The Key to Healthy Skin: Ignore the Marketing BS and Focus on Your Skin Barrier
And what to do if you have a reaction to skincare products.
The key to unlock calm, healthy skin is balance. A balanced barrier, to be exact. Your skin barrier is like a moat surrounding a castle. It keeps hostile forces out; harmful aggressors like bacteria and viruses. But it also keeps precious resources in; most importantly, moisture in the form of water and lipids (or oils). Lipids like ceramides, carbohydrates and fatty acids are essential to a healthy functioning, balanced barrier.
Skin barrier health is a hot topic in skincare. And it’s about time! As a beauty copywriter, I’ve been writing about the skin barrier on packaging for more than a decade. I’ve reviewed dozens of products that support barrier health on the Skincarma Blog. Most recently, I wrote about the Paula's Choice Resist Barrier Repair Advanced Moisturizer – a face cream focused on barrier health maintenance. Catch my review here.
When it comes to delivering what skin really needs, it seems marketers suddenly found Skincare Jesus. They’ve come to the realization that consumers want authenticity – not marketing BS in the form of fake complexes and ad-supported spin. That may have worked in the past; but today’s consumers expect legitimate products that deliver on their promises – ones that actually work.
Led by the brand’s eponymous founder, Paula's Choice has been a trailblazer for authenticity in skincare. But there’s a reason why brands like Crème de la Mer and Dr. Barbara Sturm are tanking after years of inauthenticity and even outright fraudulence. With overpriced, overhyped products built on marketing fantasies, these brands are no longer resonating with a savvier consumer.
Authenticity extends to product claims, many of which are loosely regulated by the FDA. Generally, brands can’t just claim an anti-aging face cream minimizes the look of wrinkles if it doesn’t. Or call a product a firming face cream if there’s nothing in it that actually firms your skin.
These specific product benefits affect the structure and function of the skin. However, more vague, generalized claims that a product is anti-aging or that it is for sensitive skin are not as strictly regulated.
And just because a product is safety-tested doesn’t mean it’s ideal for someone with an actual sensitivity to specific ingredients. If you have sensitive skin or experience an allergic reaction to skincare, you’re on your own.
The clean beauty trend in skincare marketing has pushed brands to remove common toxins and allergens from their formulas. Even so, there are no set standards or regulations in place. Much of it is left to self-serving brand marketers to decide how far to go – and whether to make and market legitimate products for sensitive skins.
Mass-market brand Cerave was an early leader in addressing sensitivity – but even the sensitive skin OG hasn’t led innovation recently and has neglected to update and clean up their formulas.
This has created an opening for newcomers like Untoxicated to go all out in their approach to sensitivity and allergic reactions in skincare users. With Untoxicated you’re not on your own any more. My review of the Untoxicated Moisture Boost Hydrating Cream is just below.
What to do if you have an allergic reaction to skincare?
If you’re experiencing an allergic reaction to a skincare product, no matter how trivial, the first step is to stop using the product.
If the reaction is immediate – as a response to an anti-aging face serum, an AHA toner with Glycolic Acid or an exfoliating cream – gently cleanse the affected area with a mild, fragrance-free cleanser to remove any product that hasn’t been absorbed by your skin.
If the reaction has occurred hours after applying a new product, stop using it and give your skin time to readjust. It is often difficult to determine what causes a reaction if you’re using multiple skincare products. That’s why it’s a good idea to patch test products first – and to add only one new product at a time to your routine.
You can help restore your skin, and calm and soothe irritation, by applying a fragrance-free, hypoallergenic moisturizer like Untoxicated’s Moisture Boost Hydrating Cream that is formulated without known toxins and allergens.
Sources: US Dermatology Partners: How to Care for Your Skin After an Allergic Reaction; Self: Here’s How to Deal With an Allergic Reaction on Your Face
Product Review: Untoxicated Moisture Boost Hydrating Cream
I don’t consider my skin to be sensitive. In fact, I like to boast that it’s ideally balanced. But it hasn’t always been that way – and it doesn’t mean that my skin can’t act up in the face of external aggressors.
And the greatest aggressor for me is cold, dry air. In winter, my skin loses water and lipids and can quickly dry out. I can even look my age. And I work too hard taking care of my skin for me to look my age!
I rely on several cold weather face creams to support my barrier health – ones I consider the best moisturizers for dry skin. One of these is a lipid-rich face cream from indie brand Untoxicated.
Last winter, I relied on Untoxicated’s Moisture Boost Cream to combat dryness and keep my skin optimally hydrated and healthy. It delivered on all of my expectations for a cold weather moisturizer, keeping my skin smooth, comfortable and hydrated throughout the day. It’s ideal for a balanced barrier.
I had the privilege of meeting Untoxicated’s founders, Annie Stansik and Martin Smith, MD. Notably, Dr. Smith is an Allergist at the Cleveland Clinic. He knows quite a bit about how and why skin may respond adversely to topical skincare – and to ingredients commonly used in the most popular moisturizers, face cleansers and serums.
He saw what the market was producing and took note of how nearly all skincare brands fall short of the needs of sensitive skin – and particularly skin that is hypersensitive to allergens, however common.
Says Dr. Smith, “Ironically, the very products that promised to help my patients’ inflammation and irritation often made their situation worse.”
So he teamed up with beauty veteran Annie Stansik to create skincare free of the toxins and allergens known to trigger more than 99% of skin reactions. And Untoxicated was born.
Interestingly, I was invited to participate in an informal blind test of two face creams for dry skin – to evaluate their efficacy. It was clear that one of the two was the new Untoxicated moisturizer; I suspected which the other might be. But I put my suspicions aside to remain objective.
I used both face creams twice daily for three weeks. Each hydrated my skin and protected my barrier from dryness and dehydration in the NYC winter.
At the end of the test, my hunch rang true. The comparison was between the new Untoxicated cream and that OG face cream for dry, sensitive skin – the super-rich CeraVe Moisturizing Cream.
But there are significant differences. While each contains Hyaluronic Acid, ceramides and other emollient lipids, Untoxicated’s face cream is lighter, more elegant, and more easily absorbed. More modern! It contains just 14 clean ingredients and is free of the toxins and allergens known to trigger 99% of skin reactions.
The CeraVe formula, a sensitive skin powerhouse for two decades, contains 26 ingredients, several of which are potential irritants in certain individuals, according to EWG. While I’ve long been a fan of the iconic face cream, the formula is almost 20 years old and could really use an update.
If your skin is sensitive or overly reactive, give Untoxicated a try.
Pros & Cons
What I like about it: The Untoxicated Moisture Boost Cream is quite possibly the best face cream for highly sensitized skin on the market today. I love its tight ingredient list and lighter texture. With super barrier care, it keeps skin soft, comfortable and hydrated – even on the coldest days.
What I don’t like about it: Some antioxidants would be nice!
Who it’s for: Best for dry and sensitive skins. Ideal for those with extreme sensitivities to the allergens found in many face creams.
SHOP THE BLOG: Want to try it for yourself? Purchase the Untoxicated Moisture Boost Hydrating Cream for $24.95 here.
