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36 HEALTH SKIN MATTERS FROM PAGE 35 hypoallergenic cleansers on the market. “Make sure to just pat your skin dry, so it’s not further irritated ... just a light pat to make sure there’s no excess moisture.” Ms Holt adds that it’s also a “good idea to use a moisturiser” after cleansing, to prevent dryness. Dr Yip agrees, adding that it’s important to consider the consistency of the moisturiser. “The first thing I’d suggest is to make sure people are using lighter-consistency moisturisers rather than anything too thick or too greasy, because that can clog skin pores, especially with long hours \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[on the\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] skin,” she said. “After wearing masks for long hours, always gently cleanse the face and avoid harsh ingredients such as alpha hydroxy acids, like glycolic acids, or even retinoids that people use in anti-ageing serums or creams at night, because that can further cause irritation to the skin and make it more difficult to tolerate long hours of mask wearing.” Makeup under a mask Avoiding use of heavy cosmetics is a good idea when wearing a mask, Ms Holt says, suggesting that most people should avoid wearing make-up altogether, although this may be difficult for some, which she says makes skin cleansing an even more important step. “A lot of those heavier cosmetics are oil based, so they may clog the pores,” she said. “That’s what we call comedogenic \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[cosmetics\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] ... and it’s something that even with normal acne we’d try and minimise. “We want non-comedogenic preparations: things that don’t block pores. “But heavy makeup often can do that, so you want to try to have some sort of light makeup if possible.” Dr Yip’s advice on makeup is in line with Ms Holt’s. Avoid wearing makeup, foundation and lipstick, especially because that can cause problems with clogged skin pores and breakouts, too,” Dr Yip said. “Avoid wearing makeup where possible and always ensure that the makeup is properly removed. “Double cleansing may be important. Make sure the makeup is removed properly either with micellar water or a makeup remover and then cleanse it with a milk-based cleanser or soap- free cleanser to get the grime, dirt and bacteria ... off the face.” Treating maskne As with other problematic skin conditions, it’s important to treat maskne if it develops, so more complicated skin issues and infections down the track can be avoided. Ms Holt says pharmacists should be alert to the rise of maskne. “If you see people wandering up and down the skin care aisles and perhaps covering their face, seeming a little bit lost, I think it’s really important to make your staff aware that this is something that is concerning people,” she said. “They may be coming into a pharmacy simply for that. The patient may be too embarrassed to say, because they don’t realise that that’s what’s happening \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[maskne\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] and that it’s a recognised condition. “They may feel like they’ve done something wrong. Often patients do when they suddenly get \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[an ailment\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] ... and the face is such a sensitive area anyway and people get embarrassed just even with normal acne. “So, I think it’s really important that if you see someone \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[with maskne\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] ... direct them to appropriate sorts of things, like cleansing wipes and gentle cleansers, and ask those key questions about what they’re already doing.” Dr Yip suggests the use of “chemical exfoliants” to help unclog the skin pores. This can help to penetrate the skin pores to reduce bacteria from causing acne formation, she adds. “Salicylic acid products are usually very good ... alpha hydroxy acids, like glycolic acids, are quite good for mild breakouts as well, because they can also penetrate the skin to reduce clogged skin pores,” she said. “But \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[these are\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] less effective than salicylic acid.” Considering a compounding pharmacist “We \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[compounding pharmacists\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] are in a really great position to help sufferers of maskne because, not only do we have access to many of the key ingredients that are used in many of the skin cleansers and moisturising formulations, but we also have access to very specific compounding bases,” said Ms Holt. “We’ve worked for a long time with bases specifically for things like acne, rosacea, eczema and psoriasis, for patients that normally need to deal with those types of long-term irritating skin conditions. “So, we can use those sorts of bases \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[and created\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] cleansers for examples, with ingredients such as salicylic acids and niacinamide ... they’re ideal agents to be used in combination with facial cleansers. “Niacinamide, for example, which is vitamin B3, is often used in cases of eczema and psoriasis, and has the benefit of acting as a non-irritating exfoliant in cleansers.” Essentially, according to Ms Holt, compound pharmacists “can build that overall support for your patients by starting with a really good base and then tailoring the kind of preparation that each person needs”. Dr Yip suggests a good skin routine is key to preventing maskne, especially for those with sensitive skin. “Those with sensitive skin especially need to be careful because the skin will get easily irritated and \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\[they may\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\] find it difficult to tolerate certain products, especially if they’re already using products with active ingredients for acne or anti-ageing,” she said. Dr Yip’s skin cleansing staples include a gentle cleanser and light moisturiser. “If active serums are needed, soothing and anti-inflammatory hydrating serums with active ingredients such as niacinamide, hyaluronic acid or B5 are really good,” she said. “Be careful with products that contain retinoids, which are vitamin A-based ingredients, usually used for anti-ageing purposes.” She adds that salicylic acids for acne and alpha hydroxy acids should be used in conjunction with an assessment from a skin care professional. For mild maskne breakouts, Dr Yip adds that “simple OTC measures can suffice”. “These would include getting cleanses as well as acne moisturises with active ingredients that can help reduce the formation of acne,” she said. “The active ingredients include benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid. “In instances where the maskne is more inflamed or persistent, always see a medical professional, either a GP or dermatologist, who can assess ... and assist you with prescription treatment such as antibiotics.” RETAIL PHARMACY • JAN/FEB 2021