Skin Type - What's Your Skin Type?

Knowing your skin type is the chief way you can ensure your skin feels and looks its best. Many people, however, get confused when trying to figure out exactly what their skin type is.

If you're one of these people, you'll be happy to know that it really isn't all that difficult to determine your skin type and take care of it properly. That's because essentially there are five skin types: regular/normal, oily, dry, combination and sensitive. Each type has its own characteristics that make it easy to identify.

Regular/normal skin is just that: it's neither dry nor oily, but just right. People with a normal skin type seldom suffer from acne or blemishes. Normal skin also has pores that are of normal size and not noticeably large. Pores that are normal in size rarely trap oil and dirt inside them, which is the reason that people with normal skin do not have to deal with pimples or bumps. Fortunately, having a normal skin type also means that the skin is rarely a irritated or prone to rash of any kind.

Oily skin can be a problem, however. If your skin type is oily, you will have what feels like a coating or film on your skin. This is especially noticeable first thing in the morning. People with oily skin often have to deal with chronic blemishes due to the increased oil, which causes breakouts on a regular basis. Thorough, frequent cleaning is vital to keeping oily skin healthy and blemish-free.

Dry skin, on the other hand, lacks sufficient oil. This skin type can be highly uncomfortable because the skin usually feels tight. Skin that is dry is also prone to being scaly and rough. At worst, people who have a dry skin type feel as if their skin is burning. To keep dry skin type feeling and looking its best, use moisturizers on a regular basis and avoid extremely hot water and of course, stay out of the sun! That's true no matter what answer you give to the question "what's your skin type?"

People with a combination skin type will find they have skin that is oily in places and dry in others. For example, your forehead may be oily, the skin on your cheeks dry and tight, and the skin on your nose may be normal as can be. The trick to caring for combination skin is to treat each type as needed. Don't add moisturizer to that oily forehead; do add plenty of moisturizer to those chaffed-feeling cheeks.

A sensitive skin type can often be the worst. People with sensitive skin almost always have allergies that make even the gentlest products impossible to use. If you have sensitive skin, you should always look for hypoallergenic products and use them sparingly until you know how they react with your particular skin sensitivity.

Now that you've figured out what your skin type is, you can plan a daily skin care routine that will give you a great, healthy glow.