Like a security guard, your barrier prevents invading allergens, protecting what lies within
The weakness of this protection is the underlying cause of skin conditions.

Do you suffer from sensitive skin?

Is it inflammation, redness, or irritation?

Or maybe eczema, psoriasis or acne inflammation is a concern?

These are all signs your skin’s barrier is compromised.

Which is the reason for that underlying sensitivity?

It may not look like it on the surface, but your skin is constantly hard at work;

Its most challenging job is at the uppermost layer, the skin barrier.

Like a security guard for your skin, it prevents allergens from passing through and protects what lies within

The weakness of this shield is the underlying cause of your sensitive skin.

So, let’s examine what is happening so you can learn how to treat your skin correctly.

Sensitive Skin Concerns

This series has discussed sensitive skin in depth; you can read more about it here.

But to recap, these are the types of questions our clients have about their sensitive skin issues.

• My skin is red, inflamed and irritated.
• All the products I apply sting, so I don’t know what to use to help my skin heal.
• I have to keep my skincare routine very simple.
• I try to use products created for sensitive skin, but my skin still feels irritated
• My sensitive skin has started to get worse in my 40s
• My doctor prescribed me hydrocortisone, but it has made my skin too sensitive
  

After treating many clients with these concerns, I don’t doubt that many products and treatments are too aggressive and impair their skin’s protective moisture barrier.

Instead, we recommend using natural, gentle, wildcrafted botanicals.

Your Protective Barrier Function

To truly understand sensitive skin and how to treat it, you have to understand what the term “barrier function” means.

Your sensitive skin is caused by a compromised skin barrier that became impaired at some point, as this study discusses (1).

The Stratum Corneum

This specialised layer forms the outermost part of your epidermis (your outer layer of skin).

It is a vital frontline that protects you against environmental assaults, UV radiation, pollution, bacteria, chemicals, infections, etc. On a more superficial note, your skin is what we can see, making it important from a cosmetic viewpoint.

The Barrier Function

Your barrier function comprises lipids, ceramides, cholesterol, and fatty acids. Imagine your cells are like bricks in a wall, and the cement holds them together.

This complex layer of materials contains intercellular lipids, which prevent foreign bodies and irritants from entering. It also protects against water loss and dehydration. Here at NC, we refer to it as your protective barrier.

In the same way cement fills these spaces between the bricks, your skin has essential lipids that fill the gaps between the skin cells, preventing foreign bodies from entering your skin.

Imagine you just DROPPED LEMON on a CUT you have on your skin; it hurts; this is because your skin’s intercellular matrix has become impaired.

This is precisely what happens when your skin becomes inflamed or irritated, triggering a cascade of inflammatory responses.

Healthy and Impaired Barrier

Healthy barrier function: When your protective barrier is intact, your skin is healthy, and very little invades or penetrates it.

Impaired barrier function occurs when your skin’s barrier becomes compromised, allowing irritants to penetrate your skin.

If you remember the cut you sustained and the lemon juice, I’m sure you can relate to how citric acid burns your skin. This is because tiny microtears have formed in your skin, as this study showed (2), allowing irritants and moisture to escape.

This can lead to skin conditions and inflammation, sensitising your once-healthy cells.

To conclude. The naked truth 

When your skin barrier is compromised, your skin will look dry, dull and scaly.

It is challenging to prevent inflammation, so chemicals can penetrate more readily and potentially cause inflammation, which manifests as skin sensitivity.

You may experience stinging or redness, especially when using certain skincare ingredients. It’s a never-ending cycle because once you’ve reacted to a product, your skin’s uppermost layer is compromised, allowing for even more problems.

Worse still, the steroid creams you have been prescribed can cause skin thinning, which, while reducing inflammation, leaves your skin vulnerable to further irritants.

So, you have to build up your all-important surface layer? And prevent foreign bodies such as bacteria, allergens, and irritants, including lemon juice, from entering your skin.

When the lipid barrier is intact, the skin is healthy and free from inflammation, irritation, and dryness. Therefore, it is crucial to maintain this protective barrier function.

Which is what skin health is all about.

References

1. Analysis of sensitive skin barrier function: basic indicators and sebum composition

2. Sensitive Skin: Assessment of the Skin Barrier