How to Deal With Overly Oily Skin in Hot Weather
Summer hadn’t even started officially, but many parts of the country were already experiencing high temperatures and intense heat. Hot weather is annoying – and potentially dangerous – for many reasons, and one of the annoying parts is what it does to your skin.
You may be in luck with excellent pores, but for most people, when it gets warm outside, their skin regains its natural glow by producing what appears to be too much oil. But why is this happening, and is there anything we can do about it? Here’s what you need to know.
Why does skin get especially oily in hot weather?
As you already know, our skin can react to different conditions – for example, a sunburn after a long day at the beach or a food allergy rash. But even if you are outside for a short time and are not in the sun, the situation can still change due to the weather.
“In summer, temperatures and humidity rise. These changes stimulate the sweat glands to produce more sweat and the sebaceous glands to produce more sebum, ” board- certified dermatologist Dr. Hadley King told mindbodygreen . “Increased sweat secretion cools the skin through evaporation, and increased oil production helps slow sweat evaporation to prolong the cooling effect.”
How to deal with excess oil
The first thing to remember is that the oil on your face (and other areas of your skin) does serve as a protective barrier. So as much as we want to get rid of all the oil, this is not a good idea. Keeping our oil available but under control is a much better plan. There are several ways to do this:
Wash your face regularly, but not too often.
Once again: don’t overdo it, but make sure you actually take the time to wash your face. Here’s what follows, according to Medical News Today :
- Wash off with warm water and mild soap.
- Avoid soaps with fragrances, moisturizers, or harsh chemicals that can irritate or dry your skin, causing it to react by creating more sebum.
- Avoid washcloths and coarse washcloths, as the extra friction can stimulate the skin to release more oil.
Use a toner after cleansing
You should avoid stinging alcohol-based toners in your teens and instead opt for natural astringents that have witch hazel or tea tree oil as the active ingredient . But toner isn’t for everyone, so if it’s new to you, do a little test first before applying it to your face.
Dry gently
As tempting as it may be to use a towel to give your skin all the benefits of one last oil remover, it’s important to do it carefully. “Stretching the skin with a towel or using a coarse washcloth is not recommended as it can stimulate the skin to produce more sebum,” reads an article in Medical News Today .