Your skin, your type: The Central European skin type

Some of us can expose ourselves to the sun for a longer period of time without much difficulty, while others get redness or, in the worst case, even sunburn after a very short time. That sounds strange at first (and a little unfair ;)), but it's a question of individual skin type. The American dermatologist Fitzpatrick has developed a characterization of skin types, according to which people can be classified according to their appearance, their tanning behavior and their sensitivity to the sun. In this article we want to focus on the Central European skin type. At first glance, it is not that easy to specifically assign people to this skin type, as all hair, eye colors and skin tones can be represented here. Skin color ranges from light to medium, and hair colors can range from blonde to black. Any color can also appear in the eyes. This skin type is hardly prone to freckles. It is the most common skin type in this country, with around 78 percent of Germans belonging to it. The skin's own protection time is around 20 to 30 minutes; tanning occurs slowly but steadily. Even though the Central European skin type is significantly less sensitive compared to the Irish-Celtic and Northern European skin types, adequate sun protection is also the be-all and end-all here. A sun protection factor of at least 15 should be given, as sunburns can also occur with negligent protection or even skin cancer can occur.