By Christine Preston, certified Holistic Skin Therapist and Founder of MySkinDiscovery.com, a virtual skincare consultancy, blog and shop dedicated to helping you achieve breakthrough skincare results at home.
If you’re experiencing persistent breakouts, have you considered looking at the ingredients in your
makeup and skincare products? Surprisingly, even some natural comedogenic ingredients could
be the culprit.
In this article, you’ll learn:
What is acne cosmetica
Which comedogenic ingredients can cause acne
How to find out if your products are acne-safe
Have you suddenly started breaking out but haven’t changed anything in your makeup or skincare routine? Is it worse on one side? Have you recently been in a hot climate?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may be experiencing acne cosmetica from comedogenic ingredients
found in your products.
What is acne cosmetica?
Acne cosmetica is the presence of rash-like bumps on the face caused by a blockage in the pores
resulting in bacterial growth. You’ll notice redness with little whiteheads in areas that skin care,
hair care and makeup products are applied.
As a certified Skin Therapist, I most often see acne cosmetica in the cheek area of clients who are
using low quality powder or cream blush. However, it can be present in any areas on the face
such as hairline and forehead. I typically confirm more cases of acne cosmetica in the summer
months when heat and humidity is higher and my client’s skin is producing more oil. Low quality
products, comedogenic ingredients or dirty makeup brushes paired with an increased oil
production is simply not a good combination for those who are breakout-prone.
What makes a product comedogenic?
You’ve probably heard or seen “non-comedogenic” skin care products. This is a term used by
some companies to claim that their product won’t create comedones (in other words, clog your
pores and trigger acne).
Although popular, the word non-comedogenic is not regulated, meaning anyone can use it
whether or not the claim is true.
In my skin care practice, I’ve discovered that a product is unfortunately not just the sum of its
parts - ingredient combinations can turn a comedogenic product into a non-comedogenic one.
More importantly, whether a product is comedogenic or not largely depends on your skin! Yes,
your unique skin at this very moment (as your skin is constantly changing).
Therefore, we must consider:
How many comedogenic ingredients are in the product?
How high up on the ingredient list is the ingredient?
How was the ingredient extracted? Was it from a quality source?
Was it refined, hydrogenated or fractionated?
How large are my pores?
How much oil does my skin produce?
The list goes on ...
Please keep the above in mind and use the following list as a guideline only. This is because not
everyone will get acne from the ingredients below. Look at these ingredients as red flags in the
products you use or are looking to purchase to avoid the likelihood of breaking you out if you are
acne-prone.
Comedogenic ingredients that can cause acne:
Acetylated Lanolin
Acetylated Lanolin Alcohol
Algae Extract or Kelp
Algin
Butyl Stearate
Carrageenan
Cetyl Acetate
Cetearyl Alcohol
Ceteareth 20
Chondrus Crispus
Chlorella
Coal Tar
Coconut Alkanes
Coconut Butter
Coconut Oil
Colloidal Sulfur
Cotton Seed Oil
D + C Red #3, 9, 17, 21, 30, 36, 40
Decyl Oleate
Dioctyl Succinate
Disodium Monooleamido
PEG 2-Sulfosuccinate
Ethoxylated Lanolin
Ethylhexyl Palmitate
Glyceryl Stearate SE
Glyceryl-3 Diisostearate
Hexadecyl Alcohol
Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil
Isocetyl Alcohol
Isocetyl Stearate
Isodecyl Oleate
Isopropyl Isostearate
Isopropyl Linolate
Isopropyl Palmitate
Isostearyl Isostearate
Isostearyl Neopentanoate
Laminaria Digitata Extract Laminaria Saccharina Extract
Laureth-4
Laureth-23
Lauric Acid
Mink Oil
Myristic Acid
Myristyl Myristate
Octyl Palmitate
Octyl Stearate
Oleth-3
Oleyl Alcohol
PEG 16 Lanolin
PEG 200 Dilaurate
PEG 8 Stearate
PG Monostearate
PPG 2 Myristyl Propionate
Plankton
Red Algae
Seaweed
Polyglyceryl-3 Diisostearate
Potassium Chloride
Propylene Glycol Monostearate
Squalene from Shark Liver Oil
Shea Butter
Sodium coco sulfate
Sodium Laureth Sulfate
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate
Solulan 16
Sorbitan Oleate
Soybean Oil
Steareth 10
Stearic Acid Tea
Stearyl Heptanoate
Sulfated Castor Oil
Sulfated Jojoba Oil
Syeary Heptanoate
Wheat Germ Oil
Xylene
How to know if a product is acne-safe
The first step to take in determining if a product in question is acne-safe is to review the
ingredient list. Scan for comedogenic ingredients and identify how high up on the list they are.
The higher the ingredient is on the list, the higher concentration it will be in your product.
For example, algae is a common ingredient found in high quality natural cosmetics. If algae is
after the preservatives, it will be less than 1% concentration and therefore is most likely not
causing your breakouts. On the other hand, if coconut oil is one of the first five ingredients on the
list, you should probably avoid this product.
Skin professionals like Skin Discovery have acne-safe products that you can find online to make
skin care shopping easier.
The easiest way to discover if a product is causing your acne is to simply remove the product in
question from your skin care ritual for two weeks. Your skin will tell you if the product is
comedogenic or not.
If you’re unsure which product is causing you to breakout, look at where you are experiencing
acne. Is it on your cheeks? Check the ingredient lists on your blush, foundation, sunscreen and
moisturizer. Start with the one that has more comedogenic ingredients from the list above.
It’s always best practice to take before and after photos so that you can properly determine if a
product is triggering your acne. Take one before you stop using it, after week one and again after
week two. Compare your photos and decide if you should leave it out altogether.
If all else fails, reach out to a certified Skin Therapist who is ingredient savvy, such as myself.
Book a Ritual Review and we’ll get to the bottom of it together.
#cleanbeauty #acne #skindiscovery #skintherapy #holisticskintherapist #myskindiscovery #acnecosmetica #comedogenic #acne #acnetreatment
All posts are intended strictly for educational purposes. It is not intended to make any representations or warranties about the outcome of any product/service.
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