RéVive Founder, Dr. Gregory Bays Brown, shares his answers to questions asked by our community on all things related to skin sensitivity.
Q: What are the most common causes of skin sensitivities & how can these causes damage our skin?
Dr. Brown: Skin sensitivity is a very personal topic, it is different for everyone. There are a myriad of causes, the most common being: environment, sun exposure, food, drugs, and topicals. Above all, the most common causes that I see are sun damage and using too many and too much of the wrong products. Our bodies react differently to substances they are exposed to, so each person with skin sensitivities will have unique causes.
Q: Why did RéVive launch Sensitif Calming Serum?
Dr. Brown: We launched Sensitif Calming Serum to complete the Sensitif collection and accomplish a full range of products to help with skin sensitivities & skin barrier repair. We saw a growing need to build out the Sensitif range as more and more people experienced issues with a compromised skin barrier. This line needed a serum to “tee up” the skin for the next step in a routine. The beauty of this serum is that it can fit into almost any routine, allowing for a calming component in our client’s skincare regimen.
Q: Should Sensitif Calming Serum be incorporated in a daily regimen or only used when signs of skin sensitivity or a compromised skin barrier occur? Why?
Dr. Brown: Sensitif Calming Serum should be used every day, not just for when an individual encounters skin sensitivity or a compromised barrier. This is because the serum works to prevent and repair a damaged skin barrier during each application. Consistent use day and night delivers the best results for repairing and calming the skin.
Q: Would you recommend Sensitif Calming Serum post skin treatment and why?
Dr. Brown: Certainly, Sensitif Calming Serum can be included in a post skin treatment regimen for when the skin has encountered irritation. Please remember every client/patient should follow their physician's instructions first after a procedure. Having said that, the serum is inert and soothing and ideal for fragile skin.
Q: Which RéVive products are best for skin sensitivities & skin barrier repair? How do they work to address these issues?
Dr. Brown: RéVive products are ideal for skin sensitivities since we return to the skin what it naturally loses with aging. The Sensitif range is the perfect collection of products for individuals experiencing skin sensitivities. Each product has been developed to heal the skin with our bio-renewal technology and bio-calming active ingredients. These work to restore and nourish skin that is going through a period of irritation.
Q: How does Bio-Renewal Technology address these sensitivities?
Dr. Brown: Bio-renewal technology returns to the skin, the naturally occurring peptides that basically keep skin youthful, renewed, and healthy looking. With this ingredient, skin is more robust and resilient, restoring to the skin what is lost with age. In this way bio-renewal allows the skin to function as intended, leading to less irritation and a healthier skin barrier.
Q: What ingredients should we avoid while our skin is experiencing flare ups?
Dr. Brown: There are many ingredients we should avoid while undergoing a period of skin sensitivity. These include ingredients that can cause irritation such as retinol, acids, and the older ingredients known to cause inflammation such as lanolin and mineral oil. Avoiding these & creating a skin routine full of products, like Sensitif Calming Serum, that calm can give the skin time to heal and recover from what has caused a flare up.
Q: How big of a role do environmental aggressors, such as: pollution, blue light, or sun exposure, play in making our skin reactive or irritated?
Dr. Brown: All of the above contribute to skin reactivity, however each person’s skin can respond differently when exposed to the same irritants. The vast amount of skin irritation I see is caused by sun exposure and using too many of the wrong products on the skin. I believe sun exposure is the most common source of skin issues, the ‘UV pollution’ causes the skin to age and break down rapidly. To help address this I developed all our day creams to have SPF protection built in. Protection from the sun is vital to ensure a healthy skin barrier and provide an optimal environment to allow the skin to function.
