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14
Aug
2024
Understanding Your Skin Type
Sara Cheeney is a medically trained nurse practitioner, ZO Skin Health UK Trainer, and owner of the award-winning Pure Perfection Clinic in Rossett, Wales.
With thousands of skincare products available in clinics, salons, shops and online, it’s not easy to find the most effective and affordable option.
Clever marketing and beautiful branding can entice us to spend lots of money on skincare that may look and smell nice, but does nothing to improve our skin concerns and can make them worse!
So how do you find the most products for your skin type?
Here the skincare experts talk you through everything you need to know.
Oily / Acne-prone Skin
Characteristics: If you find your forehead, nose and chin (T-zone) often look shiny or greasy with large pores and blackheads, then you’ve got oily skin. You may also find that you’re more prone to breakouts. The good news is people with oily skin often have less obvious !
Causes: hormones, genetics, stress, diet and the weather can all contribute to skin oiliness. The oil comes from the sebaceous glands, which sit in the middle layer of the skin, and produce sebum to help moisturise and protect the skin. Overproduction of sebum caused by the above-mentioned factors leads to the oiliness noticeable on your face.
Recommended Skincare: give the Complexion Clearing Mask a go. This natural clay formulation purifies pores and absorbs excess oil, while also being suitable to use as a spot . When it comes to choosing a cleanser for oily skin, our top choice is ZO Exfoliating Cleanser which effectively removes oil for a fresh and clean feel. To tackle acne, we highly recommend the ZO Oil Control Pads to be used alongside other treatments. For a comprehensive approach, invest in our ZO Complexion Clearing Program.
Dry Skin
Characteristics: as you’d expect, dry skin feels dry! You may also experience flakiness and sensitivity, while your may feel rough, itchy and look red or dull. There are various types of dry skin that include contact dermatitis (usually dry, itchy and red, sometimes with a skin rash), eczema (red, dry, bumpy and itchy patches of skin) and seborrheic dermatitis (dry, flakey patches).
Causes: outdoor work, allergies, a particularly dry or cold climate, and can all increase the likelihood of dry skin. Age and menopause are major contributing factors, as changing hormone levels as you get older lead to the decrease of sebum production that normally adds moisture to your skin.
Recommended Skincare: you need with gentle and soothing ingredients that add hydration to your skin. Our top choices are the ZO Hydrating Cleanser and the ZO Crème, which help to support skin barrier restoration, calm irritation and restore hydration.
Combination skin
Characteristics: If you find your T-zone (forehead nose and chin) gets oily, while your cheeks feel dry, it’s likely you’ve got combination skin. You may find you have breakouts down the centre of your face, with itchy and flakiness either side. As a result, it’s difficult to know what skincare to prioritise!
Causes: hormones, genetics, changing seasons and stress lead to combination skin types. All of these factors tend to fluctuate throughout your lifetime, so it’s not always easy to find the best approach for the long term.
Recommended Skincare: for all skin types, the ZO Gentle Cleanser is a must-have for combination concerns. It will leave your skin feeling refreshed, clean and hydrated. The ZO Daily Power Defense is another reliable option designed to promote overall skin health.
Ageing Skin
Characteristics: fine lines and wrinkles are the main signs of ageing skin. They’re first noticeable around your eyes, mouth and on your . You may also notice your skin getting drier and lacking lustre as you get older. Another major change is your skin becoming saggier and thin.
Causes: with age, our collagen and elastin production declines. Collagen and elastin form the underlying skin matrix that supports our skin’s structure, keeping it looking tight and volumised in our younger years. As a result, our skin starts to fold, causing the lines and wrinkles we see. Additionally, years of facial expressions through smiling, laughing and frowning can have an impact.
Recommended Skincare: a retinol-based solution is the key to tackling wrinkles – the ZO Wrinkle and Texture Repair is a must-have in our opinion. You can also try the ZO Firming Serum, which will visibly tighten and add definition to your facial contours. The ZO Growth Factor Serum is another fantastic product that strengthens skin and against future signs of ageing. We also stock the ZO Growth Factor Eye Serum, to target deeper eye wrinkles which may be causing you bother. If you’re looking for a comprehensive skincare strategy to tackle signs of ageing, then invest in one of our packages – the ZO Anti-Ageing Program or the Aggressive Anti-Ageing Program (which will require a prescription).
Dull Skin
Characteristics: if you feel your skin lacks lustre, looks grey or tired, then you’re part of the dull skin family. You may find that it also feels dry and rough, particularly in the winter months.
Causes: dead skin cells that build on the surface of your skin can contribute to a dull appearance, which is why it’s so important to exfoliate regularly. The environment, stress, lack of sleep, dehydration, smoking and poor diet also don’t help.
Recommended Skincare: the ZO Dual Action Scrub provides effective exfoliation to remove those dead skin cells and releases essential antioxidants to brighten skin and help future signs of ageing. To add to your skin, then the ZO Brightalive Skin Brightener is the perfect gentle product, while the ZO 10% Vitamin C Self-Activating, contains powerful antioxidants to help defend against environmental triggers and brighten skin.
Red Skin
Characteristics: quite simply, redness! Depending on the cause, redness could appear all over your face, in patches or you may experience regular flushing that can even be visible through make-up.
Causes: rosacea is one of the most common causes of skin redness, particularly amongst the largely Celtic population we see here in Pure Perfection Clinic, but it can impact all ethnicities. is another possible cause, whereby an overproduction of skin cells leads to red, crusty patches. Seborrheic and atopic dermatitis can also lead to redness.
Recommended Skincare: a great product to reduce visible is the ZO Renewal Crème. It also softens fine lines, while revitalising the appearance of stressed skin. The ZO Brightalive Skin Brightener is another fantastic option that will sooth red and irritated skin, while increasing luminosity.
Patchy / Discoloured Skin
Characteristics: if you notice darker patches on your skin, then it’s likely you have . Patches can appear in any area of their face, with their presentation usually on the cause.
Causes: one of the main types of hyperpigmentation we see is age spots (also called liver spots) that can appear as you get older, usually as a result of excessive sun exposure. is type, often called ‘the mask of pregnancy’ as it’s caused by hormonal changes in women who are pregnant or taking birth control. Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation, on the other hand, appears in people whose skin has been injured or inflamed, so it’s often noticeable around acne and eczema.
Skincare: as well as reducing dark spots, the ZO Brightalive Skin Brightener will luminosity and improve overall skin quality. On prescription, you can see excellent results with the ZO Retinol Skin Brightener 0.5% which effectively targets discolouration while supporting natural skin rejuvenation.
Don’t Forget Sunscreen!
All the products listed here are proven to make a difference to your skin, but the most of them all is always SPF. The sun contributes to most skincare concerns and extensive research shows us that using daily will keep you looking younger for longer, while reducing oiliness, dryness, redness and hyperpigmentation. Of course, SPF will protect you from skin cancer too.
If you want to read more, the experts at Consulting Room really know what they’re talking about and have put together some , , , , , , and treatment FAQs just for you.
If you have more questions, you can use the , , , , , , and treatment questions feature to talk to our panel of trained medical experts.
If you’re keen to get started with any of these treatments right away then you’re in luck – those clever folks also have a list of trusted, accredited , , , , , , and clinics in your area.
Sara Cheeney is a medically trained nurse practitioner, ZO Skin Health Faculty Member & UK Trainer and owner of the award-winning in Chester, North Wales.
The experience with her own skin and confidence as a teenager was the starting point of the journey of dual-trained as a nurse and a beauty therapist. Whilst studying the two she found that each profession could significantly enhance the other in terms of greater patient satisfaction. Sara seeks out new knowledge, training and innovative technology that has helped pioneer Pure Perfection Clinic into the award-winning clinic it is today.
Give Pure Perfection Clinic a call on or visit for more information.
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