Extra Sensitive Skin Care Solutions Normal to Dry Skin Step 1 - Cleanse Skin Recovery Cleanser Step 2 - Tone Skin Recovery Toner Step 3 - Exfoliate 1% BHA Lotion Step 4 - Antioxidants Super Antioxidant Concentrate Step 5 - A.M. Sunscreen Skin Recovery Daily Moisturizing Lotion with SPF 15 & Antioxidants Step 5 - P.M. Moisturize Moisture Boost Hydrating Treatment Cream Treatments Skin Recovery Hydrating Mask

Dry to Very Dry Skin Step 1 - Cleanse Skin Recovery Cleanser Step 2 - Tone Skin Recovery Toner Step 3 - Exfoliate 1% BHA Lotion Step 4 - Antioxidants Super Antioxidant Concentrate Serum Step 5 - A.M. Sunscreen Skin Recovery Daily Moisturizing Lotion with SPF 15 & Antioxidants Step 5 - P.M. Moisturize Skin Recovery Moisturizer Treatments Skin Recovery Hydrating Mask

Extra Sensitive Oily Skin Step 1 - Cleanse One Step Face Cleanser Step 2 - Tone Healthy Skin Refreshing Toner Step 3 - Exfoliate 1% BHA Gel Step 4 - Antioxidants Skin Balancing Super Antioxidant Mattifying Concentrate Serum Step 5 - A.M. Sunscreen Barely There Sheer Matte Tint SPF 20 Step 5 - P.M. Moisturize HydraLight Moisture-Infusing Lotion Treatment Skin Balancing Carbon Mask Oil Blotting Papers

Normal to Oily/Combination Skin Step 1 - Cleanse Skin Balancing Cleanser Step 2 - Tone Healthy Skin Refreshing Toner Step 3 - Exfoliate 1% BHA Gel Step 4 - Antioxidants Skin Balancing Super Antioxidant Mattifying Concentrate Serum Step 5 - A.M. Sunscreen Barely There Sheer Matte Tint SPF 20 Step 5 - P.M. Moisturize HydraLight Moisture-Infusing Lotion Treatment Skin Balancing Carbon Mask

Oily and Flaky Skin Step 1 - Cleanse Skin Balancing Cleanser Step 2 - Tone Healthy Skin Refreshing Toner Step 3 - Exfoliate 1% BHA Gel Step 4 - Antioxidants Super Antioxidant Concentrate Serum Step 5 - A.M. Sunscreen Skin Balancing Daily Mattifying Lotion SPF 15 Step 5 - P.M. Moisturize HydraLight Moisture-Infusing Lotion Treatment Skin Balancing Carbon Mask

• Irritation Is So Bad for Your Skin!
• Irritation: The Silent Problem
• Be Gentle!
• Avoid The Following
• Common Irritating Ingredients to Avoid
• Step-by-Step Skin Care for Extra Sensitive Skin

Irritation Is So Bad for Your Skin

I cannot stress this enough: irritation and inflammation are bad for skin—really, really bad. Daily assaults such as unprotected sun exposure, splashing the face with hot water, applying skin-care products that contain irritating ingredients, and on and on, generate an irritant or inflammatory effect. This results in the skin's immune system becoming impaired, collagenase (the breakdown of collagen) occurs, and the skin’s outer protective layer is impaired.

For those with oily skin, irritation triggers nerve endings in the pore that activate androgen production, the hormone that makes pores bigger and increases oil production! None of that is good for any skin type!

Irritation: The Silent Problem

Your can be irritating your skin and not even know it because irritation, more often than not, doesn’t show up on the surface of skin. Even though you can’t see it, irritation is taking place beneath the skin’s surface, causing damage, mutating skin cells, destroying collagen, and making large pores and oily skin worse.

You can get a clearer idea of how this underlying, hidden damage from irritating skin-care routines or products takes place by imaging what happens to skin in reaction to unprotected sun exposure. Being exposed to the sun day after day from early childhood results in cumulative, serious damage taking place beneath the skin’s surface but it doesn’t show itself on the face until after many years of unprotected exposure.

Be Gentle!

For the overall health of your skin, anything you can do to treat it gently is a very good thing. Treating skin gently encourages normal collagen production, maintains a smooth and radiant surface, helps skin protect itself from environmental damage, reduces oil production, and makes pores smaller.

Avoid The Following...

• Overly abrasive scrubs (such as those that contain aluminum oxide crystals, walnut shells, or pumice)
• Astringents containing irritating ingredients (alcohol and menthol being the prime offenders)
• Toners containing irritating ingredients (alcohol and menthol being the prime offenders)
• Scrub mitts (think Buf-Puf)
• Cold or hot water
• Steaming or icing the skin
• Facial masks containing irritating ingredients (watch out for fragrant essential oils and polyvinyl alcohol)
• Loofahs
• Bar soaps and bar cleansers

Common Irritating Ingredients to Avoid

Based on the above recommendations, you may wish to consider these products for your skin type:

• Normal to Dry Skin  
• Dry to Very Dry  
• Oily Skin
• Normal to Oily/Combination Skin
• Oily and Flaky Skin

Learn More

To learn more about which products can irritate your skin and which products really work, subscribe to our FREE Beauty Bulletin E-Newsletter.