People with oily skin have increased sebum production as a result their face becomes shiny a few hours after washing it. enlarged pores, breakouts and acne are common problems faced by oily skin types.

Oily skincare routine

• Wash your face with a cleanser
• Use actives (optional)
• Follow with a serum or moisturiser 
• Apply sunscreen

Each person with oily skin faces some unique issues, for example, some people with oily skin might have pigmentation on their skin while others may not have this instead their skin might be sensitive to certain ingredients while others can tolerate various ingredients in skincare products. In this article, i will recommend products based on specific skin problems that our oily skin faces.

Best cleaners for oily skin types

1. CeraVe Acne Control Cleanser
2. CeraVe Acne Foaming Cleanser
3. CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser
4. Be Minimalist Salicylic + LHA 2% Face Cleanser 
5. SkinCeuticals LHA Cleanser Gel
6. Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash (although some people find this one too drying for their skin)

Oily skin types should use foaming cleansers and cleansers that contain salicylic acid. they should not use harsh products as they may irritate the skin and damage the skin barrier rather they should wash with a non-comedogenic salicylic acid-based cleanser.

Research has shown that an emollient facial cleanser helps in fighting against acne as it does not dry out the skin. People with oily skin won’t benefit from dehydrating their skin. Reducing oil that causes acne and reducing water that gives the skin its volume are two different things.

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Should oily skin types wash their face more often?

No, washing your face too many times is not ideal as it will strip the skin of surface lipids and make our skin dry. And our body produces excess sebum to compensate for the dryness on top of that many facial cleansers contain comedogenic ingredients which further exacerbate the problem. 

Washing our face frequently does not improve acne because the majority of the cleansers only remove surface oils and dirt. they do not affect the sebum in the hair follicles except for cleansers containing salicylic acid, which has been shown to penetrate into the comedones and improve them.

Comedones – open (blackhead) or closed (whitehead) skin pores or hair follicles clogged with oil, dead skin cells and bacteria.

Actives for oily skin

If you have pigmentation or skin blemishes and dark spots on your skin

• Paula’s Choice 10% Azelaic Acid Booster
• The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%

Best moisturiser for oily skin types

1. Krave oat so simple water cream
2. Pyunkang Yul Nutrition Cream
3. Laneige Cream Skin Refiner

Oily skin types generally prefer gel and serum formulations over creams.

For people with combination skin (oily in the T zone), lotions tend to be more preferable because lotions have lower viscosity (thickness/consistency), spread more easily, and are less greasy.

Best serums for oily skin type

1. Cos de Baha ac serum
2. Clinique Smart Clinical Repair™ Wrinkle Correcting Serum

Oily skin types can use serums instead of moisturisers because they feel sticky or greasy to oily skin or if they might cause acne. Serums contain healing ingredients in high concentrations, which results in better penetration of the skin. Serums are thicker in texture so a tiny amount is enough.

How to apply serum?

Use only a few drops and spread them over your face. You can apply moisturiser after serum if you want.

Best sunscreen for oily skin types

Oily skin type  should use gel and foam based sunscreen instead of creams as they may feel greasy and make your face look shiny

1. ISNTREE Hyaluronic Acid Watery Sun Gel
2. SkinCeuticals Sheer Physical UV Defense SPF 50
3. Supergoop! Unseen Sunscreen SPF 40 PA+++

Products for wrinkle prevention

• Paula’s Choice-Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Salicylic Acid Exfoliant
• The Inkey List Retinol Serum (if you are using retinol for the first time try this)

Salicylic acid is lipophilic i.e., it breaks down occlusive lipids on the skin surface and can lead to dryness. Therefore, it’s a good option for individuals with oily skin. Salicyclic acid also improves fine lines, increases skin radiance, and even the skin tone along with helping fight acne.

Retinols, prescription retinoids, vitamin C, and copper peptides have been shown to increase collagen production. salicylic acid also helps in decreasing wrinkles, skin sensitivity and oiliness.

If you don’t have sensitive oily skin then you can try products containing alpha-lipoic acid and dimethylaminoethanol.

moisturizers and serums with antioxidants have been shown to prevent wrinkles and other signs of ageing. Serums often contain a higher percentage of the active ingredients that penetrate better to combat wrinkles.

Powerful antioxidants like green tea, are more concentrated in serums and also stay on your skin longer than when used in cleansers, which rinse off. Antioxidants fight free radicals and prevent ageing. You can take them through your diet. When antioxidants are used consistently both topically through products as well as through diet they greatly help in preventing wrinkles.

Causes of wrinkles

Our skin contains three layers epidermis (top layer), dermis (middle layer) and subcutaneous fat layer (deepest layer). The fat layer and muscle layer below it are too deep to be influenced by topical skincare so most skincare products mostly penetrate the epidermis. The appearance of our skin is affected by all these layers.

The top layer makes our skin smooth and radiant. wrinkles are caused by changes in the lower layer of the skin, the dermis. Unfortunately, many skincare ingredients cannot penetrate far enough into the dermis to affect wrinkles but there are a few exceptions like retinol which you can buy from various skincare brands and retinoids which need prescription help to prevent the formation of wrinkles.

The goal of wrinkle prevention is to stop the loss of collagen, elastin, and hyaluronic acid (HA), these are the three important structural components of our skin that decrease with age and inflammation. Some antiaging products contain these ingredients but since their molecules are too large they cannot topically penetrate our skin. So the hyaluronic acid added to your moisturiser may help hydrate the skin but it does not penetrate and replace lost naturally

Protection from the sun is necessary to prevent wrinkles because Sun exposure accelerates the ageing process by breaking down collagen (its the supporting structure of our skin), breakdown of elastin (it gives skin its resilience and bounce), loss of hyaluronic acid (it holds water and gives skin its volume), damage our DNA it can cause cells to go awry, leading to cancer, Disintegrate the enzymes necessary for the production of important cellular components.

Once the skin structures have broken down it’s harder to put them back so prevention is better than cure. Sun exposure, pollution, and smoking all cause wrinkles