Stress and skin: what you need to know about hypersensitivity

Who most often considers their skin to be sensitive?

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Judging by the statistics, a new epidemic is gaining strength in the world - more and more people call their skin "sensitive" and turn to dermatologists or specialists in aesthetic medicine.

Until recently, it was not customary to talk about the "sensitivity" of the skin, this term was proposed only in 1977 by the famous dermatologist Albert Kligman. Forty years later, more than half of the European women interviewed by the researchers called their skin "sensitive" and causes them discomfort in their daily life.

What is hypersensitivity of the skin? At first glance, the definition cannot be difficult: every cosmetologist seems to imagine this condition and does not even bother with a serious interview and collection of anamnesis from his patients.

However, if you start to ask questions, it suddenly turns out that the word "sensitive" can mean different feelings and impressions, which do not always correspond to reality.

When the researchers, after conducting a mass survey of consumers in which more than half of them reported increased sensitivity of their skin, began to conduct research, they found surprising details: it turns out that most people who consider their skin sensitive do not have any objective changes in the characteristics epidermis and dermis, allowing to make a certain diagnosis. However, there are some signs characteristic of most "sensitive" patients.

Full version of the access article in Ukrainian

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