In This Article:
+ Recommended Toners
+ Toner Confusion
+ All About Toners
+ What is the Difference Between Toners?
+ Can I Skip the Toner?
+ Toners for Different Skin Types
+ Which Paula's Choice Toner is Right for Me?
+ Toners for Aging and Sun Damage
The Paula's Choice Research Team is often asked
about toners. Most of the time, people just want to know what a toner does, if
they need to use one, and if so, which ones are the best for their skin type?
These are great questions!
Toner Confusion
As a result of outdated information, toners have
become a confusing category of skin-care products. Because of misperceptions,
many fashion magazines, dermatologists, and even cosmetics salespeople advise
against using a toner, or simply dismiss toners as an optional step. That is
disappointing, because a well-formulated toner can provide truly amazing
benefits for your skin.
Once you understand how toners work, and know what
ingredients are included in some toners that can be bad for your skin and what
ingredients are essential for achieving a healthy, radiant glow, you'll find
that applying a toner can be the perfect addition to your skin-care routine!
All About Toners
Toners are meant to be used after cleansing. They
once were recommended as a way to restore skin's pH balance after using a bar
soap or bar cleanser because those types of cleansers raise the skin's natural
pH to a level that isn't good for your skin.
However, with today's gentle, water-soluble cleansers, the
skin's pH doesn't change appreciably, and the fact that skin's pH recovers just
fine on its own made the need for toners to adjust skin's pH fade away.
What we now know is that after cleansing, what
your skin needs is a range of ingredients that restore and repair its surface.
Skin can never get too much of these important ingredients, which include
antioxidants and skin-repairing substances such as glycerin, fatty acids, and
ceramides. The right toner can give your skin a healthy dose of what it
needs to look younger, fresher, and smoother, right after cleansing and
throughout the day.
What Is the Difference Between Toners?
Finding the perfect toner for your skin isn't
easy, mainly because there are so many poorly formulated toners. Basically,
toners can be divided into three general types:
- Alcohol-based
formulas that often include
"astringent" ingredients such as witch hazel. Toners with
alcohol and astringent ingredients should always be avoided because they
cause free-radical damage and irritation, which hurts your skin's ability
to repair itself and damages its ability to produce healthy collagen.
- Water
and glycerin or glycol-based formulas with fragrant extracts such
as rose water or citrus fruits. These types of toners often are labeled
fresheners or clarifiers, and are little more than eau de cologne for your
face. Such overly fragrant toners are a common cause of reactions that are
damaging to skin.
- Water-based formulas loaded with beneficial ingredients such as skin-repairing substances,antioxidants, and cell-communicating ingredients such as niacinamide. These are the ONLY types of toner we recommend. We guarantee that every toner from Paula's Choice matches this description, and there are similar toners from other brands we recommend on Beautypedia.
Can I Skip the Toner?
If the toner is well formulated, Paula and her
team strongly recommend that you make toner an essential part of your cleansing
routine because the benefits can be felt and seen almost instantly.
On the other hand, absolutely do not use any toner
that contains irritating ingredients, such as alcohol, citrus, or overly
fragrant ingredients, whether they are synthetic or natural. Irritation hurts
your skin's healing process and reduces healthy collagen production—two things
you must avoid if you want to improve your skin!
If the toner you're considering is filled with
great ingredients (like the toners from Paula's Choice), then skipping this step
is cheating your skin of more of the beneficial ingredients it needs to become
healthier and act younger! A toner that contains state-of-the-art ingredients
proven to smooth, soften, calm, and repair skin is a wonderful addition to
anyone's skin-care routine!
Toners for Different Skin Types
Toners for Oily or Blemish-Prone Skin: If
you have oily or blemish-prone skin, you need to be especially careful when
shopping for toners. Almost without exception, the toners that claim to be
specifically for these skin types and concerns are not going to help. Why are
they a problem? They're a problem because most toners for oily, blemish-prone
skin contain irritants (such as alcohol, witch hazel, or menthol) that hurt
your skin's healing process, make blemishes worse, and, surprisingly, stimulate
oil production at the base of the pore. Using the wrong toner on oily,
blemish-prone skin guarantees you'll see more oil, overall redness and
longer-lasting red marks, and possibly a dry, flaky surface with oily skin
underneath.
The toners that are best for oily or blemish-prone
skin are those whose ingredients help repair skin's surface, make skin feel
smoother, reduce enlarged pores, and contain cell-communicating ingredients
that help train pores to handle excess oil in a more efficient manner. For some
skin types, especially during summer or in warmer climates, a well-formulated
toner may be the only "moisturizer" your oily skin needs!
Toners for Dry or Sensitive Skin: Those
with dry or sensitive skin typically shy away from toners because of their
astringent, drying reputation. After all, the last thing dry, sensitive skin
needs are irritants that make it even drier or redder! But the right toner for
dry or sensitive skin can make a world of difference: You'll see less redness,
less flaking, and your skin will feel soothed and comfortable.
If you're skeptical (and we can't say we blame
you) give a well-formulated toner a try—we're betting you'll be pleasantly
surprised with how your skin improves!
Toners for Combination Skin: If
your skin is oily on your forehead, nose, and chin and dry to normal on your
cheeks and jaw area, then you have classic combination skin. Using the wrong
toner on combination skin will exaggerate the dry areas and make oily areas
worse (this is doubly true if blemishes are present).
What's the solution? You need a gentle,
alcohol-free toner with ingredients that help normalize your skin, so you'll
see less dryness and reduced oiliness. With ongoing use as part of a complete
skin-care routine, you'll also see enlarged pores become smaller.
Which Paula's Choice Toner is Right for Me?
Although every Paula's Choice toner contains a
range of ingredients that provide multiple benefits, each has distinctions that
make them preferred for certain skin types or concerns:
- Resist
Advanced Replenishing Toner is recommended for normal to dry skin
(including sensitive skin) concerned with reducing wrinkles and repairing
sun-damaged skin.
- Resist
Weightless Advanced Repairing Toner significantly improves skin
tone and texture while shrinking pores and calming redness from breakouts.
It is designed for those with normal to oily skin.
- Hydralight
Healthy Skin Refreshing Toner is designed to hydrate and refresh
normal, oily, or combination skin that also may be sensitive.
- Skin
Balancing Pore-Reducing Toner is designed to normalize and reduce
enlarged pores for those with normal, oily, or combination skin that also
may be sensitive.
- Moisture
Boost Hydrating Toner is designed to hydrate and replenish normal
to dry skin that also may be sensitive.
- Skin
Recovery Enriched Calming Toner is designed to address persistent
dryness or sensitivity, including from rosacea, for those with normal,
dry, or very dry skin.
- Earth Sourced Purely Refreshing Toner is a 98% natural formula suitable for all skin types. Helps repair skin with hyaluronic acid and antioxidants.
Toners for Aging and Sun Damage
All Paula's Choice toners are excellent options
for anti-aging and for helping to repair sun damage while also addressing other
concerns. In addition, you can alternate, using any of our toners along with
Resist Advanced Replenishing Toner for wonderful results.
Source link: http://www.paulaschoice.com/expert-advice/skin-care-basics/_/do-i-need-a-toner
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