How Sensitising Ingredients in Your Skincare Routine Can Hurt You

We cannot stress this enough: sensitising, harsh, abrasive, and fragrant ingredients are bad for skin—really, really bad. Applying skincare products that contain sensitising ingredients means we’re unknowingly doing our skin a disservice.

Sensitising ingredients can cause visible problems on your face like dry and flaky skin and worsened breakouts, instead of the replenishing and soothing effect you otherwise expected. If you have a sensitive skin type, such ingredients will do more harm than good.

We can help you learn what sensitising ingredients to avoid when selecting your skincare products so that you can regain that beautiful skin you truly deserve. 

Sensitising Ingredients Can Make Oily Skin and Breakouts Worse

Oily, breakout-prone skin is especially susceptible to the effects of sensitising ingredients, one of the biggest reasons for increasingly oily skin. When problem ingredients (see the list below) aggravate the skin’s surface, a chain reaction can occur that makes oily skin worse, possibly triggering more breakouts.

Not treating oily, breakout-prone skin gently can make matters worse. Instead of curbing excess oil and controlling breakouts and clogged pores, the wrong ingredients, be they in sunscreens, face masks and moisturizers for oily skin, can “lead to not only skin that is oilier, but also breakouts, discolouration and scarring”, according to board-certified dermatologist Dr. Corey L. Hartman.

Alcohol (denatured or SD) is always one of the top offenders we see in lots of skincare products, but next in line is fragrance. Surprisingly, fragrance can be sensitising whether it’s natural or synthetic. Essential oils sometimes get a pass at being helpful for the body (e.g. lavender oils for relaxation) but research shows that isn’t always the case for your skin. Applying alcohol and fragrance-free skincare products to your skin is the first step toward the gentle care all skin types—especially oily or breakout-prone—need.

Sensitising Ingredients Can Make Dry Skin Worse

Dry skin is just as susceptible to the effects of sensitising ingredients as any other skin type. The difference is that instead of your skin becoming oilier, it becomes drier, visibly flaky, and can look dehydrated and dull. We’re certain that’s not what anyone wants from their skincare products, “[p]articularly since consistently dry skin over time leads to premature development of “fine lines, wrinkles and sagging skin”, according to Dr. Corey L. Hartman.

Many sensitising ingredients (including denatured alcohol and fragrance mentioned above) quickly dehydrate the skin’s surface, leading to a feeling of tight, drawn skin. With ongoing use, sensitising, drying ingredients can rob the skin’s surface of the replenishing ingredients it needs to stay smooth, supple, and hydrated. If you have dry, flaky, dehydrated skin, switching to non-irritating skincare products can make a visible difference, often overnight “and improve the integrity of the skin barrier to protect the skin going forward”, notes Dr. Corey L. Hartman.

No Matter Your Skin Type, Be Gentle

In order to get and keep the beautiful skin you want, treating your skin gently is the best habit to begin! Doing so maintains a smooth and radiant surface, helps the skin better defend itself from environmental damage, reduces excess surface oil, and can minimise the look of pores.

We know you will see dramatic improvements to your skin simply by avoiding skincare products with problematic ingredients and learning to be gentle. This means not:

• Pulling or tugging at your skin, a bad habit that can hasten the loss of firmness that makes skin (especially around the eyes) look older
• Scrubbing or abrading skin
• Using hot water
• Avoiding anything that makes your skin tingle

It’s also important to seek out skincare products designed to be gentle, even for the most sensitive skin, to incorporate into your daily routine to keep the skin’s microbiome balanced and healthier.

How Can You Get Good Skin? Avoid the Following:

To have good skin, you’d want to avoid the following when shopping for skincare products and using them at home:

• Overly abrasive scrubs (such as those that contain aluminium oxide crystals, walnut shells, fruit pits, or pumice)
• Toners containing known sensitisers denatured or SD alcohol, menthol, peppermint and witch hazel
• Scrub mitts and loofahs
• Facial masks containing fragrant essential oils and polyvinyl alcohol
• Facial cleansing brushes unless the brand offers an ultra-soft brush head for sensitive skin
• Bar soaps and bar cleansers, which are just too drying regardless of the claims
• Any product with a strong, wafting scent, whether the source of the fragrance is natural or synthetic
• Cold or hot water (lukewarm is ideal)
• Steaming or icing the skin
• Picking at skin

Common irritating skincare ingredients to avoid

At Paula’s Choice Singapore, we believe that providing skincare products with effective and skin restoring ingredients is necessary to achieve the beautiful and radiant skin you deserve. To create a more meaningful shopping experience for you, all our products listed online come with a detailed breakdown of the ingredients, including key ones that drive the visible impact you’re after – so you know what you’re applying to your skin. 

Whether you’re looking for a moisturizer for oily skin or skincare solutions for extremely dry, flaky and dehydrated skin, rest assured you’d be able to find what you need.

Shop skincare products online on Paula’s Choice today!

References for this Information

International Journal of Women’s Dermatology, November 2020, pages 304-308