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The Simplest & Most Practical Beauty Secrets
How
To Treat Combination Skin If
there are parts of your face that are oily, while other
parts are dry, then you have what is called combination
skin. As a general rule, your skin will likely feel fairly
normal to you on most of your face. The oily part will
be mostly in the T-zone area. The T-zone area is the part
of your face across your forehead and down your nose and
chin, forming a “T” on your face. There are certain other
signs to look for so that you will know if you have combination
skin and will know how to treat it.
For one thing, some areas of your face may feel tight
after you wash. This will typically be on the parts of
your face not included in the T-zone area. These areas
will likely also look flaky and dull and may feel rough.
A second sign would be that parts of your skin will look
shiny, feel greasy, or be prone to pimples and blackheads.
This will typically happen in the T-zone area.
Perhaps
the biggest frustration for those with combination
skin is caring for it properly. Having both dry and oily
skin areas on your face can make skin care seem almost
impossible. There are, however, things that you can do
to care for and keep your combination skin healthy and
feeling good.
First of all, make
sure you are cleansing every day. Use
a mild cleanser on your entire face. Use the cleanser twice
a day, preferably before bed at night and after get up
in the morning. These are the times your face most needs
to be cleansed anyway, but if you have combination skin
it is imperative.
Get
a good moisturizer. Once you have identified which
parts of your face are the dry parts, most likely these
areas are not in the T-zone and this is the area you will
treat. Use the moisturizer on those dry areas only. Using
it in your oily T-zone will only make that area worse.
The goal when you have combination skin is to normalize
it. Normalizing is trying to gain a balance between the
oily and dry areas so that all your skin looks and feels
the same. In order to accomplish this feat, you want to
look for products that are made for such normalization.
For instance, ones that contain alpha hydroxyl acids (fruit
acids or AHA’s) or retinols will work best. Retinols are
a vitamin A derivative. Such products should help you to
gain more normal and even looking skin.
The reason AHA
creams are so beneficial to your skin is
that they area catalyst for skin cell regeneration. By
burning off or removing the top layer of skin cells (or
the too oily and too dry ones) they expose the healthier
skin cells beneath them. These cells are more likely to
absorb moisturizers. They also help improve skin elasticity
through their water-binding properties. This can help with
that “tight” feeling you may get in the dry areas with
your combination skin. The only thing about which you need
to be aware is that once you are using AHA’s, you need
to continue using them. Once you stop, your cells will
not regenerate at the rate they were with the AHA and will
return to their original state very soon.
The next important move is to try to control
the shine.
The oily areas of your face will tend to shine as oils
collect in the pores. When you buy makeup, look for something
that is labeled as “oil-absorbing.” Such makeup is made
to soak up oils from your face and prevent shine. Again,
this will likely be more of a problem in your T-zone area
than anywhere else.
Combination skin can be uncomfortable, frustrating, and
on certain days embarrassing. However, it is not an impossible
or untreatable problem. By recognizing that you have combination
skin, taking the time to identify your areas, and learning
treatments you can still have beautiful skin. Be sure to
read your makeup labels and skin care product ingredients
to keep you looking even, natural, and beautiful. Make
sure you understand what each product you put on your face
does so that you will know when and where to put your products
on your face. By learning not to additionally dry the dry
areas or moisturize the oily areas, you can achieve balance
and a natural glow. #
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KissMegoodnight.com
: 2006
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