10 beauty questions: Everything you always wanted to know about proper care

10 beauty questions – the Brigitte editorial team answers

1. How do I care for dry skin?

Let’s say, gentle and balancing. So, avoid anything that dries it out further: hot water, frequent peelings, highly foaming or alcohol-based cleansing products. Instead, focus on care that gives the skin oil AND moisture, because it needs both. Surprisingly good moisturizers include hyaluronic acid, urea and glycerin. Fats, such as ceramides, help keep them in place by closing small gaps in the skin’s porous protective layer. Vegetable oils that are massaged into damp skin after showering are also good, such as avocado, macadamia nut or hemp seed oil.

2. How to improve hair growth?

With care products that promote blood circulation in the scalp and nutrient supply to the hair roots. They contain substances such as caffeine, rosemary, ginseng, biotin or peptides. If there is a nutrient deficiency, nutritional supplements provide support from within.

And of course a healthy lifestyle, sufficient iron and proteins are important. Scalp massages can also help – and are great for stress relief.

3. Which is actually the best cream?

That is individual: it is the Cream that best suits your skin type and condition. The packaging provides an initial orientation. This shows the skin condition, active ingredients and formulation. But you’ve probably already noticed that you need a less greasy cream on hot days than on cold ones. That the skin changes depending on hormonal status or age. In the beauty team, most of us have two to three creams in our cupboards, the effect of which we also influence with serums. This makes it possible to react to changes in the body. “The one cream” doesn’t cut it, but rather you should rely on a flexible, very personal care team that is independent of the price.

4. Which deodorants without aluminum work?

This is always an individual matter because every skin is different and its microbiome is composed differently. Minerals such as zinc or baking soda have a similar pore-tightening effect as aluminum salts: they reduce the amount of sweat that reaches the skin and replace the substance in alternative products, which, however, have a weaker effect.

As a team, we have had great experience with probiotic deodorant creams that don’t prevent you from sweating, but do protect you from smelly smells. And normal deodorants slow down the formation of odors even without aluminum.

5. What helps against rosacea?

If the skin reacts immediately to chili or sun and burns, itches and glows, this is not just a cosmetic problem. Chronic inflammatory rosacea also damages the blood vessels. In order to get this under control, you should get a dermatologist on board early on, who can also help with medication. Gentle UV protection is recommended Cleansing and special products with active ingredients such as antioxidant niacinamide and vascular-stabilizing extracts from horse chestnut or datura. And never rub the skin – neither with a towel nor with cotton pads. An anti-inflammatory diet helps. During the absence of symptoms, rosacea can be stabilized with laser or IPL treatments.

6. How do pigment spots disappear?

This is often not that easy. Care products with retinol, niacinamide, vitamin C, tranexamic acid or arbutin soften, but must be used regularly. In addition, a dermatologist may use medications and peels that are far stronger.

Laser and IPL treatments are very efficient. But this can be a lengthy journey lasting months. The most important thing is still consistently high levels of sun protection, every day of the year – otherwise the stain will come back immediately.

7. What helps against split ends?

Honestly, the best thing is a visit to the hair salon. Because it’s basically a hair emergency. If the broken ends are not cut, the hair will split further and further. And since it is dead horny material, it cannot regenerate itself. First aid is offered by lace fluids and oils that nourish, seal and, of course, make the ends look much better until the next wash. Hairdressers can seal the broken ends with a split end cut or with heated scissors. If you snip yourself, you should only do so with special hair cutting scissors that are sharp enough and do not roughen the ends. But it’s best not to let it get that far, to care for your hair with weekly treatments, restorative care and, if possible, avoid using blow-dryers that are too hot, curling irons that are too hot, etc.

8. Can wrinkles really be prevented with cosmetics?

Yes. At least this can delay their emergence. Especially with sun protection, because UV rays are the main culprit and damage the elastic fibers of the skin. Active ingredients with a proven anti-aging effect are antioxidants such as vitamins C and E, which protect by neutralizing cell-damaging molecules.

Hyaluronic acid binds moisture in the skin and promotes the body’s own renewal. Retinol stimulates cells to behave as if they were younger again. And peptides promote collagen formation.

9. Why is my care not working for me?

Maybe you’re just not using the right products. A study found that three quarters of German women do not even know their own skin type. But that is exactly the prerequisite for a suitable beauty routine and the compatibility of the products. This little test will get you further: wash your face, leave it pure and wait half an hour. If your complexion is tight, you probably have dry skin; if it is oily, you probably have oily skin. With combination skin, the sides are usually drier, while the T-zone, i.e. forehead, nose, chin, is more oily.

10. Do you test all the products you present?

Most. In order to assess their effectiveness, they must suit your skin or hair type. Straight-haired people can’t judge care for curls, someone with oily skin can’t care for dry skin, a twenty-year-old can’t judge anti-ageing ampoules. Luckily, our team is very diverse, so we cover almost all skin and hair topics. But years of experience and background knowledge also allow us to quickly see whether and how a product works.

Bridget