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Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Mature Skin explained

Mature skin is commonly used to describe a skin type, but actually, the word mature is arbitrary and only suggests the person in question is older. But how old? Old enough to have true-dry skin? Yes, as you age the oil glands tend to put out less and less oil, but even someone in her 20s can have true-dry skin. Would she use a cream for mature skin? Products for mature skin usually have special ingredients that repair and regenerate skin that has “broken down.” But many people could use these special benefits even though their skin may not be classified “mature.”

My issue with mature skin products is the marketing approach: trying to get older people to buy special (usually more expensive) creams. These products may manipulate older people into thinking they can repair a lifetime of natural aging when actually they cannot undo the past. My contention is that everybody—every skin—has specific and special regeneration needs, not just mature skin.

Finally, if a person with mature skin doesn’t actually have true-dry skin and uses one of these specialized products with a lot of oils in a heavy cream, watch out! As I’ve stated before, age and true-dry skin don’t necessarily go hand in hand. You are not guaranteed to have oil-deficient skin as you get older. It’s just not as simple as that. If you go to the department store and someone sells you a mature skin moisturizer, unless you do have true-dry skin, you could be headed for some skin care problems, most likely congestion or clogged pores.

Be careful how you classify your skin. Skin type should start with how much (or how little) oil your skin is producing. This is based on you as an individual, not on your age.