Can Over-Moisturizing Cause Breakouts?

If you asked any skin care lover what the most important, bare-essential steps in any routine would be, they’d probably say those steps were:

1. Cleanser

2. SPF

3. Moisturizer

But for some of us, moisturizers may feel like they’re doing more harm than good, especially for those of us with oily skin. It’s led some of us to wonder: can over-moisturizing cause an acne breakout? And if so, how do we prevent it?

As we all know, the skin becomes dry when it loses moisture. Moisture loss can be due to a few factors. Those may include excessively hot showers, the use of harsh, stripping products, and exposure to cold, dry weather. But when the skin becomes dry, what happens next?

Typically, dry skin is not a serious concern on its own. But when it continues to be an issue, it can lead to problems, like cracked skin, redness, peeling, or flaking. It can also lead to scaling, tightness, and (in the long run), advanced aging. However, these issues usually only arise when the dry skin goes unattended.

So, how do we tend to skin when it’s dry? Naturally, we break out the moisturizer! And in such a vast market, there’s never a shortage of choices. But what happens when we over-moisturize? Is too much too much moisture possible? To answer simply, yes.

Your moisturizer should be able to completely absorb into the skin within a few minutes. You shouldn’t have to go through a product in less than a month. If you’re going through moisturizers every other week, there’s a good chance that you’re overusing them.

When we’re constantly replenishing the skin’s moisture, it can send a signal to our skin to ease up on building lipids and proteins, which are crucial for keeping skin elastic and bouncy. But while over-moisturizing gives some individuals “lazy” skin, some may experience the opposite reaction: overactive pores.

More often than not, over-moisturizing can lead to clogged pores. That can lead to whiteheads and blackheads. This is because when we apply any product to the skin, the pores take what they need and absorb it into the dermal layer.

Meanwhile, any moisture that isn’t needed sits on the surface of the skin. That potentially creates a greasy, over-occlusive layer that can attract more dirt and bacteria, which can cause acne. In the case of oily skin types, over-moisturizing may trigger a spike in oil production, leading to an acne breakout.

When we over-moisturize, we can potentially experience dullness in the skin, less bounce, and more breakouts. Does this mean we should avoid moisturizing completely, or is there a best moisturizer for acne?

Moisturizing is an essential part of anyone’s skin care routine. The trick, however, is to find one that works for you and your skin type. We will talk about the best moisturizer for acne in our guide below.

While all skin is prone to fluctuating, we tend to gravitate towards certain skin type categories. Those include dry, normal, combination, and oily/acne-prone. With that in mind, the key is to find a moisturizer formula that works for you and your particular skin type’s needs. If you’re not sure about your skin type, check out our guide here.

Without further ado, let’s dive into the best moisturizer for acne, dry skin, and everything in between.

• Restorative Sea Culture Extra Riche Créme
  For an extra-luxurious moisture boost, those with normal and dry skin will love this nutrient-rich moisturizer. It’s packed with sea minerals, antioxidants, amino acids, vitamins, and other beneficial trace elements for a glowing complexion.

• Super Fruit Cream
  If your skin is extra-dry and you’re seeking a velvety-smooth texture, our Super Fruit Cream is just the thing. Made with antioxidant-rich superfruit oils like avocado, sea buckthorn, and prickly pear, our Super Fruit Cream deeply nourishes the skin and supports healthy moisture levels.

• Intensive Nourishing Balm
  For troubled skin, an intensive boost of moisture can work wonders. That’s why those with dry skin can get a lot out of this rich blend of nourishing butters and oils.

• Super Fruit Balm
  If your skin is both sensitive and dry, it can feel tricky to find a heavy moisturizer that works for you. Luckily, our Super Fruit Balm was designed to deeply moisturize both dry and sensitive skin with shea butter, nourishing seed oils, and antioxidant-rich extracts like acai and goji berry.

• Hydra Drench Cream
  With the help of omega fatty acids and chia seeds, this lightweight, fast-absorbing moisturizer quenches skin like a tall drink of water. As a gel-based formula, this moisturizer works beautifully for combination skin. It helps calm and condition the pores with nopal cactus and sodium PCA.

• Green Tea EGCG Concentrate Cream
  For those looking for a water bomb for the skin and nutrients to boot, our Green Tea EGCG Concentrate Cream is here to load the skin with not only moisture but antioxidants, as well. Green tea and yerba mate flood the skin with antioxidants to help protect it from environmental pollution and free radical damage.

  With its combination of lightweight olive squalane and rich acai butter, this moisturizer creates a happy medium for both normal and combination skin.