Simone Gannon: The best sensitive skin products under €20

Less is always more when it comes to calming and soothing and helping to repair and strengthen your skin barrier

Thu, 16 Feb, 2023 - 02:00

Simone Gannon

1. CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser

There’s a reason CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser is a continuous bestseller. This supremely gentle, ceramide-packed gel-cream cleanser gently cleanses, calms and soothes without further disrupting the skin barrier. It’s so gentle that it’s recommended for pre-teen and teen skin and those with sensitive skin or eczema. Dampen your skin before use, morning and evening.

€11.50 for 236ml from McCauley.

2. Avène Thermal Water Facial Mist for Sensitive Skin

A skin saviour if there ever was one. Avène’s lightweight, hydrating mist infused with the brand’s famously gentle Thermal Spring Water will calm redness and sensitivity and help balance your skin amid a meltdown. Use every morning and evening before applying serums or moisturiser, and at will throughout the day whenever your skin feels tight or dry or in need of some extra moisture.

€17.50 for 300ml from millies.ie.

3. Bioderma Sensibio Cleansing Micellar Water for Sensitive Skin

One of the only micellar waters I will let near my face during a sensitivity flare-up. Bioderma Sensibio Cleansing Micellar Water is exceptionally gentle, effective at removing makeup and deeply cleansing the skin, and thanks to a unique complex of soothing sugars, a dab hand at helping to calm the skin, reduce inflammation and sensitivity. It can be used morning and evening as a first cleanse and to remove regular and waterproof makeup.

€18 for 500ml from Boots.

4. La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume B5 Repairing Balm

This multi-purpose, thick and creamy balm instantly calms, helps reduce redness and sensitivity, and soothes dry, cracked or sore skin, along with treating many other skin irritations. Containing repairing, nourishing Vitamin B5, La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Balm is gentle enough for even the most sensitive of skin, including babies (and it feels fantastic, too). Use it on clean, dry skin whenever you need it.

€16 for 100ml from Boots.

5. The Inkey List Ceramide Night Treatment

An affordable treatment that will do the heavy lifting while you sleep, The Inkey List Ceramide Night Treatment is one to try when your skin is dry, dehydrated and generally over-sensitive. A 3% blend of skin-strengthening ceramides and 2.5% Hyaluronic Acid will protect, repair, and deeply hydrate your skin overnight, helping your skin look and feel significantly better come morning. Use at nighttime in place of your regular moisturizer.

€17 from McSharry Pharmacy.

6. Dr Jart+ Ceramidin Cream

A line of products that I can’t say enough good things about, Korean skincare brand Dr Jart continue to excel with the Ceramidin range. Ceramidin Cream is one of many standouts created specifically for sensitive, barrier-compromised skin.

A light, creamy balm-cream, this instantly comforts and delivers essential moisture while balancing, hydrating and plumping the skin. A little goes a long way, and it can be used as an overall moisturizer or as a treatment for areas that need extra TLC.

€15 for 15ml from www.cultbeauty.com.

7. Eucerin AtoControl Bath & Shower Oil

Let’s not forget about dry, irritated skin on the body. This nourishing oil from Eucerin is a salve for dry, itchy, irritated or inflamed skin. Enriched with Omega 3 and Omega 6 oils, AtoControl Bath and Shower Oil delicately cleanses and soothes the skin without stripping it of essential moisture and leaves it feeling calm, hydrated and comfortable.

An ultra-gentle formula, use before, during and after a skin flare-up.

€18 for 400ml from Boots.

8. Avène Very High Protection B-Protect SPF50+

Sunscreen is essential daily and even more critical when your skin barrier is damaged.

A broad-spectrum sunscreen will not only protect your skin from further irritation and damage, but it will also help your skin repair from damage that has previously occurred. Avène’s sunscreens are, by and large excellent for irritated or hyper-sensitive skin, but B-Protect SPF50 is particularly great as it adds a slightly perfecting tint to the skin.