overview
1. Characteristics skin types
2. Special features of men's facial skin and the resulting problems
3. Care routine
4. Explainer videos
5. Further reading
6. More blog articles
First of all, cross-gender basics will be discussed
1. Skin types explained. Then be
2. the peculiarities of men's skin and the resulting special problems and needs as well as the appropriate skin
3. Care routine presented.
So after reading this article you will be able to get an overview of everything you need to know about facial care for men.
1. Characteristics skin types
There are 5 skin types that you can recognize based on the characteristics described below.
1.1 Dry skin
often feels brittle or rough, has little shine and can be irritated. Furthermore, dry skin tends to form flakes and itching can occur.
1.2 Oily skin
has an oily sheen and is prone to acne. You can identify oily skin by wiping the skin with a clean cloth and observing whether there is any oily residue.
1.3 Normal skin
is balanced, feels soft and supple and presents few problems.
1.4 Combination skin
has an oily T-zone (forehead, nose, chin) and dry cheeks. So there are dry and oily areas at the same time.
1.5 Sensitive skin:
often reacts to certain stimuli with redness, itching or pain.
Because skin types and their problems are so different, it is important that you use products that are tailored to your skin type. Of course, you can make your life easier at this point by using products that are suitable for all skin types. Many manufacturers offer their products in such a version .
After this general, gender-unspecific introduction, we now turn to the special features of men's facial skin.
2. Special features of men's facial skin and the resulting problems
The peculiarities of men's facial skin result from the fact that men have a higher 1) testosterone level, differ from women in terms of the 2) elastin and collagen content of the skin and 3) shave their faces regularly. These points will now be explained in more detail.
2.1 More testosterone
The higher testosterone levels in men lead to higher activity of the sebaceous glands. The higher activity of the sebaceous glands means that men
(a) MORE and
(b) Have LARGER pores.
Men's skin, which is "oilier" due to the higher activity of the sebaceous glands, has one side
(c) better protective function,
but on the other hand, this means that men also tend to gain weight more in older age
(d) Skin blemishes or acne.
2.2 More collagen and elastin
Men's skin contains
(a) more collagen and elastin.
Collagen forms a kind of framework for the skin. thats why
(b) Men's skin approx. 25% thicker and
(c) appears tighter.
Elastin, in turn, makes the skin, as the name suggests,
(d) more elastic.
But with increasing age, the collagen and elastin content of the skin decreases more in men than in women. This means that wrinkles are now also much more visible in men.
2.3 Shaving exposure
Men's facial skin is exposed to around 16,000 shaves over the course of a lifetime. This leads to a much higher level of stress for the male facial skin. Removing upper layers of skin through shaving makes the skin more sensitive to environmental factors. Approximately 40% of men have skin problems related to regular shaving. Young men are particularly affected by this. The first simple countermeasures would be:
a) Avoid dull razors
b) Shave immediately after showering
c) Regular removal of dead skin
d) shaving cream
e) Combing the beard
f) Disinfection
2.3 Summary
In summary, the “special” problems can be stated are that men's facial skin
a) struggles more often with acne or blemishes,
b) can be affected by sudden, severe signs of aging
c) and is often very sensitive due to shaving.
These special problems of men's facial skin require a special care routine, which is explained below.
3. Care routine
The primary needs of men's facial skin are:
a) Cleaning without increasing sensitivity
b) and the alleviation of signs of aging.
(Our Korean natural cosmetics: FACIAL CLEANSING SET , ANTI-AGING SET )
3.1 Clean without irritating or drying out
Cleansing or removing excess oil without further increasing the sensitivity of the skin can be achieved through the clever combination of
1) Facial cleansers
2) Toners
3) Gels and
4) Creams
can be achieved in a care routine. Ideally, as mentioned above, these products are used in versions that are suitable for all skin types . In this way, problems with classifying your own skin and changing your skin type over time can be avoided.
Individual steps or products in the care routine partially overlap in their function . For example, several steps in the care routine have cleansing functions, but these functions complement each other. This circumstance, which makes the care routine a little more complicated to understand, is further reinforced by the fact that the elements of the care routine, such as creams, can have very different functions depending on the manufacturer, ranging from anti-aging to moisturizing.
But this shouldn't deter you from dealing with this topic either, because, as will be shown below, a certain order can be brought into the supposed chaos or something generally valid can be identified.
Of the various functions that are assigned to the elements of the care routine, some are key functions and others are, so to speak, secondary functions . The main functions are therefore printed in bold below, if they can be identified:
a) Facial cleanser ( Cleanses , Moisturizes)
As explained, men often struggle with sensitive skin. It is therefore important that you avoid using aggressive cleansers such as soap or alcohol when cleaning your face, as these can further cause skin irritation and the formation of pimples. It also makes sense if the cleaning agent contains substances such as salicylic acid. Ingredients such as salicylic acid also make the cleaning agent suitable for deep cleansing or peeling. In addition, substances such as salicylic acid not only cleanse deep into the pores, but also strengthen the skin barrier and provide moisture.
b) Toner (Cleanses, Moisturizes, Reduces Sensitivity/Irration)
If the pH value of the skin is too high, it can lead to skin sensitivity or irritation and dryness. However, a pH value that is too low can result in oily or impure skin. A toner therefore has the task of creating the golden mean or the ideal pH value. A toner also prepares subsequent treatment steps by increasing the skin's ability to absorb subsequent treatment steps through its hydrating properties.
c) Gels ( Cleanses , Moisturizes, Reduces Sensitivity/Irration)
You might be asking yourself “clean it again”, but don’t worry, this too will be “unraveled” shortly. Gels that are water-based are used as part of the so-called double cleansing. While common cleaning agents are often oil-based, these water-based cleaners offer the advantage that they can be used to remove an even greater proportion of contamination. Gels in particular should not be missing from the routine of men who often struggle with skin impurities.
d) Cream ( moisturizes, reduces sensitivity/irritation, anti-aging effect)
Creams, on the other hand, are often used to provide moisture after cleansing, as many men who don't like cosmetics will know.
However, all other areas of application are also conceivable.
3.2. Alleviate signs of aging
Ultimately, in addition to the importance of fighting skin impurities and sensitivity, it also emerged that it was important to counteract skin aging, which can sometimes occur quickly and severely.
Anti-aging creams attempt to achieve this using various ingredients. The use of hyaluronic acid in anti-aging creams, for example, is particularly popular. Hyaluronic acid attracts water molecules and holds them in the skin. Hyaluronic acid also helps with collagen production.
Retinol is another anti-aging substance that promotes cell turnover and collagen production. But more well-known or familiar ingredients, such as vitamin C, are also used in anti-aging creams to promote collagen production.
More exotic substances with anti-aging properties would be, for example: Tiger grass, green algae and prickly pear.
3.3 Summary and conclusion
The basic facial care for men, which sometimes seems redundant and contradictory, has hopefully now been unraveled and understandable for you. To understand this, it is important to have a little background knowledge about skin in general and men's facial skin in particular. If you are further interested in the topic of facial care for men, we have links to it below
a) Explainer videos
b) further scientific literature and
c) added to other blog articles from us:
Finally, we would like to take you back to our:
with high-quality natural cosmetics from Korea to draw attention. Of course we also offer:
ANTI-AGING NATURAL COSMETIC SET ,
that combines traditional Korean anti-aging ingredients such as green algae with modern anti-aging ingredients such as hyaluronic acid and retinol.
Explainer videos
further reading
Male versus female skin: What dermatologists and cosmeticians should know
S Rahrovan, F Fanian, P Mehryan, P Humbert, A Firooz
Int J Womens Dermatol. 2018 Sep; 4(3): 122–130.
Published online 2018 Jun 22. doi: 10.1016/j.ijwd.2018.03.002
Gender-linked differences in human skin
P. Giacomoni, T. Mammone, M. Terri
Journal of Dermatological Science, 2009, 55, pp 144-149
American Academy of Dermatology Association
