Protecting your skin while wearing a face mask: everything you need to know
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NASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) — If you’ve noticed your skin feeling irritated from wearing a mask, you aren’t alone, and there are actually some things you can do to avoid it.
“A lot of my patients are coming in and complaining of mask-ne which is the unofficial name that it’s been given,” said dermatologist Dr. Candace Spann.
“Basically what’s happening is that between the heat and the humidity behind the mask we are seeing a lot of people breaking out and that might be a flare of their acne or it might be a kind of eczema that’s called seborrheic dermatitis,” Spann said. “It might even be rosacea that is flaring up.”
Spann said to make sure to take proper precautions when you come home – like washing your face immediately and washing your mask as often as possible.
“The skin tends to be broken down behind the mask and people who have very sensitive skin and fragrance can be extremely irritating,” she said. “So if you’re washing in a fragrance detergent then that can actually compound and cause more problems.”
In addition to masks Dr. Spann suggests wearing a face shield.
“The shield has become one of our main defenses the shield is actually better than the mask in terms of preventing viral particles or anything from penetrating and it doesn’t tend to cause that inclusion so I really direct people to use shields in addition to their masks to help be more protected.”
Dr. Spann also recommends avoiding makeup as much as possible as it can clog pores, leading to more breakouts.
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