable to see a dermatologist for a “skin and mole” check every couple of years, especially if you have a fair complexion or a family history of skin cancer.
Normal Skin
This is the skin we’d all love to have. Soft, plump and with small to medium sized pores. Normal skin has good elasticity and is smooth and firm to the touch.
Oily Skin
Just look at most any teenager going through hormonal changes and you can see oily skin. It’s the only time in my life that my own skin was overly oil.
Oily skin looks shiny and also has a sort of hardness to it that goes beyond the nice firmness of normal skin—a sort of thickness. Pores are larger and more visible and, due to the excess oil, there’s more of a tendency toward pimples, blackheads, whiteheads etc. with the oily complexion.
- What It’s Like: Oily skin is the curse of a pimple-plagued teen, but this greasy, sometimes shiny skin type can become a blessing as you age because it keeps you younger-looking than your dry-skinned contemporaries.
- Treating It Right: Wash it more than once a day — as many times as you feel the need. Skin care products with alcohol will make the skin less oily.
Combination Skin
Combination skin is like having a split-personality. One part may be dry while another is oily. The term “T-zone” refers to combination skin types where the forehead, nose and chin are oily but the cheeks and the area around the eyes is either normal or dry.
This will fit the majority of combination skin types except for a small percentage who may have symptoms such as a pimply forehead or cheeks that are dry where all else is normal. In some cases, the skin could be normal everywhere outside the T Zone and this would still be combination skin type.
- What It’s Like: Some areas are oily — often the forehead, nose and chin — while others, such as your cheeks, are normal to dry.
- Treating It Right: Wash the oily areas, the so-called T-zone, at least twice a day with a non-drying cleanser.
Sensitive Skin
A person with sensitive skin has a lot more trouble with environmental factors than the average person. Their skin burns more easily in the sun, they have more sensitivity to cosmetics (particularly if perfumed) and may experience rashes or a burning sensation due to overexposure to wind, sun, and extreme shifts in temperature.
Sensitive skin tends to be thin, delicate with fine pores. It flushes easily, is prone to broken capillaries, is frequently allergic and can be rashy. Asian skin tends to be more on the sensitive side as does Irish skin.
Rosacea-Prone Skin
Rosacea may begin as a tendency to flush or blush easily. In fact, when people with rosacea think about their pasts, they often remember flushing or blushing more easily than most. This tendency to flush or blush easily can occur over a long period of time and may gradually progress to a persistent redness, pimples and visible blood vessels in the center of the face that can eventually involve the cheeks, forehead, chin and nose. Other affected areas may be the neck, ears, chest and back.
Rosacea affects the eyes in approximately 50 percent of the people who have rosacea.
While most common on the face, one recent study indicated that some people who have rosacea do not have it on their face at all but rather on their back or elsewhere.
Classic Signs and Symptoms of Rosacea
Signs and symptoms vary from person to person and are often intermittent. If you or someone you know exhibits any of the following, it is best to consult a dermatologist. Rosacea can be treated and controlled if medical advice is sought in the early stages. When left un-treated, rosacea often gets worse and then becomes more difficult to treat.
Flushing of Face/Neck
Rosacea can cause redness, similar to that of a blush or sunburn. The flushing occurs when increased amounts of blood flow through vessels at a fast rate and the vessels expand to accommodate this flow. The redness may become more noticeable and persistent as the disease progresses.
Dry Facial Skin
Some people notice that their facial skin becomes increasingly dry.
Pimples
The pimples of rosacea, which often occur as the disease progresses, are
different from those of acne because blackheads and whiteheads
(known as comedones) rarely appear. Rather, people with rosacea have visible small blood vessels and their pimples—some containing pus—appear as small, red bumps.
Red Lines
Some with rosacea notice red lines, called telangiectasia (tell-an-jek-taze-yah), which appear when they flush. This is due to small blood vessels of the face becoming enlarged and showing through the skin. These red lines usually appear on the cheeks—especially when the overall redness diminishes.
Bumps on Nose
Nasal bumps, a condition called rhinophyma (rye-no-feye-muh), are an uncommon sign seen especially in untreated rosacea. Men are more likely to experience the small, knobby bumps on the nose, and as the number of bumps increases, the nose and cheeks may appear swollen.
Facial Burning, Stinging or Itching
A 2002 survey conducted by the National Rosacea Society indicated that some people who have rosacea suffer physical symptoms, such as facial burning, stinging or itching.
