Q: "What is a good way to reduce oily skin?! Any products you’d recommend? I use a Johnson’s cleanser in the morning and before I go to bed, and that’s on top of using makeup wipes and washing my face in the shower. Sometimes I can get oily skin still, but I’m not sure if that’s just down to the temperature… for example, when I’m sat in a really cold air conditioned office my skin never tends to get overly oily!" Anon3
First up, you need to assess your skin type (normal, oily, combination, dry) and then its condition (dehydrated, sensitive for example) and then make sure the products you are using are correct else it can trigger other problems. There is a difference in dry and dehydrated skin too: dry lacks oil, dehydrated lacks water and one can be oily but have sensitive skin.
The flush of hot weather we've been experiencing in the UK this summer is naturally going to increase oil production for some so this might be what you have been experiencing if you're not overly oily in an air conditioning environment**.
If you have a dry skin type and are not normally oily but you start using products for an oily skin (due to this hot weather?), this can lead to the harsher ingredients stripping away the natural protective barrier (the acid mantle which is secreted by the sebaceous - oil - glands). The skin then thinks "eeeek - no protection!" and starts producing more oil to compensate this damage and you continue to use the harsher products and so the drier it will become and you end up in this vicious cycle.
If you have an oily skin type but feel that your skin is tight after cleansing, you have a dehydrated skin. The tendency is to panic and think its dry and you start using products for a dry skin , full of rich emollients which can provide too much lubrication resulting in breakouts.
**Air conditioning can dry and dehydrate the skin but use the right products for your skin type and condition and you should be peachy. Seeing as you're not overly oily when you're sat in aircon (ie. the skin over producing because its drying out too much), then the skin is regulating itself nicely.
I have an oily skin type with a dehydrated condition (yup, too much vino) and I used to love facial gels. I would jump in the shower and cleanse my face with a facial wash like nobody's business, twice a day. As I've gotten older, I have noticed that my skin is responding to creams a bit better despite having oily cheeks (yup, still have HUGE pores). To be honest, thinking about my skincare history, I wish I had chosen milks/creams to gels back in my mid-twenties! Surprisingly (and I learnt this when I worked for Clarins back in the 90's), water can dry out the skin - again, removing some of the lipids that protect the skin. Think when you are on holiday, you've gotten out of the pool or the sea and you don't dry yourself down. What happens next is that the sun evaporates the water off the body as you dry, so quickly, you can end up burning. That's why its important to dry yourself down and apply more SPF. It's the same with skincare. After you've toned the skin, its beneficial to blot the skin before applying a moisturiser else what is left of the toner plus lipids will evaporate and dry out the skin.
Therefore, I would suggest trying a cream or balm cleanser rather than a facial wash in the shower in the morning. Massage the skin with the cleanser before you get into the shower and then rinse off in the shower. Once out, tone and moisturise. At night, massage the cleanser again and then remove with either damp cotton wool or a damp facial mitt, followed by toner and moisturiser.
Avoid standard facial wipes if you can as they are bad for the environment, bad for your skin and full of chemicals and plastic. If you have to use wipes, then source biodegradable ones* as they are better for the planet. Best moisturisers for all skin types contain hyaluronic acid which naturally occurs in the body and is a moisture magnet - perfect for all skin types and all conditions so do look out for those.
Recommendations:-
*Yes To..." range (carrots, tomatoes, pomegranate, coconut, argan oil, cucumber - depending on your skin type) - Made with compostable, FSC certified fabrics - £2-5
Neal's Yard Soothing Starflower Cleanser - sensitive £17 (vegan)
Neal's Yard Calendula Cleanser - dry £17 (vegan)
Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter £10
Superdrug Calm Skin Soothing Facial Wash - £3 (vegan). This is a thick gel so its very gentle and doesn't strip the skin; its lovely to use.
All the above are cruelty-free certified.
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