How to know your skin type?

16/01/2025

Comprendre ma peau

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Camille A.

Rather dry or normal? Oily or combination? How would you define your skin? Knowing and diagnosing your skin type is essential to adopting an appropriate skincare routine, one that will allow you to take full care of your skin.

There are four main skin types: normal skin, dry skin, oily skin and combination skin. Each is characterized by clinical signs that certain factors can exacerbate. In addition to these skin types, there are two conditions that can be temporary and influence the choice of appropriate care: skin sensitivity and dehydration .

In this article, we help you recognize your skin type to create the best personalized skincare routine.

Normal skin

Often identified as the skin's perfect state of balance , normal skin affects around 42%¹ of the French population.

Description

Normal skin is considered healthy and balanced . It produces an optimal amount of sebum , neither too much (oily skin) nor too little (dry skin), which allows it to maintain its hydration optimally. It is naturally elastic and plump , and has few skin problems.
Characteristic signs

You can recognize normal skin by observing a few visible signs, but also through your sensations . In fact, normal skin is often smooth, soft and even . Its complexion is uniform and luminous. To the touch, it is supple and comfortable skin, without a feeling of tightness or excessive oiliness.
Triggering factors

While normal skin is primarily favored by favorable genetics , other factors may come into play.
- Biological factors : stable hormonal balance, effective natural regulatory mechanisms.
- External factors : a healthy lifestyle, limited exposure to aggressive factors such as pollution or stress, an adapted care routine.
Advice

For normal skin , a minimalist routine is enough with:
- Morning and evening, a gentle cleanse to eliminate impurities without disturbing the natural balance.
- Daily hydration with moisturizing ingredients (glycerin, hyaluronic acid).
- Daily sun protection to prevent UV damage.

The TOPICREM answer: for your normal skin, discover our range of HYDRA+ face creams.

Dry skin

Tightness, discomfort, roughness ... Around 24%¹ of French people experience the characteristics of dry skin , with a higher frequency in older people, or those exposed to cold and dry climates.

Description

The origin of dry skin is mainly its lack of lipids which weakens the skin barrier and reduces the skin's capacity to retain water.
Characteristic signs

It is quite easy to recognize dry skin as its visual signs and sensations are characteristic². Its texture seems rough and it presents areas of dryness and scales as well as possible redness . Its complexion is often dull and it presents discomfort, tightness, even itching or irritation.
Triggering factors

Several types of factors promote dry skin²:
- Biological factors : a genetic predisposition, aging, or skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis.
- External factors : insufficient hydration, exposure to cold or dry climates, use of aggressive cleansers.
Advice

If you have recognized your skin while reading these lines, then your skin needs a suitable routine .

Here's how to take care of your dry skin:
- Ultra-gentle daily cleansing , morning and evening, with oils or cleansing milks providing nourishing, non-drying fatty substances.
- The nutrition AND hydration combo : with treatments rich in emollient agents (vegetable oils and butters) to restore the skin barrier, and moisturizers to replenish water reserves. The rich textures also help protect your skin from daily aggressions (wind, cold, pollution, etc.) that weaken the skin barrier.
- Sun protection to limit the impact of UV rays which increase skin dryness.
Finally, because dry skin ages more quickly and becomes marked with wrinkles and fine lines more quickly, it is recommended to add anti-aging and anti-wrinkle treatments to your dry skin routine.

The TOPICREM answer: to take care of your dry skin, discover our HYDRA+ ranges for the face and ULTRA-HYDRATING for the body: creams, serums, masks, milks... Find our essentials for hydrated skin

Oily skin

Around 17%¹ of the French population say they have oily skin .

Description

Oily skin is characterized by excessive sebum production all over the face. It is more prone to blemishes such as acne pimples, blackheads or enlarged pores³.
Characteristic signs

Having oily skin can really impact your quality of life, both through its various visual aspects and through the perceived and social discomfort it causes³. Oily skin is often very shiny and has dilated pores , blackheads and sometimes pimples . It can be similar to acne-prone skin.

When touched, a persistent feeling of oiliness is felt and increases during the day, causing the frequent need to clean the face.
Triggering factors

Like dry skin, oily skin is essentially the result of genetics . However, other factors influence the severity of its manifestations³:
- Biological factors : hormonal fluctuations, particularly during puberty and the female menstrual cycle.
- External factors : diet, chronic stress, use of comedogenic cosmetic products that clog pores, or taking medications such as hormone-based steroids.
Advice

Is your skin oily? Here's how to take care of it every day to limit its unpleasant effects:

• Gentle cleansing morning and evening : to eliminate excess sebum and purify the skin.
• Care products specially designed for oily skin which generally contain:
- sebum-regulating active ingredients (zinc, roucou extract, niacinamide),
- keratolytic active ingredients (succinic acid) to gently eliminate dead cells that cause imperfections,
- light moisturizing active ingredients : because even oily skin can be dehydrated.
- Mattifying care and makeup products: with powders (clay, silica) to absorb excess sebum throughout the day.
- Non-comedogenic care.
Overall, oily skin tends to age less quickly than other skin types. Being thicker, it is less marked and less prone to wrinkles.

The TOPICREM answer: our specific AC CONTROL creams dedicated to combination to oily skin.

Combination skin

Combination skin is a more complex skin type than the other three, affecting around 17%¹ of the French population.

Description

Combination skin is characterized by the combination of oily areas (most often the T-zone: from the forehead to the chin) and normal to dry areas (cheeks and facial contours).
Characteristic signs

Combination skin has shine and its pores are dilated in a localized manner (on the T zone, therefore from the forehead to the chin). It can be subject to the discomforts of acne-prone skin: imperfections , pimples and blackheads . On the cheeks, it is often uncomfortable and can have areas of dryness, especially after cleansing.
Triggering factors

The factors that promote combination skin are similar to those that influence oily and dry skin types.
- Biological factors : irregular hormonal activity with significant fluctuations.
- External factors : stress, climatic variations (cold, drought, humidity), food.
Advice

Taking care of combination skin requires clearly identifying its different issues. To do this, take a segmented approach using:
- specific products for oily areas (cleansing gels, mattifying products)
- products suitable for dry areas that need to be hydrated and nourished (moisturizing and nourishing care).
Other tips:
- Gentle cleansing respects both oily and dry areas that are sensitive to inflammation and need soothing.
- Avoid products that are too aggressive and stripping, which accentuate the contrast between areas.

The TOPICREM response: the AC CONTROL range is specially adapted to combination to oily skin.

Skin conditions: hypersensitivity and dehydration

Skin hypersensitivity

Sensitive skin is a chronic condition whose symptoms can be occasional, such as redness , discomfort , tightness , or even sensations of heat and burning.

To find out everything about sensitive skin, read our dedicated article: Sensitive skin: symptoms, causes and solutions

Dehydration

Dehydrated skin is skin that occasionally lacks water, which can lead to dryness , discomfort , a lack of dull radiance and the appearance of fine lines .

To better understand dehydrated skin, read our full article: Dehydrated skin: How to recognize it and take care of it?

TOPICREM formulas have all been designed to provide protective hydration and preserve the skin barrier of sensitive skin for the whole family.

To do this, the laboratory relies on its expertise derived from pharmaceutical excellence:

Selection of high tolerance ingredients with proven effectiveness,
Development of formulas clinically tested on sensitive skin,
Effectiveness proven by science and approved by consumers.

Through the comfort and emotional well-being they provide, our treatments help you feel confident in your skin and in yourself, to better reveal yourself to others, and thus to fully enjoy every moment of life.

Bibliographic references:

¹M.A. Richard, F. Corgibet, N. Dupin, M. Beylot-Barry, V. Chaussade, C. Philippe, C. Taieb, P. Joly, K. Ezzedine, L. Misery. The skin of the French. Analysis of the characteristics of our skin based on the Objectifs Peau study. Annals of Dermatology and Venereology. Volume 144, Issue 12, Supplement. 2017. Pages S108-S109. ISSN 0151-9638. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annder.2017.09.129

²Lodén M. Role of topical emollients and moisturizers in the treatment of dry skin barrier disorders. Am J Clin Dermatol 2003;4:771-88.

³Sakuma TH, Maibach HI. Oily skin: an overview. Skin Pharmacol Physiol. 2012; 25(5):227-35. doi:10.1159/000338978. Epub 2012 Jun 20. PMID: 22722766.