Last summer, while planning the editorial calendar for 2017, I penned 'sensitive skin' as a topic I believed should be highlighted as a main theme for an issue.

Days later, I allotted the subject to the month of August and proceeded to brainstorm on what the main articles for the month would entail. I had ideas like 'skin disorders' and 'skin conditions' in my notebook, along with a few names of industry leaders I knew could help me tackle the issue at hand. I assumed we would cover subjects like organic skin care ingredients and fragrance-free products in our press sections. I even bounced around a few cover ideas in my head.

My next step was to assign the editorials to an array of writers, set deadlines for press submissions, then wait for the content to be submitted. Once our deadlines came this spring, I was overcome with the amount of material that I was reading. But what surprised me the most was my lack of understanding of the term sensitive skin.

Before collecting the content for this issue, I had generally understood the term to include sensitivities to certain chemicals, fragrances, or exposure to uncommon elements. I had assumed that people with sensitive skin would feel burning and tingling when introduced to certain products. These common presumptions are often misconstrued from the technical term of sensitive skin, leaving consumers to continuously self-diagnose their skin with improper conditions.

As Brenda Linday writes, "Many clients believe that they have sensitive skin because they experience stinging, burning, redness, or tightness. In reality, they are experiencing sensitized skin due to their environment or harsh product usage." She also states that "a true sensitive skin condition is experienced by patients diagnosed with eczema, rosacea, psoriasis, dermatographia, and health-challenged autoimmune diseases including lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and scleroderma."

To read the rest of our feature article from Brenda Linday, titled "Research Developments in Sensitive Skin Conditions," turn to page 54. We also have in-depth editorial coverage on sensitized skin from Kat Leverette, beginning on page 48, titled "Sensitized Skin: Where to Start and What to Do," as well as a generic step-by-step treatment from Natalya Rachkova that professionals can implement into their skin care menu on page 63, titled "Protocol for Sensitized Skin."
We printed most of the content on sensitized skin in this issue, but so much more is available on the virtual pages of DERMASCOPE.com. Check it out!

Amanda Strunk Miller
Associate Publisher