Smooth Customer
During the holiday season, all things good are emphasized: good tidings, good cheer, good behavior, good skin. Yes, good skin. Those holiday parties often mean strappy dresses that bare your shoulders, exposing your back and revealing your cleavage.
The obvious solution is a facial (and yes, facials can extend to treatments on the back and chest). But depending on your skin tone and the methods used, some treatments can do more harm than good. While skin types--oily, dry, combination, normal--are pretty uniform among the races, skin tone, or pigmentation, plays a part in how skin responds to treatment.
“In all races, there are people with sensitive skin,” says cosmetic dermatologist Carla Herriford, “and they have to always make sure there’s no irritation.”
It is how the skin reacts to irritation that makes the difference. When Caucasian skin is irritated, it turns red for a while but typically returns to its original state. That’s not always the case for the skins of Asians, Latinos, African Americans, even olive-skinned whites.
Special treatments for ethnic skin are designed to be especially mild and non-abrasive, according to Barbara J. Dickens, an aesthetician and owner of Fayces, a Westside salon that has many clients of color.
“For African American skin, for example, we would use a very low-strength chemical peel of glycoloic acids to help even out the tone and diminish the appearance of dark spots or patches.
“Darker-skinned men--whether Caucasian, African, Hispanic or Asian--also can have problems with bumps and uneven tone around their whiskers and back of their neck. For that,” says Dickens, “there are also special exfoliating and smoothing products.”
For facials that extend to the shoulders and back, Fayces skin experts sometimes use creams that include antibiotics to superficially treat skin irritation--one of the most frequent complaints of clients with dark skin, Dickens says.
Some irritations may result from overly aggressive use of fruit-based scrubs and rough sponges. Those chopped-up bits of apricot might feel good, and that puff’s sloughing action may leave your face feeling smoother, but when applied too roughly they could also be leaving dark spots and blotches.
“Scrubbing causes mild irritation,” Dickens says. “If you get a red spot, part of the healing process is to make more pigmented cells in that area, and so when it heals, it heals dark.”
That condition, hyperpigmentation, can be caused by other factors. Medications for high blood pressure, chemotherapy, birth control pills and some antibiotics can all cause sun sensitivity. Dickens believes many doctors, focused solely on treating a particular illness, don’t consider the cosmetic effects the medication might cause.
“I have had people come in who’ve gone and told doctors, ‘You know, I’m getting darker.’ To one lady who was getting darker, the doctor said something like, ‘It’s all in your mind, don’t worry about it.’ I’ve had others come to me, and the doctor has said, ‘You’re going to have to live with it.’ ”
Still, Westwood-based dermatologist Joshua Wieder finds that his patients are educated about sun-sensitive medications and that such information is readily available.
“Pharmacies are pretty good about giving those warnings,” he says.
Wieder concedes that, traditionally, dermatologists have not focused on the medical distinctions among ethnic skin types, but he believes most doctors know the difference.
“You change the way you practice,” he says. “For instance, with laser treatments, I always have test spots before working on darker skin. I always think about how an ethnic group will respond to treatment.”
Herriford agrees that, while all dermatologists are trained to treat all shades of skin, some physicians may have more experience with certain skin types.
“Look at the [doctor’s] patient population,” she advises. “Ask the dermatologist whether he or she is comfortable treating your skin.”
Besides asking questions, all three skin pros agree that, whatever your race, you should use a sun block and be gentle with your skin.
“You can’t scrub bad skin away,” Dickens says.
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SKIN MYTHS
1. “Drinking water will clean pores out and reduce breakouts.”
Water is great for your body, but it won’t clear your skin. Acne is caused by oil glands; water is expelled through sweat glands.
2. “Hot water opens pores, cold water closes them.”
Pores don’t open and close.
3. “Masks clean out pores.”
Nope. Pores are several layers below your skin; masks rest superficially.
4. “Oil-free cosmetics are best.”
Well, it depends. Sometimes, the oil substitutes that make the product creamy or smooth are more harmful than the excess oil found in your skin naturally.
