According to Dr. Pham Thi Uyen Nhi - Head of the General Planning Department, Ho Chi Minh City Dermatology Hospital, not all reactions appear immediately after using the product. Some people experience symptoms only after the first use, but there are also cases after many weeks or months, when the skin's protective barrier is weakened, signs of damage are clearly revealed.
Doctors say that many people often confuse skin irritation with cosmetic allergies. Skin irritation often appears quickly, only a few minutes to hours after using the product. Patients experience burning, stinging, dry skin or peeling, mainly due to strong active ingredients or excessive use of products that have the effect of replacing or removing skin.
Meanwhile, cosmetic allergies are a reaction of the immune system, so they often appear later. Patients may have a lot of itching, red rashes, swelling, blisters, and lesions tend to spread to the surrounding skin areas.
When abnormal signs appear after using cosmetics, the first thing to do is to immediately stop the product suspected of causing reactions. At the same time, people should go to dermatology facilities for evaluation and appropriate treatment. During this time, you can use mild cleanser, recovery cream and enhance skin protection from sunlight. Products containing retinol, AHA, BHA or peeling active ingredients should be temporarily suspended from use.
According to Dr. Pham Thi Uyen Nhi, the most common mistake is continuing to use cosmetics with the thought that the skin is in a "community" stage. Besides, arbitrarily using creams of unknown origin, especially products containing corticosteroids, can make the damage worse, causing skin atrophy, vasodilation, acne and corticosteroid dependence.
People need to go to the hospital immediately if signs such as severe redness, swelling, blisters, discharge, widespread lesions, swollen lips, shortness of breath or fever appear. This may be a sign of severe allergic reaction or infectious complications that need to be treated promptly.
