 About half of the American population says they have sensitive skin, defined loosely as tingling, chafing, burning, itching sensations when exposed to various environmental factors. A similar high prevalence has been reported throughout Japan and Europe, especially in women. Often there are no obvious signs, and so it's often dismissed by the medical community as a princess-in-the-pea phenomenon, a mindset that has hindered the investigation of this problem. But now it's largely recognized as a genuine phenomenon of physiological origin, thought to arise from an alteration of the skin barrier, allowing potentially irritating substances to penetrate the skin and generate an inflammatory reaction. OK, so what can we do about it? Well, recently, supplementation of flaxseed oil was found to diminish skin sensitivity and improve skin barrier function and condition. In a randomized, double-blind, 12-week study, women were given about a half teaspoon of flaxseed oil a day internally versus safflower oil as a control. That's the amount of oil found in about a teaspoon and a half of flax seeds. After three months, there was a significant decrease in skin reddening in the flax group compared to the safflower group when an irritant chemical was painted on their forearms to measure skin sensitivity. Their skin also ended up significantly better hydrated, had significantly better barrier function, as evidenced by lower transepidermal water loss, skin that's less rough, less scaly, and smoother. You can actually see the changes in a close-up view of the skin. The skin looked pretty much just as dry and scaly before and after the safflower oil intervention, but significantly improved after the flaxseed oil. Sensitive skin is typically treated by topical application of lotion and creams, but why not treat it from the inside? This study showed that daily supplementation with flaxseed oil improved skin appearance and led to a decreased skin sensitivity by improving epidermal barrier function and decreasing inflammation. The best source of flaxseed oil is within the flaxseed itself. Then you get all the nutrition of the whole food, and it's cheaper and more stable. Unlike the oil, you can bake with the seeds without destroying the omega-3s and even store ground flaxseed for a month at room temperature without spoilage or oxidation.