Fragrance-free wrinkle serums do a lot for the skin. Some fight off environmental damage and can deeply hydrate, while others target fine lines and wrinkles. Others may even out your skin tone and texture and make your skin appear more radiant.
This all sounds amazing. But when you have allergic contact dermatitis, eczema, or sensitive skin, you must tread the waters lightly when trying new products. Especially anything with anti-aging properties. Gone are the days of picking up any new serum and applying it to your face, as the most recent beauty blogger suggested. This might irritate or, even worse, elicit a full-blown allergic contact dermatitis reaction. Finding a good anti-aging serum for sensitive skin is a challenge. I have written before about using Tretinoin as an anti-aging serum for sensitive skin and still use this daily.
Shopping the latest beauty trends for sensitive skin
I used to love walking down the aisles of my favorite beauty store, sampling the latest beauty trends. For a long time after my initial diagnosis of Allergic Contact Dermatitis, I thought I understood my allergies. I would just quickly glance through the ingredient lists of anti-aging serums for sensitive skin. I would search to see if any of the “trigger” ingredients were present. If I didn’t see any, I would purchase my new item, and within a few days, my rash would tell me it wasn’t a good fit. I had no idea how to quantify a “good for me” product. Making this harder was, I did not understand how to avoid fragrance ingredients like linalool; more about that right here. I didn’t understand my fragrance allergy at that time, either. If you have a fragrance allergy, you can read more about your allergy right here.
SkinSafe is a helpful tool I use to search for a Safe for Me Anti-Aging serum for sensitive skin
Today I have a new tool to help me find the right products that won’t cause me a reaction. SkinSafe is a tool created by dermatologists to aid those with ACD (allergic contact dermatitis), eczema and sensitive skin in selecting products least likely to cause a reaction. Their app or website has multiple capabilities to distinguish a “safe for you” product. Without a personal allergy code, the general public can quickly check the safety of products with a Top Allergen Free Badge; this means the product is free from top allergens the American Contact Dermatitis Society has deemed most likely to cause a reaction.
SkinSafe has a “Safe for Me” badge on products. This distinguishes it as safe from the allergens diagnosed by your ACDS specialist. I love using SkinSafe as it has allowed me to walk the aisles of Sephora once again, but this time with a tool that helps me find products I can use safely. Simply email mypac @ skinsafe products. com for a personal allergy code.
Best Safe for Me Fragrance-Free Wrinkle Serum
I love to search SkinSafe for any new to me products. One product, a wrinkle serum for sensitive skin, is currently impressing me, LiftActiv Supreme H.A. Wrinkle Corrector by Vichy. The fragrance-free wrinkle serum contains vitamin C, which packs a powerful punch of antioxidants and provides a skin-brightening effect. The Hyaluronic Acid instantly plumps the skin and makes fine lines and wrinkles diminish.
For a wrinkle serum for sensitive skin, it has minimal ingredients, and that’s a plus: Aqua / Water / Eau, Glycerin, Hydroxyethylpiperazine Ethane Sulfonic Acid, Sodium Hyaluronate, Peg-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Secale Cereale Seed Extract / Rye Seed Extract, Calcium Pantothenate, Dipeptide Diaminobutyroyl Benzylamide Diacetate, Phenoxyethanol, Chlorphenesin, Ascorbyl Glucoside, Disodium Edta, Pentylene Glycol.
Vichy’s studies show that after six weeks, wrinkles are reduced by 47%, and fine lines are reduced by 60%. For a group of readers who struggle to find fragrance-free anti-aging serums, we all collectively cheered at that statement! I encourage you to try it.
Fragrance-Free Leightweight Moisturizer for anti-aging for sensitive skin
I also enjoy this minimal-ingredient, fragrance-free moisturizer by Avene, Tolerance Extreme Emulsion. It is very lightweight, suiting a summer lifestyle or skin that feels heavy easily. Avene Tolerance Extreme’s line is a good fit for anti-aging for sensitive skin and allergic contact dermatitis. They have another moisturizer that is a cream and it is quite good Avene Tolerance Extreme Cream. I struggle with this version due to the Shea butter ingredient involvement with my balsam of peru allergy. I do encourage those without a balsam of peru allergy to try it.
The Avene Tolerance Extreme Emulsion that I use is extremely lightweight. The moisturizer’s minimal ingredients are: Avene thermal Spring Water, Squalene, Behenyl Alchohol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Glycerin, Sodium Acrylates C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolmer, Water.
Helpful Cleansing Lotion for Sensitive Skin
When searching for anti-aging for sensitive skin, using a gentle cleanser is important. The Avene Tolerance Extreme Cleansing Lotion I have written about before is a very good choice for sensitive skin. It is a cream cleanser and with its perservative-free packaging system, it is a wonderful choice for allergic and sensitive skin. The minimal ingredients make it a safe choice: water, squalane, caprylic / capric triglyceride, glycerin, behenyl alcohol, sodium acrylates / C10-30-alkyl acrylate crosspolymer, carbomer.
Always be sure to double-check your ingredient list once you receive your products. Often manufacturers will change an ingredient list without notice to the consumer. If the ingredient list looks correct and you’re still reacting, an email to the manufacturer’s customer service can be helpful. I have had companies change their ingredients without changing the label. Frustrated isn’t the word here. Their customer service “should” know if the ingredient list has been changed recently. You, as with most things in life, must be your own best advocate to avoid reactions to sensitive skin.
Learning to R.O.A.T. (Repeat Open Application Test) or Self Patch Test at home
It’s always a best practice to use R.O.A.T. (Repeat Open Application Test) on yourself when trying a new product. A few months ago, I tested out the new products in this post I’m currently using, Avene Tolerance Extreme Emulsion and LiftActiv Supreme H.A. Wrinkle Corrector by Vichy. I always like to try items out before I ever recommend them to someone else. I begin with R.O.A.T. I put a small amount of the product in the same place on my arm two times a day, every day for at least five days. If at the end of this trial, I don’t have any reaction, I can assume I am not allergic or sensitive to the product.
Angela says
Hey! I was just reading this post and I had a question!
I was told I have contact allergies after breaking out into a HORRIBLE red, itchy rash on my neck in 2020. I kept putting off getting tested, but finally, when my face blew up like the elephant man, I knew I had to go.
Turns out I’m allergic to fragrance 1 , 2, Lanolin, Beeswax, Balsam of Peru and a few other things. You mentioned doing a self-test or several days in the same place. What I’m finding is that no matter where I test something, I only really itch in the same place that I originally broke out – my neck. If I were to test something on my inner arm, let’s say, any allergy wouldn’t show up there, but on my neck. (or above my eyebrows – itcy, peely) Have you ever heard of this?
I’m SO incredibly frustrated with not being able to smell good – that’s what’s killing me the most I think. Waht do you know about “growing out” of this allergy thing? I’m hoping it eases up at some point. It’s a bit depressing 🙁
Thanks.
Angela
PS – Skinsafe is a life-changer.
theallergylife says
Hi there! Thanks for being here. Unfortunately, there isn’t any research supporting that we can “grow out of” this allergy. That being said, after a long time of avoiding an allergen, sometimes years, we may become less reactive. Think of it like a bucket; when it is full, every tiny drop overfills it. When our bucket drains out, a tiny drop won’t overflow it any longer. It’s hard to know when that happens, as with some allergens, a little is always too much. What you’re experiencing with the same spot reacting is a Halo spot. We all have these generally. It’s the first place our T-cells recognized an allergen and even if we touch the allergens in another location, our Halo spot will also react without touching the allergen. This is quite normal for this allergen. And yes, skinsafe IS actually a life-changer. Thank goodness for Dr. Jimmy Yiannias who created it!