Your acne-prone oily skin will benefit from a good moisturizer but the wrong moisturizer will do more harm than good: greasy feeling skin, blackheads and pimples.
Obviously, choosing the right moisturizer is key. With a little know-how you can pick a moisturizer that will enhance your skin care routine without causing breakouts.
What to do:
Read your labels. This is the most important step in choosing a moisturizer. If you have oily skin or are prone to breakouts, choose a moisturizer labeled oil-free and non-comedogenic or non-acnegenic. Oil-free products don’t have added oils that leave a heavy, greasy feel to the skin. Non-comedogenic products are much less likely to clog the pores and cause breakouts.
Also, remember that creams are generally heavier than moisturizing lotions. If you want a lighter product, go with a lotion.
Know if your moisturizer contains exfoliating ingredients. Many moisturizers contain alpha hydroxy acids, retinol, salicylic acid, or other exfoliating ingredients. These ingredients help in improving acne, especially mild or comedonal acne, by increasing cell turnover.
But if you are using a topical acne medication, moisturizers with these ingredients can irritate the skin, and may increase peeling and flaking. In this case, it’s better to use a moisturizer without exfoliating ingredients unless your dermatologist recommends it.
If your skin is sensitive, choose a hypo-allergenic, fragrance-free formulation. Fragrances can irritate sensitive or acne-inflamed skin. And if you’re dealing with extremely dry, peeling skin caused by acne medications, highly fragranced moisturizers may burn or sting when applied. Your best bet is to choose a fragrance free, hypo-allergenic product. Be aware that unscented is not the same as fragrance-free.
Don’t forget the SPF. So many moisturizers now contain SPF, and it’s a simple and easy way to be sure to get your sun protection. Using a sunscreen daily will help protect your skin from aging and skin cancer. This is especially important if you are using acne treatments that cause photosensitivity, or increase your sensitivity to the sun. Some common acne treatments that increase photosensitivity include (but aren’t limited to):
Retin-A
Benzoyl peroxide (Duac gel, Benzamycin, BenzaClin, Proactiv and other OTC treatments)
Accutane
Get advice from the pros. When in doubt, ask your dermatologist what s/he recommends. Your esthetician can also suggest moisturizers suitable for oily skin, and will have them available for sale.
Go with results and not price. Give more weight to how the moisturizer makes your skin feel. An inexpensive product can work just as well as the pricey brand names.
Sources:
“Cosmeceutical Facts & Your Skin.” American Academy of Dermatology. Schaumburg, IL, 2004.
