facial oil benefits for oily skin
Whether you have had oily skin for your entire life, or you are realizing a change in your skin as an adult, chances are that you have been convinced to spend a fortune on products to combat oil production. Now, I am here to tell you the exact opposite - that the right kind of oil can be a very, very good thing for your skin! No, we shouldn't all be running around looking like we just bathed ourselves in cooking oil, but we should give some credit to our skin – the largest organ in our body – for knowing when it needs some oil to function properly.
One of the biggest misconceptions about skincare is actually that people with oily or acneic skin should avoid oil. As an esthetician, people always ask, “Can I use oil if I have oily skin?” and my answer is, in most cases, YES!
A Little Bit About Oil
Did you know that we have approximately 900 oil glands per square centimeter of skin? Healthy skin will produce sebum, otherwise known as oil. This is one of its basic functions, which provides a protective layer to our skin. Every pore in our skin has a gland attached to it which is where the oil is produced. Then, the oil travels up the hair follicle to the surface of the skin. When we hit puberty, increased hormone levels signal to the oil glands that they need to produce much more oil. Now as I said before, oil is necessary and not a bad thing. The oil that our skin produces, combined with perspiration provides a protective barrier that helps prevent water loss. Additionally, ongoing research shows that this oil may have antioxidant and antimicrobial properties, which aid in preventing some types of skin inflammation.
What Can I Do to Control Oil Production?
If you truly have an oily skin type, reducing oil production is probably high on your priority list. Most of us will think to use skin care that contains strong, drying ingredients like benzoyl peroxide or sulfur. These ingredients may seem like a quick fix, but in reality, they cause irritation. Guess what your skin does when it is over-dry and irritated? IT PRODUCES MORE OIL! I mentioned before that your skin is very intelligent, and it knows that it needs to protect itself when faced with dryness and irritation. So, what’s the answer? The best solution is to stay consistent with your skin care routine, and use quality, preferably organic ingredients that reduce inflammation including a moisturizer and facial oil! Yes, I said it, FACIAL OIL!
I’m sure at this point many of you think I have lost my mind but bear with me for a second. Have you ever tried to mix oil and water? No mater how much you stir or shake the liquid the oil and water will continue separate. This is the same when using a water-based cleanser on oily skin. Water will never clean away oil! Many of these water-based cleansers and skin care products will add drying, chemical based ingredients to cover up the fact that water will not wash away oil.
One of the most common causes of skin that over-produces oil is when you use a product containing drying ingredients like benzoyl peroxide, for example, over and over. The oil on your face, including the protective layer will be stripped away. This will cause your skin to think it needs to protect itself and your skin will begin to produce even more oil!
One of the many facial oil benefits is that applying the right kind of oil to your face will help repair your skin’s protective barrier and in turn, balance out your oil production.
This is where Cannabis sativa seed oil aka hemp seed oil, bioflavonoids and terpenes come in to play. When hemp seed oil, plant extracts and pure plant oils are combined, they do amazing things for oily skin. Read about BioCannaTM, high’s secret sauce that goes into every product.
While it’s common to assume that you should not moisturize oily skin, this could not be further from the truth. An important next step after you cleanse oil and impurities away is to hydrate, balance and rebuild your skin’s protective barrier. We recommend using a moisturizer or facial oil formulated with hydrating natural ingredients like aloe juice and noncomedogenic oils such as Cannabis sativa (hemp) seed oil. All of these ingredients will allow you to achieve a clean – not stripped - balanced, hydrated and protected skin barrier.
Now, how often should you be doing this? Every. Single. Day. If you have oily or blemish-prone skin, follow these easy 3-step oily skin routines outlined below to balance oil production, repair your skin barrier and help your skin retain hydration:
AM Oily Skincare Routine
- Cleanse your skin with high priority CANNABIS CLEANSING FOAM This is a perfect cleanser for oily skin thanks to aloe juice, Cannabis sativa (hemp) seed oil paired with bioflavonoids and terpenes, which will leave skin clean and hydrated. Make sure to concentrate on your T-zone or other oily areas of your face.
- Apply high eye-Q CANNABIS EYE GEL to your under eyes and eye lids. This eye gel will smooth, cool and hydrate the undereye area with pure plant oils, plant extracts, cucumber and green tea. Pro Tip: to help fade red marks blemishes leave behind, apply a pump of eye gel to the affected area.
- Apply high five CANNABIS FACIAL MOISTURIZER This is a wonderful moisturizer for oily skin. Formulated with 20% Cannabis sativa (hemp) seed oil and an organic aloe juice base, this moisturizer will calm irritation, balance oil production, protect, hydrate and replenish your skin. It is your skin’s daily dose of vitamins A-E along with all twenty-one amino acids. That’s why we say it’s your skin’s daily multivitamin! Oily or blemish-prone skin types should start with a dime-sized amount - a little goes a long way!
PM Oily Skincare Routine
- Cleanse your skin with high priority CLEANSING FOAM. The aloe juice and hemp seed oil combined with bioflavonoids and terpenes will remove oil, impurities and make up to leave your skin clean and hydrated without damaging the skin barrier. It's the perfect cleanser for oily skin!
- Apply high eye-Q EYE GEL to under eyes and eye lids. Pro Tip: to help fade red marks left behind by blemishes (us estheticians call this "post inflammatory hyperpigmentation"), apply a half-pump of eye gel to the affected area.
- Apply high expectations FACIAL OIL or high & bye REFINING OIL to face, neck and décolleté. This is an important step, especially if you have oily skin. With the highest percentage of Cannabis sativa (hemp) seed oil at 32%, just a few drops of this lightweight, quickly absorbing facial oil will balance sebum and offer intensive repair and hydration to all skin types. We normally recommend to apply 2-3 drops of facial oil, but if you feel this is too much for your oily skin, scale it back and apply 1-2 drops.
We recommend following these skincare routines for oily skin consistently, morning and night. By incorporating noncomedogenic facial oils like Cannabis sativa (hemp) seed oil into your skincare routine in the correct amounts, at the right times, you'll be able to achieve healthy, beautiful skin.
Still have more questions? Want personalized expert advice from a licensed esthetician? Send me an email: joanne@highbeauty.com
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