We’ve got good news and bad news. The good news is, if you have oily skin, you’ll experience fewer wrinkles than your dry-skinned counterparts. The bad news is that, thanks to excess sebum, you’ll also experience more acne. Like most things, oily skin requires balance. Here’s how to manage oily skin to your advantage.
Cleaning
If it can clean a car engine, it doesn’t belong on your face. It may seem like an exaggeration, but many store brand cleansers contain sulfates that are strong enough to clean oil from an engine. Honestly, the gentler the cleanser, the better your oily skin will respond to it. If you strip the sebum from your face entirely, your oil glands will freak out and try to compensate for the oil you just cleansed away. Go to Lush and grab Ultrabland or a similar cleanser that has no fragrance but will remove your makeup and excess oil without stripping the oil away completely.
SPF
This may seem counterintuitive because having oily skin actually bolsters the benefits of SPF. However, what that means is that people with oily skin feel they can go without SPF. And that’s absolutely not true. Choose lightweight sunscreen that has a high SPF.
Moisturizer
The biggest mistake people with oily skin make is not moisturizing. Remember how we talked about how the sebaceous glands try to overcompensate when you strip oil away from your skin, ultimately making them produce more oil? When you moisturize, your sebaceous glands feel like they’re getting help and can take a break from cranking out the oil. Again, look for moisturizer like this one that has no fragrance, is dye-free, and doesn’t contain harsh chemicals that will irritate your skin.
Masking
Again, adding more moisture to an already oily face seems counterintuitive, but it’s the secret to bringing back balance to an oily face and preventing breakouts. Check out the Micro-Hole Hydrogel Collagen Face Mask for a great mask that will calm and moisturize skin. It contains aloe vera to fight inflammation and rose extract for hydration. It’s safe for even the most sensitive skin and contains no fragrance, parabens, or sulfates, or phthalates, so your skin won’t break out.
The key to managing oily skin is to pamper it, not punish it. Let your glands take a break from all that oil production and feed your skin proper hydration and calming ingredients. You’ll notice a decrease in sebum and a renewed balance.
