Allergies? Sensitive Skin? Stop the Itching. Know your Irritants!

Are you tormented by allergies or sensitive skin? If so, you would know that prevention is better than a cure! In most cases, having sensitive skin is inherited, however irritated skin can also be linked to other causes. Irritation can be triggered by the weather, skin care products, cosmetics, or household products. The good news is that there are hypoallergenic products out there for you. Signs of sensitive skin: -Your skin flushes easily -Your skin can get blotchy and itchy -Ordinary household cleaning products or skin care products cause stinging sensations -You have visible redness -You react easily to touch or environmental changes Let’s talk more about the causes here... Skin Irritation - Internal Causes Babies are more prone to skin irritation because their skin structure is thinner and its barrier functions are limited. Children are also prone to skin irritation because of their developing skin structure. This makes them react quickly to chemical and bacterial irritants. On the other hand, adult skin gets irritated due to aging and hormonal imbalances. These both have a tremendous degenerative effect on the skin’s blockage functions. Skin Irritation - External Causes Temperature and climate fluctuation The cold, dry air and weather during winter sucks out the moisture in our skin leaving it feeling dry, flaky and dehydrated. The scorching heat of Summer can be equally taxing on our sensitive skin and can cause heat rashes or cause the skin to produce more oil and sweat. When you factor in bacteria, then it’s only natural that we would expect skin irritations and itching. Product Ingredients Skin products like sunscreens are helpful in protecting against UV rays. But if you have sensitive skin, you’ll need to be more cautious of products containing para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA). PABA is an ingredient that can trigger skin rashes. Triclosan is another ingredient common in soaps and other products like hand and body wash, make up and even toothpaste. Triclosan can cause dermatitis, a skin condition with severe rashes which affects both children and adults. Formaldehyde, fragrance, 1.4 dioxane, sulfates and phthalates are chemicals found in shampoos and conditioners are know to cause scalp irritations. So be on the lookout for these before using products on your hands, hair and scalp. Laundry detergents, laundry powders, fabric softeners, and even your everyday body lotion may also contain the above mentioned ingredients or fragrances and fillers like Borax and Sodium Sulfate. These chemicals can inflame your skin causing itch, bumps, dryness, and peeling. Time to Shift? If you think the products you’re using are the cause of your skin irritations or allergies, then you need to shift to alternatives that are hypo-allergenic and more natural. You’ll also need to choose fragrance-free lotions, shampoos, laundry liquids and laundry detergents and fabric conditioners. EUCA products don’t contain fillers and allergy-causing ingredients. EUCA products don’t contain added perfumes, just the fresh and natural scent of eucalyptus or citrus. Euca ingredients are also known as natural antiseptics, that clean and protect, so are perfect around babies, children, pets and adults with sensitive skin. Shop the Euca Products Range here.