We understand that using a facial oil on oily skin sounds ironic and well, terrifying! Is it a slippery slope into an acne disaster, or are facial oils simply misunderstood and actually skin-friendly?
Moreover, we have all heard of claims that putting oil on your face will make it oilier and more prone to breakouts. Let’s find out if this is just another industry myth, or a fact?
Let’s start by explaining what happens when skin has too little oil?
If skin is deprived of natural oils, it will go into overproduction mode to make up for a lack of sebum (our skin’s natural oils). Drying out oily skin by skipping moisturization and using stripping ingredients and mattifying cleansers will actually lead to breakouts, acne, and even more oil. Our skin barrier is there to protect us from the outside world and when you start stripping it off in an attempt to dry out acne, you are only doing more harm than good. A compromised skin barrier means any other ingredients that are not supposed to make their way to the deeper layers of our skin are now making their way to where they don’t belong, leading to severe inflammation. Over production of oils is nothing, but just a defence response from our skin to show that it is trying to compensate for the low level of oils.
Solution?
Instead of using harsh ingredients to treat the surface-level problems (e.g acne), we should be using right oils to replenish our skin, which can keep oil production levels balanced and breakouts at bay.
While you probably recognize the names of go-to topical acne-fighting ingredients like benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid, and sulfur, you might not know exactly what they do. Do you know that Salicylic acid, one of the most well-known treatments for acne can have a very drying effect on your skin, because they encourage exfoliation, peeling, and cell turnover? Since both issues can lead to acne and other skin concerns, decreasing your salicylic acid use and avoiding it altogether can help reduce skin irritation. Salicylic acid breaks the bonds that hold the skin’s cells together, causing them to shed away or peel, but this could be too harsh for most skin types and lead to long-term dryness. These ingredients tend to be drying, and the most common mistake people make is overusing them, either too often or too much. When they are overused, they can overly dry or irritate the skin, leading to more breakouts.
- When you use the correct oil for your skin, you start seeing incredible results within a short period of time. Some facial oils can even provide anti-inflammatory and antibacterial benefits and help to target texture and hyperpigmentation caused by post-breakout scarring.
- Another important fact to remember is that using a facial oil for oily skin types will create an occlusive layer to seal in moisture, keeping it hydrated, fresh and plump.
However, no two oils are alike – that means there’s plenty of hope for oily skin in search of treatment! If you want to reap all the potential benefits of using a facial oil, you’ll need to choose the one that’s formulated specifically to your skin type.
So, what kind of facial oils should you choose and why?
You’ll want to use light-weight oils that can be absorbed quickly and easily into your skin, so there’s no pore-clogging residue left to torment your complexion. Look for oils with a smaller molecular size and rich in linoleic acid: Squalane, Broccoli, Raspberry, Grapeseed and Jojoba are some of those oils that do the trick.
Our Restoring Mean Green Superfood Drops hyperlink is a carefully designed lightweight facial oil serum that makes a perfect friendly choice for oily skin. This wonderfully silky, yet fast absorbing oil moisturizes without leaving a heavy, greasy feeling behind. So why is it so good for you in the first place? The main ingredient in this formula is Broccoli and Rosehip Seed Oil, along with other potent linoleic-acid rich superfood and botanical oils. Linoleic acid is found naturally in our skin and research suggests that it is found to be in lower quantity for those with oily and acne-prone skin types, meaning adding an oil rich in linoleic-acid can feed skin with what it needs to stay healthy, balanced and youthful.
It is a multipurpose oil serum that can also be used in tons of other different ways, including your hair and nails. Yes, that’s true! A light-weight oil formula could help nourish the hair follicles without leaving a greasy layer behind. Hair stays smooth, shiny, and free from split ends. Again, it does this by adding a nutrient-dense moisture barrier that also keep your hair protected from city pollution, dirt, sun and free radical damage. The key is to watch out for formulas that are high-quality, pure, and unaltered oils and not a cocktail of Silicones, PEGs and Glycols. Click HERE to read how to use our Restoring Mean Green Superfood Drops in 8 different ways and HERE if you would like to read how do we source our ingredients from reputable suppliers who are always passionate about providing us with the highest quality, (fully traceable) cold pressed oils to be used in our formulations.
SO, is ‘’Oil-Free’’ a Myth, or Fact?
All of this brings us to the point that the term ‘’oil-free’’ is also a myth, heavily used by companies to make you buy more and more from their endless range of products. Somewhere along the line in the past 20 years, the cosmetic industry moved towards “oil-free” advertising on the claim that oil causes acne. Excess sebum (oil on the face) can cause acne when dirt gets trapped (cue everything you’ve ever heard from acne commercials.) However, its simply not true as skin is our largest organ and oil is a critical to protect and maintain amazing skin. These “oil-free” products are often just a temporary fix to calm down surface-level issues and strip the skin of everything it needs to stay gorgeous and make it more vulnerable to — yep — bacteria, dryness and ACNE. So it’s nothing but a vicious cycle.
Hopefully, we’ve calmed your mind and cleansed it of any myths preventing you from using facial oils for your oily skin type. Simply adding a few drops can do wonders for your skin. No myths, just facts, and the rest is for you to unlock the ultimate skin care secrets of facial oils.