Have you ever felt like your skin is just too shiny and greasy? You may be wondering how to get rid of oily skin. If so, welcome to the club! An oily complexion can cause some embarrassment and even discomfort. But don’t worry — we’re here to help! In this blog post, we will discuss how an oily skin type occurs, how to identify if it’s happening on your body, what causes it in the first place and how you can take care of it with natural skin care.
Defining if this is your skin type
There are different skin types, and each one needs to be treated differently. The main skin types are dry, oily and combination. Oily skin is exactly what it sounds like — people with this type of complexion tend to have more oil production than others.
How to identify it
Identifying if you have oily skin is not complicated, it can easily be spotted in just a few minutes; if your skin appears shiny or has a greasy look, you likely have oily skin. However this skin type can also come with more that just a shiny appearance and could bring more prone to suffer from different skin conditions such as:
- Blemishes
- Blackheads
- Whiteheads
- Clogged pores (pimples, acne)
- Dark spots/age spots (hyperpigmentation)
What is oily skin and what causes it?
Sebum, also known as sebaceous oil, is a secretion of sebaceous glands. These sebaceous glands are located in the skin and can be found everywhere; the sebum is then secreted into the hair follicles and onto the skin.
Sebum production is a completely natural process that protects our skin from losing too much moisture and it also helps with waterproofing our skin; sebum is a great natural moisturizer.
However in some people, sebaceous glands are larger in size and therefore, increase sebum production. When sebaceous glands produce excess oil, it does not get released onto the skin in a balanced manner; thus sebum can accumulate in the hair follicles, which can create problems in itself. When sebum gets trapped inside of the pores it then becomes mixed with dead skin cells and dirt. This sebum and dead skin cell blend is what causes blemishes, blackheads, whiteheads (comedones), clogged pores (pimples, acne), and dark spots (hyper pigmentation).
Although sebum production is a natural process that helps protect our skin from dryness, when is produced in excess can also be the reason behind clog pores. It does not necessarily mean that you will develop acne or blemishes (although it is more likely), sebum production can also lead to excess oil on your complexion which in turn makes the skin appear shiny.
Why only my face looks shiny?
Sebaceous glands are distributed in our body. However, there are zones where the amount of these is increased, such as in the T-zone (forehead, nose and chin) where we can locate more than 900 glands per cm², and other zones like the forearm for example, where we locate less than 50 glads per cm² or our palms of hands are feet where sebaceous glands are inexistent.
The parts of the body where we can find a larger amount of oil are: face, ears, scalp and upper body trunk.
Why am I producing excess oil?
Oily skin is more a skin type which you are born with. Studies suggest, that people with oily skin have more sebaceous glands per cm2, and these have also a larger size which also leads to a larger size of pores. However, even though these are genetic conditions, there are additional factors that can influence the increase in sebum production:
Age: During puberty, both the androgen system and endocrine system, stimulate the sebaceous glands accelerating its activity which lead to an increase in sebum production.
Diet: When we eat, some fatty acids go from our bloodstream directly to the sebaceous cells bringing lipid material to these. It has been demonstrated that high glycemic levels in blood derived from the intake of food based in carbs and sugar, impact the way that these cells process the lipids. On the other hand, sugar increases the hormonal activity which stimulates sebaceous glands. Therefore, the food we eat may have a significant impact on sebum production.
Hormones: people with hormonal imbalances, can experience an increase of sebum production during live, which can increase in specific periods like menstrual cycles.
Medications: certain medications such as steroids and contraceptives tend to have an effect in the oil production derived of hormonal impacts.
Weather: Despite the reason why has not been clarified, studies have shown that hot climates have an increase in sebum production. It is believed that for each 1 Celsius degree of increase in environment temperature, there can be an increase of 10% in sebum production.
Ethnicity and Gender: It is not scientific evidence of whether ethnicity or gender have an impact in oily skin, however, some studies have shown that men produce more sebum than women, and that black people can have larger sebaceous glands than Asiatic people.
Now that we have identified the factors involved in excess oil production, it is important to remember that people with oily skin should not try to dry out their skin without speaking with a dermatologist. Dry skin is not healthy either, it is very important to find a good balance between hydrated and oily skin.
What skin conditions can derive from oily skin?
So, we know what causes your skin to be oily, now it is important to learn about some skin conditions that are most common in people with oily skin:
- Acne: people with oily skin tend to have excess sebum production, and this causes clogged pores. When the oil gets trapped inside of the pores, it mixes with dead skin and dirt. This mixture is what causes the formation of blemishes such as blackheads (comedones) and pimples. If you want to know more about acne visit our blog on the topic here
- Hyperpigmentation: people that have an oily are more likely to have their melanin production affected. The excess sebum can block the pore, which in turn makes it difficult for melanin to escape; this will then cause the production of excess pigmentation.
- Sebaceous Hyperplasia: people with an oily skin tend to have excess oil production which can then cause an enlargement of the sebaceous glands. This condition is most common in people who are middle aged.
How to establish a correct skincare routine for oily skin?
When it comes to take care of oily skin, the main question that probably come to your mind is:
Can I get rid of oily skin?
One of the main «home remedies» that is mistakenly used is to wash your face very often, thinking that it may help reduce greasy or shiny. However, experiments which applied constant facial cleaning for a day, noticed that the sebum delivered to the skin surface increased.
It’s important to find the best solution for your oily complexion. For this, we prepared some steps you can follow:
Step 1. Two steps cleansing process
The cleansing process is one of the most important steps of the routine as can reduce much sebum of the surface preventing it from clog your pores. The two steps cleansing process is for me a MUST for oily and acne prone skin.
- Oil Cleanser. This step starts by putting oil in your dry hand, and massage your dry face with it for two minutes. Rinse off with warm water
- Water based cleanser. After the use of oil, use a water based cleanser with gentle foaming, to make sure all excess sebum and dirt is removed.
Some tips to chose your cleansers:
- For the oil cleanser get an «oil to milk» or «gel to milk» type, as these have been mixed with a surfactant that allows to remove the oil in a gentle way without leave traces that can clog your pores.
- You should use pH friendly cleansers (5.5 to 6) to keep the acidity of your skin. This can avoid the proliferation of microorganisms that can lead to acne.
- Toner is not really need in your routine as these are use only if the cleanser is alkaline (pH above 7).
- If you have acne prone skin, then your cleanser should have BHAs (salicylic acid) for gentle exfoliation
- Make the two steps at morning and night. It’s not necessary to wash your face more than that
Step 2. Hydrate
Independently of your skin type, keeping the water level of your skin is absolutely important if you want to keep your face healthy. Sometimes we think that because we have oily skin, we should use strong astringents or other products that seek to dry your skin on purpose. However, this only leads to dehydration and a degradation of the capacity of your skin to defend itself from external threats.
After cleanse, you should provide your skin with humectants and moisturizing agents that keep water in balance. Below the type of products you will find in the market:
- Hydrating Serum. Many serums are oil based, but you should chose a water based serum. It can have oil but in minimum proportion which you can identify if oils are listed at the end of the label. Ingredients like hyaluronic acid or aloe vera are really appreciated by your skin type
- Hydrating Gel. This presentation is great for oily skin since it is easily absorbed. However, you don’t need to avoid oils for ever are these are great food for your skin.
- Moisturizing Cream. The right moisturizer for oily skin should be light and with a small proportion of oils
Below some tips when you chose the right hydrating product for you:
- A moisturizer with salicylic acid could work well for oily skin if you experience some break outs
- In cold climates is important to use a myst during the day to increase hydration
- I am not sure it works, but some people recommend using blotting papers. These are thin sheets of paper that soak up the excess oil from your skin. According to science, your sebum will appear again but if you feel so, you should give a try
- If you chose products which contain oil, it is important to avoid comedogenic oils (here you find a link of comedogenic index). Right oils for your skin type are those with 0 or 1 in the scale.
Step 3. Exfoliate
Exfoliating your skin is a great way to get rid of excess of sebum and dead cells. However, you need to make sure that you control the amount of exfoliation since too much can irritate the skin needlessly. For best results, we recommend that you exfoliate about once or maximum twice a week with a gentle scrub like jojoba beads or orange peel.
If you want to know more about the benefits of exfoliation and how to exfoliate properly, then check our blog on this topic here.
Complementing your exfoliation routine with a clay facial mask can improve your results.
Step 4. Protect your skin
Exposure to sun can also be misunderstood by many as a way to reduce sebum production. However, the feeling of less sebum in face after a tan, is just temporary and is followed by skin dehydration.
Inadequate exposure to sun can diminish the barrier function and turn oily skin into acne prone skin. It also can increase the production of melasma (brown spots). That is why you should use sunscreen of at least SPF 30 everyday.
Regarding how to chose a sunscreen, I will go deep on that today, but I promise to dedicate a blog post only for that in the near future. Just as an advance, I prefer physical sunscreens instead of chemical sunscreens.
Preventing and treating oily skin can be difficult, but it’s not impossible. By making a few simple changes to your daily routine, you may find that your face will recover the glow looking less greasy. I hope you enjoyed this blog post. If you want to learn more, or just have questions, please let me know in the comments below! Thank you for reading and make sure to subscribe so that my next posts will show up on your inbox.
Subscribe to Our Blog!
About Me
Beatriz Morales
Have you ever felt like your skin is just too shiny and greasy? You may be wondering how to get rid of oily skin. If so, welcome to the club! An oily complexion can cause some embarrassment and even discomfort. But don’t worry — we’re here to help! In this blog post, we will discuss how an oily skin type occurs, how to identify if it’s happening on your body, what causes it in the first place and how you can take care of it with natural skin care.
Defining if this is your skin type
There are different skin types, and each one needs to be treated differently. The main skin types are dry, oily and combination. Oily skin is exactly what it sounds like — people with this type of complexion tend to have more oil production than others.
How to identify it
Identifying if you have oily skin is not complicated, it can easily be spotted in just a few minutes; if your skin appears shiny or has a greasy look, you likely have oily skin. However this skin type can also come with more that just a shiny appearance and could bring more prone to suffer from different skin conditions such as:
- Blemishes
- Blackheads
- Whiteheads
- Clogged pores (pimples, acne)
- Dark spots/age spots (hyperpigmentation)
What is oily skin and what causes it?
Sebum, also known as sebaceous oil, is a secretion of sebaceous glands. These sebaceous glands are located in the skin and can be found everywhere; the sebum is then secreted into the hair follicles and onto the skin.
Sebum production is a completely natural process that protects our skin from losing too much moisture and it also helps with waterproofing our skin; sebum is a great natural moisturizer.
However in some people, sebaceous glands are larger in size and therefore, increase sebum production. When sebaceous glands produce excess oil, it does not get released onto the skin in a balanced manner; thus sebum can accumulate in the hair follicles, which can create problems in itself. When sebum gets trapped inside of the pores it then becomes mixed with dead skin cells and dirt. This sebum and dead skin cell blend is what causes blemishes, blackheads, whiteheads (comedones), clogged pores (pimples, acne), and dark spots (hyper pigmentation).
Although sebum production is a natural process that helps protect our skin from dryness, when is produced in excess can also be the reason behind clog pores. It does not necessarily mean that you will develop acne or blemishes (although it is more likely), sebum production can also lead to excess oil on your complexion which in turn makes the skin appear shiny.
Why only my face looks shiny?
Sebaceous glands are distributed in our body. However, there are zones where the amount of these is increased, such as in the T-zone (forehead, nose and chin) where we can locate more than 900 glands per cm², and other zones like the forearm for example, where we locate less than 50 glads per cm² or our palms of hands are feet where sebaceous glands are inexistent.
The parts of the body where we can find a larger amount of oil are: face, ears, scalp and upper body trunk.
Why am I producing excess oil?
Oily skin is more a skin type which you are born with. Studies suggest, that people with oily skin have more sebaceous glands per cm2, and these have also a larger size which also leads to a larger size of pores. However, even though these are genetic conditions, there are additional factors that can influence the increase in sebum production:
Age: During puberty, both the androgen system and endocrine system, stimulate the sebaceous glands accelerating its activity which lead to an increase in sebum production.
Diet: When we eat, some fatty acids go from our bloodstream directly to the sebaceous cells bringing lipid material to these. It has been demonstrated that high glycemic levels in blood derived from the intake of food based in carbs and sugar, impact the way that these cells process the lipids. On the other hand, sugar increases the hormonal activity which stimulates sebaceous glands. Therefore, the food we eat may have a significant impact on sebum production.
Hormones: people with hormonal imbalances, can experience an increase of sebum production during live, which can increase in specific periods like menstrual cycles.
Medications: certain medications such as steroids and contraceptives tend to have an effect in the oil production derived of hormonal impacts.
Weather: Despite the reason why has not been clarified, studies have shown that hot climates have an increase in sebum production. It is believed that for each 1 Celsius degree of increase in environment temperature, there can be an increase of 10% in sebum production.
Ethnicity and Gender: It is not scientific evidence of whether ethnicity or gender have an impact in oily skin, however, some studies have shown that men produce more sebum than women, and that black people can have larger sebaceous glands than Asiatic people.
Now that we have identified the factors involved in excess oil production, it is important to remember that people with oily skin should not try to dry out their skin without speaking with a dermatologist. Dry skin is not healthy either, it is very important to find a good balance between hydrated and oily skin.
What skin conditions can derive from oily skin?
So, we know what causes your skin to be oily, now it is important to learn about some skin conditions that are most common in people with oily skin:
- Acne: people with oily skin tend to have excess sebum production, and this causes clogged pores. When the oil gets trapped inside of the pores, it mixes with dead skin and dirt. This mixture is what causes the formation of blemishes such as blackheads (comedones) and pimples. If you want to know more about acne visit our blog on the topic here
- Hyperpigmentation: people that have an oily are more likely to have their melanin production affected. The excess sebum can block the pore, which in turn makes it difficult for melanin to escape; this will then cause the production of excess pigmentation.
- Sebaceous Hyperplasia: people with an oily skin tend to have excess oil production which can then cause an enlargement of the sebaceous glands. This condition is most common in people who are middle aged.
How to establish a correct skincare routine for oily skin?
When it comes to take care of oily skin, the main question that probably come to your mind is:
Can I get rid of oily skin?
One of the main «home remedies» that is mistakenly used is to wash your face very often, thinking that it may help reduce greasy or shiny. However, experiments which applied constant facial cleaning for a day, noticed that the sebum delivered to the skin surface increased.
It’s important to find the best solution for your oily complexion. For this, we prepared some steps you can follow:
Step 1. Two steps cleansing process
The cleansing process is one of the most important steps of the routine as can reduce much sebum of the surface preventing it from clog your pores. The two steps cleansing process is for me a MUST for oily and acne prone skin.
- Oil Cleanser. This step starts by putting oil in your dry hand, and massage your dry face with it for two minutes. Rinse off with warm water
- Water based cleanser. After the use of oil, use a water based cleanser with gentle foaming, to make sure all excess sebum and dirt is removed.
Some tips to chose your cleansers:
- For the oil cleanser get an «oil to milk» or «gel to milk» type, as these have been mixed with a surfactant that allows to remove the oil in a gentle way without leave traces that can clog your pores.
- You should use pH friendly cleansers (5.5 to 6) to keep the acidity of your skin. This can avoid the proliferation of microorganisms that can lead to acne.
- Toner is not really need in your routine as these are use only if the cleanser is alkaline (pH above 7).
- If you have acne prone skin, then your cleanser should have BHAs (salicylic acid) for gentle exfoliation
- Make the two steps at morning and night. It’s not necessary to wash your face more than that
Step 2. Hydrate
Independently of your skin type, keeping the water level of your skin is absolutely important if you want to keep your face healthy. Sometimes we think that because we have oily skin, we should use strong astringents or other products that seek to dry your skin on purpose. However, this only leads to dehydration and a degradation of the capacity of your skin to defend itself from external threats.
After cleanse, you should provide your skin with humectants and moisturizing agents that keep water in balance. Below the type of products you will find in the market:
- Hydrating Serum. Many serums are oil based, but you should chose a water based serum. It can have oil but in minimum proportion which you can identify if oils are listed at the end of the label. Ingredients like hyaluronic acid or aloe vera are really appreciated by your skin type
- Hydrating Gel. This presentation is great for oily skin since it is easily absorbed. However, you don’t need to avoid oils for ever are these are great food for your skin.
- Moisturizing Cream. The right moisturizer for oily skin should be light and with a small proportion of oils
Below some tips when you chose the right hydrating product for you:
- A moisturizer with salicylic acid could work well for oily skin if you experience some break outs
- In cold climates is important to use a myst during the day to increase hydration
- I am not sure it works, but some people recommend using blotting papers. These are thin sheets of paper that soak up the excess oil from your skin. According to science, your sebum will appear again but if you feel so, you should give a try
- If you chose products which contain oil, it is important to avoid comedogenic oils (here you find a link of comedogenic index). Right oils for your skin type are those with 0 or 1 in the scale.
Step 3. Exfoliate
Exfoliating your skin is a great way to get rid of excess of sebum and dead cells. However, you need to make sure that you control the amount of exfoliation since too much can irritate the skin needlessly. For best results, we recommend that you exfoliate about once or maximum twice a week with a gentle scrub like jojoba beads or orange peel.
If you want to know more about the benefits of exfoliation and how to exfoliate properly, then check our blog on this topic here.
Complementing your exfoliation routine with a clay facial mask can improve your results.
Step 4. Protect your skin
Exposure to sun can also be misunderstood by many as a way to reduce sebum production. However, the feeling of less sebum in face after a tan, is just temporary and is followed by skin dehydration.
Inadequate exposure to sun can diminish the barrier function and turn oily skin into acne prone skin. It also can increase the production of melasma (brown spots). That is why you should use sunscreen of at least SPF 30 everyday.
Regarding how to chose a sunscreen, I will go deep on that today, but I promise to dedicate a blog post only for that in the near future. Just as an advance, I prefer physical sunscreens instead of chemical sunscreens.
Preventing and treating oily skin can be difficult, but it’s not impossible. By making a few simple changes to your daily routine, you may find that your face will recover the glow looking less greasy. I hope you enjoyed this blog post. If you want to learn more, or just have questions, please let me know in the comments below! Thank you for reading and make sure to subscribe so that my next posts will show up on your inbox.
Subscribe to Our Blog!
About Me
