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NEXT IN SKIN What’s next in Korean & Japanese skincare.

Sensitive Skin

4 products

Sensitive skin is a description rather than a diagnosis, and it covers several different situations. Some people have genuinely reactive skin, often alongside eczema, rosacea or a family history of allergies. Others have temporarily sensitized skin, where a strong routine, over-exfoliation or a harsh winter has worn the barrier down. And some have a true contact allergy to a specific ingredient. The three call for different responses, so it is worth noticing whether your skin has always been this way or only recently become so.Products help mainly by doing less. A short routine built on a gentle cleanser, a soothing hydrating layer and a barrier-supporting moisturizer resolves a surprising amount. The ingredients with the strongest calming records are panthenol, centella and madecassoside, beta-glucan, ceramides, ferments and low-strength niacinamide. Fragrance, essential oils, high-strength acids and denatured alcohol are the usual things worth removing first.Sunscreen still matters, and for reactive skin the choice of format matters as much as the filter: a lightweight, fragrance-free formula you apply every day beats a heavier one you avoid. Patch test new products on the inner arm or along the jaw for two or three days, and introduce one at a time so a reaction has a clear cause.What to expect is comfort rather than transformation. If skin is persistently red, itchy, swollen or cracked, or if reactions come on suddenly and severely, that is a matter for a dermatologist and not for a product swap.Two low-irritation options: the simple iUNIK Beta Glucan Power Moisture Serum and the Aestura AtoBarrier 365 Cream, a pharmacy-style ceramide cream.