13 Skincare Products Must Haves For Your Oily Skin
Oily skin can be tough to manage yet with these best skincare products at your disposal, we believe that you’re not going to have another oily skin problem anymore.
Let’s start by covering the skin moisturizers and sunscreens and soon after, we will take a dive into the best active ingredient-based skincare products suitable for your oily skin needs!
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It is no surprise that oily skin issues can be a little troublesome to navigate. Oily skin can be the result of various factors such as genetics, wherein there are larger oil glands that secrete more oil than others.
Another factor that contributes significantly toward oil production and oiliness is hormones.
It is evident, especially around most women’s menstrual cycles, that the skin usually tends to get oilier leading to more breakouts.
Thus, those with acne are prone to secrete more oil. This invariable causes more acne breakouts, and thus the cycle of oiliness continues every month.
The holy grail of skincare
Now, most of these products are super acne friendly as well as helpful for people who not only have acne but who just happen to have oily skin either due to genetics or some other hormonal-related factor.
Cleansers:
Firstly, let us take a look at cleansers that are used for dirt removal from oil sebum, which work specifically well for people with oily skin.
1. Cerave Foaming Hydrating Cleanser
This is a gentle fragrance-free product, just like most others in this list of top recommendations. It has ceramides that assist in resolving skin barriers.
2. Neutrogena Ultra Gentle Daily Foaming Cleanser
This is one of my constant top recommendations for overall skin care.
It is a fragrance-free product completely free of any artificial fragrances and ceramides but it’s very gentle on the skin.
It does an excellent job of removing excess oiliness from your skin.
3. La Roche-Posay Toleriane Purifying Foaming Cleanser
This is incredibly great for oily skin and just like the Neutrogena face wash, this product too has no ceramides in it. It is uncertain how effective or useful ceramides in a cleanser necessarily are.
They usually seem more useful and better to apply to your skin when present in moisturizers. Besides, ceramides do not cause any harm to your skin and give a rather nice feeling against your skin.
As a matter of fact, it is better than stripping away some of your natural oils from your skin barrier since cleansing helps to maintain your natural skin oils and PH balance.
Moisturizers:
Now, let us take a look at moisturizers that work best on oily skin and sensitive skin types.
Most people have a notion that moisturizers are not meant for oily skin. This is completely false! Moisturizers can be used regardless of your skin type and are a great way to keep hydrating and nourishing your skin, even in case of sensitive skin types.
Let’s break down the top moisturizers for this category:
4. Neutrogena Oil-Free Moisturizer (Sensitive Skin)
This one is highly recommended due to its oil-free properties with silicones. Since most people with oily skin tend to find that the oil-free moisturizers with silicones are usually more refreshing and comfortable for their skin.
Neutrogena products are usually always a great choice for almost any skin type. Especially for sensitive skin types, this is a no-brainer.
Since it is a 100% fragrance-free moisturizer like most Neutrogena moisturizers and as an addition it is quite lightweight and works great.
Once applied, it enters deep into your pores, nourishing your skin and removing all dirt and impurities from it. Thus, giving you a complete cleanse.
It does not cause any irritation or stinging sensation like a few other moisturizers when applied to oily skin.
This is definitely one of our go-to moisturizers which we guarantee will never let you down. Once you try it, you have got to love it!
Moreover, this is highly recommended even for skin types with acne and blemishes. Since these counter the side-effects of Retin-a which leads to dryness and peeling in some cases.
With this moisturizer, most people with oily skin feel wonderful and rejuvenated due to its silicones and gentle nature.
5. Cetaphil Daily Hydrating Lotion or Cerave PM
While the Cerave PM has ceramides and niacinamide, it is a little contrasting to Cetaphil since the Cerave PM can cause a stinging sensation, which has to do with the fact it is slightly more acidic in comparison to Cetaphil Hydrating Lotion.
Hence, Cetaphil is extremely gentle and good to use especially for sensitive skin.
6. Vanicream Moisturizing Lotion
Regardless of your skin type, this lotion is always on our recommended products. Vanicream brand’s moisturizing cream which is a lot heavier or this lotion consists of minimal ingredients and can be used on your face and body as it is mild and gentle for all skin types.
However, this consists of silicones and hence has a less greasy feel to it. For some sensitive skin types, this may lead to a stinging sensation which is due to the propylene glycol.
This ingredient acts as a humectant which can sting a bit. Besides this, it is a great pick! Especially worth buying for people with eczema.
Sunscreens:
Let’s move ahead with the one and only secret to that glowing skin and creamy protection from the harmful UV rays.
Particularly useful for daily wear, especially when heading outdoors, sunscreens are a must-wear!
One can never go wrong with oil-absorbing moisturizer plus sunscreen SPF 30 or any other sunscreen formulated nearly identical to this if you have oily skin!
7. Differin oil control moisturizer with SPF/ Cetaphil oil-absorbing SPF 30
Cetaphil’s derma oil-control sunscreen with SPF 30 is almost identical to Differin oil control moisturizer sunscreen since they have the exact same formulation. Thus, you can go for either of these products since they’re pretty much the same.
However, this is a chemical sunscreen so it has chemical filters that will help provide protection against UVA and UVB extensively well. On top of this, it is extremely lightweight, free of grease and it doesn’t lead to a stinging sensation around the eyes, although chemical sunscreens can sometimes sting a little.
This, on the other hand, has a nice matte finish to it as well. Both of these sunscreens, Differin and the Cetaphil version, have starches in them that help in absorbing excess oiliness and greasiness leading to a nice mattifying effect which most people with oily skin types really love!
Both these sunscreen options are great choices that I strongly recommend if you want a really matte sunscreen finish to your look!
8. EltaMD UV Clear Sunscreen
This has niacinamide which is helpful for redness and oiliness. It is anti-inflammatory and the active sunscreen ingredients in this are zinc and octene oxide.
While zinc protects against the harmful UVA and UVB rays, the octene oxide helps protect against UVB as well. This has an excellent matte finish to it.
As a matter of fact, this product is a must-have for most oily skin types since it works great for people with oily skin who also love the super matte feel and the oil-absorbing properties of the sunscreen.
Furthermore, it offers really nice protection which one can actually wear even in the summer, and is perfect for those who love the drying effect of it since it has a super matte finish.
Also, the cast on this sunscreen is pretty minimal to almost non-existent since it’s a combination sunscreen having a combination of zinc and a chemical filter.
Thus, the cast that you get with tends to be a lot dim. Whereas, if you have a really dark skin type, it can be mildly visible.
However, it can be easily camouflaged too with a tinted sunscreen over it or a tinted BB cream.
9. Neutrogena clear face lotion
As a sunscreen, the Neutrogena clear face breakout-free liquid lotion is super comfortable and wonderful for day-to-day use.
These chemical sunscreens stabilize their filters with Helioplex which allows stable sun protection over time.
This particular sunscreen is SPF 30 offering great sun protection from UVA and UVB long with other benefits, wherein it is extremely comfortable, unlike some other Neutrogena chemical sunscreens which tend to sting little.
Additionally, this is water-resistant for up to 80 minutes which makes it perfect for everyday use no matter the seasons! It has a good finish and is not as drying or matte as the Elta MD sunscreen. Thus, making it a great choice to consider.
Active Ingredient Products:
Next, let’s dive right into active ingredients products for oily skin.
In case of oily skin, you might want to consider using a vitamin A derivative – either retinol or adapalene since retinol can help in normalizing skin barrier function as well as in controlling oiliness due to the drying properties.
10. Adapalene Gel
Over-the-counter Adapalene Gel is one of the gentlest and most biologically active vitamin E derivatives.
While it can be a bit irritating initially. It is recommended to try applying it for just a few nights in a week in the initial days.
Then slowly progress it up to you every alternate day or night for a few weeks’ time before finally making it a daily or nightly routine application.
Initially, there might be a little dryness and peeling due to its application, however that tends to normalize after about six to eight weeks of use.
It does an excellent job at controlling oiliness when applied. Although, ensure it does not get around the eyes or mouth area. However, in case this product is too drying and irritating, consider switching over to retinol instead of adapalene.
11. CeraVe Resurfacing Retinol Serum
Although Retinols are a little less irritating and less biologically active as well because their application needs to be for a longer period until one gets to see any visible results.
Cerave Serum is incredible for people who have dark spots and discoloration due to healing acne or any other related issue as it helps in turning over the top layer of the skin and taking away the hyperpigmentation.
It has a nice smell and is anti-inflammatory to the skin which makes it a wonderful product for sensitive skin types.
It is important to note that since these products have active ingredients for oily and acne-prone skin, it is best to use them at night instead of daytime.
Since they can lead to adverse effects including skin damage when applied and exposed to direct sunlight due to light and UV exposure, thereby causing skin aging and degradation as well as other unwanted effects.
Hence, for best use, it is recommended to apply it at night before after thoroughly cleansing the face! Also, the moisturizers mentioned here are great to pair with either adapalene gel or retinol serum to reduce any sort of drying or peeling initially.
12. Panoxyl 4% Benzoyl Peroxide creamy wash / Cetaphil Acne Foaming Cream Cleanser
Another great active ingredient for oily skin types is benzoyl peroxide. This is actually used as an acne medication that helps by stripping off the excess oiliness and greasiness on the face.
If you have mostly oily skin but no acne, this product is still worth considering due to its great effects. However, since it is a strong chemical product, it is best used just for a few nights in a week.
This way it can truly help control the oiliness. We would recommend using benzoyl peroxide in the form of a wash. The Panoxyl 4% creamy wash and Cetaphil acne foaming cream cleanser is pretty similar in composition and are both great to use for oily skin types.
Although, Cetaphil is a bit gentler for people with very sensitive skin as it causes a little less drying on the skin; both of them can be used for controlling excess oiliness and not specifically for acne. Just remember to apply them a few days a week for the best results!
13. Cetaphil Derma Control Purifying Clay Mask
The Derma control Purifying Clay Mask by Cetaphil is a nice mask that will help in cutting down oiliness. It can be applied for a few nights in a week since this is a very effective kaolin clay mask.
Clay masks usually work wonders in removing and absorbing oil off the surface of your skin, from within the pore as it sits on your skin and sets off. The overall formulation is also quite moisturizing.
This works really for reducing shininess well since it is so well formulated. For best results, this can be used first thing in the morning once you wake up to get rid of the overnight oiliness on the skin.
Once you rinse it off, apply one of the sunscreens mentioned on of the sunscreens that are mentioned here, so as to manage oil control for the remainder of the day and protect your skin against any harmful radiations.
In Summary
With these products, it is important to keep a minimum and simple skincare routine largely focused on a gentle cleanser, moisturizer, and sunscreen as the essentials for a basic skincare regimen.
It is a well-known fact and one that cannot be emphasized enough, that sunscreen is the most important part of skin care for many reasons. Most important is that it protects your skin from ultraviolet radiation which pays off a great deal, especially in the long term.
Moreover, if you have acne then protecting your skin from the sun actually does go a long way in helping protect you from future flares of the acne.
Hence, the most important things to maintain are a moisturizer, sunscreen, and a gentle cleanser. However, products with active ingredients like benzoyl peroxide, adapalene, and retinol can all be really useful in controlling oiliness and treating acne.
Thus, these too are useful products to consider incorporating as and when required. Let me know what you think?