What is Your Skin Type

Do you have sensitive or dry skin? Take this quiz to find out and determine your skin type.

1. What is your skin like when you first wake up?
a. Normal – very little change from the night before.
b. Tight and flaky.
c. Oily all over.
d. Red and blotchy.

2. After you wash your face, wait 15-20 minutes. What is your skin like then?
a. Comfortable – not too oily and not too tight.
b. Very tight and dull looking.
c. Oily around the nose, forehead, chin and spreading to the cheek area.
d. Red and itchy.

Still not sure take a piece of a brown paper bag. Tear 3 section apply the paper to your forehead and t-zones. Do not use the same section of paper on the skin.
A. Oily. B. Nothing. A little oily. Where did the oily come from? You may have combination.

3. The pores on your face are ________
a. A little noticeable around the nose.
b. Barely noticeable, if at all.
c. Large and noticeable with blackheads, especially around the nose then spreading to the cheeks.

4. I would describe the condition of my skin as ________
a. Pretty good – sometimes a little oily around the t-zone & sometimes a little dry in the cheek area.
b. Uncomfortable – dull, itchy, flaky.
c. Problematic – tends to breakout often and is flaky at times. d. Challenging – I have bad reactions to products often, gets red and blotchy with certain food & beverages that I consume, etc.

Answers:

* If you answered mainly “a”, then you have normal or combination skin
* If you answered mainly “b”, then you have dry to very dry skin
* If you answered mainly “c”, then you have oily skin
* If you answered mainly “d”, then you have sensitive skin.

Sources: skin savers and fukkard

What is Eczema?

The word 'eczema' comes from Greek words that mean 'to boil over'. 'Dermatitis' comes from the Greek word for skin and both terms refer to exactly the same skin condition. Eczema may also be referred to as 'atopic eczema' when it is caused by allergies. It is generally pronounced eczeka or exsama. Eczema is a fairly common condition. Statistics on eczema indicate that eczema affects more than 15 million Americans and ten percent of all children. Strangely enough, the condition appears to be getting more common. Some hypothesize that it may have to do with our increasing exposure to chemicals as well as other allergens. Eczema is an itchy inflammation of the skin associated to a varying degree with other features such as:

• redness of affected areas of skin
  
• generally dry skin, which is often thickened in the areas that have been scratched
  
• lumps or blisters in affected areas
  
• signs of superficial infection such as weeping or crusty deposits.

-by Kelley