Moisturizing is VERY crucial to skincare. Regardless of skin type, moisturizing is one way to ensure the maintenance of your skin’s moisture barrier. When impaired, skin issues such as acne, dry patches, excessive oil, etc. can all become more prevalent. Why is that? The moisture barrier, or acid mantle, of your skin is the first layer of protection against environmental aggressors and bacteria. When the acid mantle is damaged moisture loss is significant, and bacteria and other pollutants have easier access to penetrate the skin. This can cause dullness, discoloration or even acne responses. Skin can also respond by overproducing oil as the moisture barrier is not healthy enough to maintain its own moisture for your skin.

Whether your skin is dry, combination, or oily. . .please make sure to moisturize! Try to make sure that the moisturizer you choose does not have silicone, alcohol, or fragrance/essential oil (it can be irritating to some people more than others so just be wary). The thicker the moisturizer the more it tends to benefit drier skin. Gel/watery consistencies are good choices for oily skin. Lotions and creams can be beneficial for normal to dry skin. If you have severely dry skin, it may help to lock in your moisturizer with a balm or ointment. If you do not like the shinier appearance these products may produce, try to use the balms and ointments at night only. If you have a combination skin type, try to gauge whether you are more ‘normal and oily’ or ‘dry and oily’ when comparing combination areas. Then, you can choose a lotion versus gel consistency depending on where you fall on the spectrum of normal to dry within your combination type. Lotions may be better for drier combination types, while the lighter weight gels may suit oilier combination types better.

Some great ingredients to look for in moisturizers are ceramides (lipids that aid in barrier formation), panthenol (a provitamin for B5 which helps moisturize and repair skin), hyaluronic acid (sugar molecule naturally occurring in skin promoting moisture and cell function), peptides (repair damaged cells and promote collagen production), and niacinamide (improves texture and balances out oil production). These are ingredients that help heal, maintain, or bring moisture to your skins barrier.

These are some of my personal favorite moisturizers. I listed which skin type might benefit from each. . .

BONAJOUR Green Tea Water Bomb – Oily, normal, and combination skin types.

Protini™ Polypeptide Cream – Oily, normal, and combination skin types.

CeraVe Daily Moisturizing Lotion – Oily, normal, and combination skin types.

Cetaphil Ultra-Healing Lotion with Ceramides – Normal and dry skin types.

CeraVe Moisturizing Cream – Normal and dry skin types.

FAB Ultra Repair Cream – Normal and dry skin types.*

*the FAB has eucalyptus oil in it so be careful if this is something you think may irritate your skin

If you feel like you have super dry skin, try these along with your regular moisturizer. . .

CeraVe Healing Ointment – Very dry skin types.

Cicaplast Baume B5 – Very dry and irritated skin.

*I have tried all of these moisturizers personally and have not had issues or irritation, but please remember to listen to your own skin! If irritation or sensitivity occurs, cease use of the product.

As always, if you have questions, concerns, or wish to inquire about a product you may want to try, please feel free to reach out to me! Great skin is in your future!