Book Excerpt: 'The Skin Type Solution'

March 10, 2006 — -- Dr. Leslie Baumann, a professor and director of cosmetic dermatology at the Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami, is a world-renowned dermatologist who has developed a program that she believes will change the way people care for their skin. With her system, one can identify the products that will work for his or her personal skin type.

Baumann found that there were 16 distinctly different skin types and distinct methods for caring for them. She identifies brands and products to fit every budget and also provides tips to prevent aging.

Why Skin Typing?

Introduction

How many times have you gone to a cosmetic counter and spent $50 to $150 on products you never again use? Has a saleswoman or cosmetologist sold you a line that "did wonders for me," but does nothing for you? Have you developed an allergy or irritation to a product without knowing the cause? Why does your best friend swear by a facial care product that makes your skin look and feel terrible? Should you or shouldn't you use soap? Why do you hate the feel of sunscreen, though you know you should use it? Is a chemical face peel right for you? Should you consider using Retin-A? If you owned a Subaru Forester you wouldn't follow the maintenance procedures for a Volkswagen Golf. So if you happen to have dry, sensitive skin, why on earth would you use a moisturizer, cleanser, and cosmetic procedure more suited to someone with oily, resistant skin?

The reason? You don't know what type of skin you have; therefore, you don't know how to care for your skin. Until the publication of The Skin Type Solution, the Baumann Skin Typing System was not widely known or available. While many people have a general understanding of their skin, most have relied on commonly known but imprecise, unscientific definitions that fall short of providing a true and complete picture.

My many years as a dermatologist, researcher, and associate professor of dermatology have convinced me that no one ever needs to have a "bad skin day." Knowing your Skin Type is the missing, essential step to finding your way to beneficial products and treatments -- and beautiful skin. But, if you're like the typical first-time patient at my bustling University of Miami clinic, I'll bet you:

When it comes to using skin care products and services, most people have been in the Dark Ages, wandering through a maze of product misinformation and overzealous marketing, lucky to stumble on anything that works.

Jeannine's Story

Jeannine, a 48-year-old realtor with dry, sensitive, wrinkle-prone skin, was embarrassed by facial redness and flaking around her nose and eyebrows. Before she came to see me, she had been using an over-the-counter hydrocortisone ointment to relieve this condition. But when we discovered through my diagnostic questionnaire that Jeannine's skin was especially wrinkle prone, I warned her that long-term steroid use could worsen her Skin Type's natural tendency to thinness and wrinkles. Instead I switched her to the prescription product Elidel, which safely treated her redness and flaking without accelerating the skin thinning and wrinkling that bother people with Jeannine's Skin Type.

Like Jeannine, to properly care for your skin, and prevent aging, you need a treatment model that describes and captures the very real and scientifically verifiable distinctions in skin physiology. Skin Typing does just that.

Plus, you need a concrete program specifically and individually tailored to the unique attributes of your Skin Type. THE SKIN TYPE SOLUTION provides all of that vital information and guidance.

Once you've figured out your Skin Type (via a questionnaire in Chapter Three), you can go straight to the chapter on your Skin Type and find everything you need right there. There is a science to skin care, and once you know your Skin Type, it all gets a lot easier.

I've spent the last eight years defining and clinically testing my Skin Type solutions on thousands of patients at my University of Miami clinic to assure that my scientific criteria will work for everyone, of every skin color, ethnicity, age, and sex. And it does.

Perhaps you've already benefited from understanding your psychological type, your learning style, or your Ayurvedic type. If so, you'll appreciate how critical it is to get a handle on your Skin Type. This understanding lets you take control of your skin.

My Special Expertise

The guidance and gems I'll give you won't appear anywhere else. I launched, and currently direct, the University of Miami Cosmetic Center, the first university-run cosmetic research center in the United States, where I treat thousands of patients every year. In addition to being an MD, I am an associate professor at the University of Miami and the chief of the Division of Cosmetic Dermatology, making me the first cosmetic dermatologist in the United States dedicated to the field of cosmetic dermatology who is also a full-time university faculty member, teaching and conducting research.

This unprecedented combination affords me a unique position. My academic responsibilities keep me right on the cutting edge of research, while my clinical work has been a proving ground for refining the recommendations that arise from my findings.

My clients -- who range from gorgeous fashion models to topflight professionals, to fellow physicians, to all kinds of men and women concerned about aging -- have reaped the benefits of my unique understanding of the role of Skin Type in skin care.

As a scientist who is also a woman that loves to experiment with beauty and skin care products and routines, I'm tireless in seeking out and researching all beauty options because I use them myself. What's more, as a woman who wants to look my best all my life, I can put myself in your shoes and figure out how to best serve your skin care needs.

Up until now, the field of dermatology lacked a rational model that people could learn to follow and apply for themselves. Prior to Skin Typing, the pre-existing mode of analyzing skin differences dated back to the early 1900s, when cosmetic giant Helena Rubenstein first divided skin into four categories: normal, combination, dry, and sensitive. While that was revolutionary for its time, today we can apply more accurate scientific criteria to the range of skin differences. Before Skin Typing, even dermatologists felt frustrated, since we all want to understand skin better and offer our patients tailor-made solutions. But until now, the revolutionary classification of the sixteen Skin Types was not there to help. Here's just one example of the kind of confusion that runs rampant, even among professionals. I recently was on the advisory board of a major company with two prominent dermatologists. One was an "R" (someone with resistant, nonreactive skin) and the other one was an "S" (someone with sensitive skin). Right there in front of the company president, the two had a huge argument with the "R" dermatologist claiming that there was no difference in skin care products and that it was all marketing hype. She could use anything on her facial skin, she told us, even Ivory soap, without a problem. The "S" skin dermatologist was shocked. Almost everything made her skin turn red and sting, she retorted. These two skin professionals did not understand that their opposing points of view stemmed from their opposite Skin Types. I saw very clearly that something was missing and wanted to simplify skin care, once and for all.

As a clinician, I'd seen the damage caused by following an inappropriate skin care routine. As a caring doctor, I'd heard the frustration and confusion of people trying to make good skin care choices while barraged by a plethora of products and overwhelmed by conflicting and often misleading marketing claims. Because each person had particular skin care needs, I noticed that the same products did not work for everyone, so I tailored individualized skin care regimens for my clients. Over time a clear, consistent, and replicable typology emerged, which I can use to help anyone determine their Skin Type and base their skin care decisions what's best for their type.

These sixteen Skin Types are the keys to a complete diagnostic and treatment program that covers every key skin factor and that really works.

The Baumann Skin Typing System measures four factors in skin: oiliness vs. dryness, resistance vs. sensitivity, pigmentation vs. non-pigmentation, and tightness vs. wrinkling. Determining where you fall in each of the four categories serves as the foundation for typing your skin. Your Skin Type is more than the sum of the four different factors. Their interplay and expression is unique for each type. After seeing literally thousands of patients and refining the Baumann Skin Typing Questionnaire over the last eight years, I can assure you that Skin Typing captures each Skin Type's unique qualities and shows you how to work with your type's strengths and weaknesses.