If you have ever suffered from moderate breakouts, or worse, acne, you no doubt have heard to avoid ALL the oils. From mineral to petrolatum, oil has gotten a bad rap and with good reason. As if making our skin a minefield wasn’t bad enough, those oils are a petroleum derivative...like gasoline...no thanks. Nevermind the fact that if your skin is already oily, the last thing you want is to add to the slick, causing your makeup to slide off mid-day and generally making you wish blotting papers came in bulk.
So, when someone says “You should try coconut oil, it’s different, I swear!” you are rightfully justified in running in the opposite direction toward the nearest dermatologist. But, hang on a second. Before you scuttle off, give us a chance to at least educate you on why coconut oil is in fact very different.
First, unlike mineral oil or petrolatum, it doesn’t create a barrier on the skin. The thing about skin is, it likes to breathe. When your skin can breathe, it does this great thing it loves to do which is kick off the dead cells (desquamation) to make way for healthy skin. This means pores don’t become clogged and everyone is happy. When barrier oils sit on top of skin, they block this process, suffocating your pores, and laying the foundation for future break outs, usually right before anything important where 5 million pictures are going to be taken.
Coconut oil on the other hand, absorbs into the skin, creates no barrier, and allows the natural process of skin sloughing to occur which leaves pores clearer and less likely to erupt into a date night disaster.
Okay, so great, coconut oil doesn’t clog my pores, but that doesn’t make me want to rush out and try it. What else ya got?
You are understandably skeptical. We totally get it, which is why we have more great news. Coconut oil is naturally antimicrobial, antibacterial, and anti-fungal. If you’ve ever been prescribed topical or oral antibiotics for acne, you know they can help control breakout. The trouble of course is that it’s medicine, which means you have to go to the doctor to get it, which means co-pays, waiting rooms, and time off work...for zits. Not ideal.
With coconut oil, you can use it to remove makeup or as a night or day treatment cream, which aside from your nourishing skin (extra bonus), naturally kills the bacteria that can cause break outs in the first place.
If we haven’t convinced you yet, maybe this will help. Possibly the only thing worse than a face covered in breakouts is one covered in dry skin. So, while things like salicylic acid, Vitamin A (Retin-A), and oral tretinoins (Accutane) are great at drying up excessive oil production, they tend to cause intense dryness, and, while concealer can help cover redness, there is no way to cover up peeling or flaking skin. So, you’ve basically traded one problem for another.
Coconut oil does double duty on this one because it cleanses and moisturizes all at the same time. Hello timesaver! Not to mention face saver. Plus, it’s completely alkaline, which is a fancy word for Ph-balanced, so it won’t over-cleanse skin and cause inflammation.
Look, we know we’re biased and you’re scared to try anything that will disrupt the elaborate scaffolding you have in place to keep acne at bay. All we ask is that you try it, a little at a time, and see the difference. We think you’ll find it may just be the magic bullet you’ve been hoping for.