Guide

How do you find out your skin type?

4.4.2022

Translation: Katherine Martin

Facial skincare products are usually labelled with the skin type they’re most suited to. But how do you actually figure out what yours is?

Dry, oily, combination or normal? These four basic skin types – each of which with their own needs – are a simplified categorisation of skin properties. Using them can help you find a face cream that matches your own skin. That’s why producers of face creams, primers and foundations often put recommendations on their packaging to indicate which skin type the product is best suited for. So how can you identify your own skin type at home?

CeraVe asked the very same question at the virtual «Dermatologist Skincare Secrets Panel». Dermatologist Dr Daniel Sugai, one of three experts at the panel discussion, recommended doing the following. Grab yourself a mild cleanser, wash your face with it and wait for 30 minutes. Once you’ve done that, look at your skin in the mirror. If it’s tight, you have dry skin. If it’s shiny, your skin is oily. If you have combination skin, however, your T-zone – that’s your forehead, nose and chin – will be shiny, while your cheeks will be dry. If your skin doesn’t look shiny, tight or flaky, you fall into the «normal» category.

Dermatologist Dr Muneeb Shah pointed out during the panel that your skin type can change as you age, or along with the seasons. In summer, for example, you might have combination skin, whereas in winter, the cold air and central heating might dry your skin out. With this in mind, it’s advisable to repeat the cleanser test from time to time, changing your skin cream to adapt to your skin’s changing needs. «People often think their cream isn’t effective anymore. In fact, it’s not that the cream has stopped working, it’s that the skin has changed and developed new needs,» the expert said.

Header image: Andrea Piacquadio via Pexels

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Natalie Hemengül

Senior Editor

Natalie.Hemenguel@digitecgalaxus.ch

As a massive Disney fan, I see the world through rose-tinted glasses. I worship series from the 90s and consider mermaids a religion. When I’m not dancing in glitter rain, I’m either hanging out at pyjama parties or sitting at my make-up table. P.S. I love you, bacon, garlic and onions.

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