Causes of oily skin
There are many reasons why skin becomes unbalanced and oily. Sebum production increases with oily skin, which makes the skin look shiny, feel greasy, and can lead to impurities. Here are a few causes:
- Internal causes: unhealthy diet, your genes (unfortunately), stress, medication, and hormones.
- External causes: weather conditions and your choice of cosmetics.
Many of these causes can be influenced by you. A healthy diet, rest, and the right skincare for oily skin. We can help you with the latter.
Skincare mistakes that can lead to oily skin
Oily skin is often treated with aggressive products. Aggressive cleansers, which often contain drying alcohol. Unfortunately, this only makes it worse, as it causes sebum production to ramp up even more, resulting in even oilier skin with even more impurities.
Solutions for oily skincare
Oily skin is skin that is out of balance. By producing sebum, the skin is trying to restore this balance. To tackle oily skin, it is therefore important to ensure a healthy (pH) skin balance. Here are some tips:
- Use a mild facial cleanser. Banish all aggressive products that dry out the skin, because this only makes the skin produce more sebum. By using a mild, natural cleanser, you clean the skin without activating sebum production. It may seem like your skin is still a bit oily at first, but you are actually working towards a healthy skin balance.
- Do not use scrubs. We read this everywhere, but scrubs can damage the skin and affect the skin barrier. This results in the skin being damaged and unbalanced, or drying out and reverting to sebum production. It is important to remove dead skin cells, however. This can be done with a mild exfoliant such as our konjac sponge.
- Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. People with oily skin are afraid to moisturize. But moisturizing with hydrating substances restores the skin's balance and reduces sebum production.
- Do not be afraid of oil. Many oils (such as jojoba oil) actually contribute to a better skin balance and allow sebum production to settle down. Oil is very effective at fighting oil. Just be careful with non-comedogenic oils; these can clog the skin if used in excess.
- Try the active ingredient niacinamide (vitamin B3), an active and natural ingredient that regulates sebum production. You can find niacinamide, for example, in our Protective Sunscreen SPF30. In addition, the SMPL sunscreen contains grapeseed oil: an oil that is very suitable for oilier skin.
- Use natural skincare. Synthetic ingredients throw the skin off balance, are often drying, and provide only short-term satisfaction. That does nothing for your skin. Choose skincare that truly does something for your skin, works with your skin, and contributes to a healthy balance.