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Choosing The Right Makeup For Post Menopausal Skin

dermatologist's tips makeup for post menopausal skin

Dr. Dr. Bailey: I was wondering if you have tips for me to help choose the right makeup for post menopausal skin? Your antioxidant skin care program has been such a help for my post menopausal skin issues.  Thank you.  I am hoping you have suggestions regarding cosmetics for flaky skin that is prone to breaking out.  Is there any difference between eye shadows, liners, powder and blushes or is one just as good as the other as long as the skin care program is sound? Thank you, Helen

Dear Helen,

skin care for post menopausal skin

I’m so glad to hear that Anti-Aging Antioxidant Kit is helping your post menopausal skin! Thank you for your feedback.

I wonder why your skin is flaky and breaking out. 

Common skin conditions that occur as we age and that cause facial skin to flake and break out include:

  1. rosacea, and
  2. seborrheic dermatitis. 

You may want to see your dermatologist to see if you may have one of these conditions.

How to prepare post menopausal skin that is flaking for makeup?

What ever the cause of your skin problems, it's hard to put makeup on flaky skin. Makeup color goes on heavier in the scaly areas and looks uneven. To create an even skin surface before putting on makeup many of my patients find it helpful to first cleanse and gently exfoliate their skin with the use of my nondrying Calming Zinc Bar Soap and the Exfoliating Facial Sponge.

remedy facial skin flakingsimple tip to remedy facial flaky skin

The second issue is that adult skin that is prone to 'breaking out' is often actually sensitive and easily irritated. The combining the Calming Zinc Soap with Green Tea Antioxidant Skin Therapy in the Antioxidant Kit may help.

Avoid irritating skin care products to stop facial flaking.

The goal with makeup is to create the aesthetic appearance. Flaking makes that hard. You want to avoid irritating your skin problems with harsh products. This means figuring out what products flair up your skin and avoiding them.

  • Look for products that claim to be gentle and hypoallergenic.
  • Anti aging ingredients in makeup can be irritating so I recommend avoiding them for now. You are already on great products to fight skin aging so don't use a moisturizer or makeup that claims to fight aging too.
  • The bottom line is that your moisturizer and makeup should sooth and support the antioxidant kit products, not irritate your skin; they should ‘dial in’ the moisture and appearance you want- and that’s all!
  • best face moisturizing cream for post menopausal flaking skin
    For my patients with similar skin issues I recommend my Daily Face Cream for Oily to Normal Skin. It supports the Antioxidant products well.
  • We top the Daily Face Cream with the Sheer Strength Pure Physical SPF 50+ hypoallergenic broad spectrum sunscreen in the Antioxidant Kit.

What is the best makeup for post menopausal skin prone to irritation? 

best makeup for post menopausal skin

The best type of gentle, hypoallergenic makeup for sensitive skin is pure mineral make up. I especially like the loose, pressed and baked powders. Powders don't need to be preserved like liquids do and so they have fewer chemical ingredients that could irritate your skin.  My top choice are my mineral makeup powders because I know that they are free from artificial dyes, fragrance and fillers.

See the mineral makeup foundation powders that I trust for post menopausal skin.

There are great foundations, eye shadows and blushes that are loose or compressed powders and that are made with high quality natural ingredients. They look great and the minerals often provide additional sun protection on top of your sunscreen giving you an anti aging bonus.

See all the hypoallergenic makeup products I offer. They include a mascara that does NOT smear with hot flashes!

Eyeliners on the other hand have to be moist or waxy which means they'll need some chemical preservatives.  The good news is that eye products are formulated to be extremely gentle so they are rarely a problem for sensitive skin.

One last important point about makeup and post menopausal skin is that we often should use less of it as we age. This seems counter-intuitive but unfortunately makeup can accentuate wrinkles and sagging skin. This is because makeup products migrate into our creases during

best sunscreen and primer for post menopausal makeup

the day, making them more visible. My triple milled makeup is less likely to do that. Also, applying it on top of my Sheer Strength Pure Physical Matte Tinted SPF 50+ Sunscreen is a great makeup-sunscreen hack because this sunscreen is the ideal tinted makeup primer! It's what I'm wearing everyday for my post menopausal skin that's sensitive and prone to flaking. Seems we have that in common ;-).

The lesson here is that there’s no substitute for powerful anti aging skin care and good sun protection, like the Anti-Aging Antioxidant Kit that your using.

I hope this helps.

Warm Regards,

Cynthia Bailey MD, Dermatologist

Related helpful advice: read Dr. Bailey's Makeup Tips & Healthy Skin Care Best Practices article.

Disclaimer: Please realize that availing yourself of the opportunity to submit and receive answers to your questions from Dr. Bailey does not confer a doctor/patient relationship with Dr. Bailey. The information provided by Dr. Bailey is general health information inspired by your question. It should not be a substitute for obtaining medical advice from your physician and is not intended to diagnose or treat any specific medical problem (and is not an extension of the care Dr. Bailey has provided in her office for existing patients of her practice). Never ignore your own doctor’s advice because of something you read here; this information is for general informational purpose only.