Oily skin is characterized by extreme shine and thickness of the skin accompanied by dullness, open pores, pimples and scars or blemishes.
The excessive oiliness of the skin has been attributed to the highly active sebaceous glands which secrete an excessive amount of sebum.
This type of skin is more prone to acne breakouts as it is directly linked with excessive sebum accumulation.
Though in the majority of times, oily skin is hereditary, there are other causes which may contribute towards making your skin oilier over time.
What Causes Oily Skin?
Some of the causes that contribute to the oiliness of the skin are enumerated below:
Diet
Diet tends to influence our lives in a lot of ways.
If our diet is rich in high glycemic content, it may trigger the sebaceous glands to produce excessive sebum which will eventually make your skin oily.
It is therefore important that you exclude high glycemic content from your daily diet.
Use of Cosmetic products
Using a cosmetic product that is not oil-free and non-comedogenic may make your skin oily.
It is also important that you take off your make up every day before going to bed.
Not doing so can cause an accumulation of chemicals and dirt which will further make the oiliness worse.
Weather conditions
Weather conditions tend to influence the texture and makeup of your skin.
People living in conditions of extreme humidity tend to sweat a lot which makes their skin oilier than people who live in drier weather conditions.
Stress
During times of stress, the stress hormones that are released tend to stimulate the sebaceous glands to produce more sebum.
How Oily Skin Causes Acne Breakouts
The oil that you experience on the surface of your skin is the sebum that is produced by the sebaceous glands.
This sebum has the important function of moisturizing your skin as well as removing the dead skin cells from the surface of the skin while at the same time providing a protective layer to your skin.
However, when this sebum is produced in excessive amounts because of the rise in the level of androgen in our bodies, it starts causing troubles.
The excessive sebum that is produced, because of the accumulation of dead skin cells on the surface of the skin, is not able to secrete out of the pores and tend to accumulate in the pores creating an environment congenial to the growth of microbes.
This accumulation then culminates into whiteheads, blackheads, and pimples which are the primary characteristic of acne eruptions.
How to Prevent Oily Skin?
Oily skin tends to cause a lot of skin problems which includes acne and excessive sweating among other things.
Enumerated below are ways in which oily skin can be avoided or prevented:
Wash your Face as a Routine
You must wash your face daily at least twice advisably with a sensitive and fragrance-free soap or face wash.
This will keep your skin clear of dirt and sweat and thereby help in unclogging the pores of your skin.
However, you must not wash your face excessively throughout the day or it may make your skin dry instigating the sebaceous gland to produce more oil in order to keep your skin moisturized.
Therefore you must be careful regarding these things while cleaning your face.
Do not over Moisturize
For people with oily skin, applying a moisturizer as a routine activity is not a very highly recommended move.
For one reason, your skin is already taking care of moisturizing itself by producing sebum which is nothing but a natural lubricant for your skin.
However, if you must still use a moisturizer, go for the one which is specifically meant for oily skin and is non-comedogenic.
Exfoliate
Exfoliation is a good way of removing oil from your skin.
However, you must be sensitive with exfoliation and should not rub the skin too harshly.
This will help not only in removing the blackheads and whiteheads from your skin but will also remove the excessive oil produced, along with removing the dead skin cells.
Thus exfoliation tends to benefit the skin in more ways than one.
A natural ingredient that can be used for exfoliation is baking soda. Vinegar is also a good option but it must be used in a diluted form.
Scrubbing
Scrubbing can help in removing the excess oil from the surface of your skin.
It must be done in a mild manner with a light circular movement of your fingertips for approximately 15 minutes and should then be washed off with lukewarm water.
Just a word of caution scrubbing if you already have acne breakout is strict no!
Manage your hair properly
If you have oily hair, it might make your skin oily too if it keeps coming in continuous contact with the face.
It is therefore important that you keep your hair tied up if you are having skin issues.
Milk of magnesium
Using milk of magnesium is a good idea to dry out the oil from your skin without devoiding it of its gentleness and moisture.
It is easily available at any drug store and can directly be applied on the face.
Home Remedies for Oily Skin
There are various other home remedies which can be used to do away with oily skin when used in forms of facial masks and scrub.
Some such remedies are enumerated below:
Cornstarch and salt paste
This simply requires mixing 2 to 3 spoons of cornstarch to lukewarm water and you can even add salt to it, in order to make it into a smooth paste.
This can then be applied on your face in the form of a mask for approximately 15 minutes and then washed off with water.
Cornstarch tends to dry up oily patches while salt also has a drying effect and squeezes out the oil from under your skin
Apple and oatmeal pack
This requires mixing half a cup of mashed apple with half a cup of cooked oatmeal along with warm water in order to make a smooth paste.
The application of this paste on your face will absorb the excess oil and give you a fresh look.
Egg yolk
The egg yolk seems to have a significant drying effect on the skin without making it devoid of moisture.
All you need to do is to take a piece of cloth or maybe a cotton dab and apply the egg on your face with its help.
Citrus fruit
Citrus fruit has also been known to have a drying effect on your skin.
Using it in face masks or simply applying it to your face with the help of cotton balls will help in drying the excess oil from your face.
Aloe vera
Aloe vera also seems to be a good idea when t comes to dealing with oily skin type.
Not only does aloe vera clear your blocked skin pores but also absorbs the excess oil from your face.
Summary
Oily skin in itself has emerged as a skin problem for many a people across the globe. While for some it is hereditary, for others it develops over time.
However, the above-mentioned ways will help in dealing with oily skin itself as well as the problems associated with oily skin.
Oily skin shall no more be a problem for life.