If you are a DRPT, you have good lifestyle habits and are under the age of 30 but your skin is dry and has uneven coloration and tone. Your skin needs a strengthened skin barrier to help skin hold onto water and improve hydration. Your melanocytes (the cells that make melanin that gives skin it’s color) are overactive leading to uneven skin pigmentation. The good news is that you are less susceptible to inflammation and aging than other skin types.
What Is DRPT Skin?
DRPT, or Baumann Skin Type Number 13, is characterized by Dry, Resistant, Pigmented and Tight skin. Although your skin is dry, it’s resistant to inflammation allows it to handle many cosmeceutical ingredients that other skin types need to avoid.
Common Problems for DRPT Skin Types
The largest concern for those with DRPT skin is their tendency for unwanted pigmentation. As explained above, no matter the color of your skin, high pigment levels can lead to uneven coloration such as dark spots and dark patches. This skin type is more likely to suffer from melasma or hyperpigmentation of the skin after injury. DRPTs have an impaired skin barrier with increased transepidermal water loss (TEWL). This means that water evaporates off of the skin’s surface easily leading to dehydration. This leads to dry skin. Dry, dehydrated skin lacks the water that enzymes need to function well so various protective skin functions are adversely affected. Helping the skin to retain water is an important step to healthy skin for DRPTs.
Caring for DRPT Skin
It is never too early to start taking great care of your skin. Here are also a few general guidelines that DRPT Skin Types should follow to help keep their skin young appearing and healthy.
Cleanse with cream, milk, oil or lotion non-foaming cleansers instead of foaming cleansers. This will protect the important lipids that make up your skin’s barrier.
Moisturize with a product that contains the barrier repair ingredients ceramide, fatty acids such as stearic acid and cholesterol.
Sunscreen- All skin types should use a SPF of at least 15 every day to maintain skin health. Chemical sunscreens are an option for those over 13 years old but under the age of 13, a physical sunscreen such as those containing zinc oxide and titanium are the best options.
Tyrosinase inhibitors- Skin lightening ingredients such as hydroquinone, kojic acid, arbutin, and others inhibit the enzyme tyrosinase that is necessary for skin cells to make melanin (skin pigment). These should be used in 3 month treatment regimens punctuated by one month maintenance regimens that do not contain tyrosinase inhibitors. (It is necessary to stop using tyrosinase inhibitors every 3 months or else they will be less potent.) Your doctor will design a treatment and maintenance regimen plan for you.
Dos and Don’ts for DRPT Skin Types
Do:
Use a barrier-repair moisturizer
Use lukewarm water rather than very hot water to cleanse
Wear SPF every day
Avoid excessive friction, which can injure the skin barrier
Avoid prolonged exposure to chlorinated water
Eat foods high in linoleic acid, such as walnuts, flax seeds and pumpkin seeds
Don’t:
Use foaming cleansers, bar soaps or bubble baths
Forget to use SPF
Forget to moisturize the body after bathing, swimming or showering
Over-exfoliate
Dr. Baumann’s Bottom Line
Moisturizing, sun protection, and the proper use of skin lightening ingredients will do wonders for your skin. Daily consistent and correct skin care will help you even your skin tone and smooth the dry surface of the skin which allows the skin to reflect more light and look more radiant.
Dr. Leslie Baumann, M.D. and her team at Baumann Cosmetic Dermatology believe in proof, not promises. World-recognized for both cosmetic and general dermatology, our treatment strategies rely exclusively on evidence-based, scientifically verified products and procedures that promote skin health and a natural appearance. We combine effective medical procedures with individualized instruction on proper skincare, nutrition, supplementation and lifestyle in order to maximize the health of the skin and body as a whole while minimizing the effects of aging. For more, visit Dr. Baumann’s blog for daily updates Monday through Friday, or inquire about an appointment through Derm.net.