Taking care of your skin on a daily basis means taking care of the first barrier of the human body against external aggressions, such as pollution, dust, cold or the sun. This also helps prevent against first visible signs of aging, such as wrinkles. Laurent Pan, alias @secretdepeau on Instagram and co-author of the book Skincare – Objective beautiful skin (ed. Albin Michel) shares her advice and tips for recognizing and taking care of oily skin.
Oily skin, what is it?
Oily skin is caused by an excess of sebum, a mixture of lipids produced by hormonal stimulation of the sebaceous glands present in the dermis. When these sebum factories produce too much, the sebum comes out through the pores and spreads over the skin.
The advantageis that oily skin will tend “better defend themselves and age better, because they will absorb less pollutants“, explains Laurent Pan.
Disadvantage, is that the visible brilliance can be at the origin of complexes. The complexion is dull, blurred, and the pores can become clogged, which promotes the proliferation of pimples.
Why do I have oily skin?
“The causes of oily skin are multiple”, explains Laurent Pan. For him, this may be due to:
- to genetics : indeed, the “type of skin” is transmitted by the genes;
- to sex: men tend to have more sebum than women because they have more sebaceous glands and pores;
- stress;
- on the boil of hormones especially during adolescence: dry skin can vary to oily in adolescence, just as oily skin can become dry.
- at food. “The more oily or dairy-based it is, the more sebum production will be promoted.“, specifies Laurent Pan. Fast sugars are also sebum magnets. Indeed, when you eat industrial foods with a high glycemic level, the sugar level increases quickly in your blood, which will in turn lead to a secretion of insulin to regulate this level.This insulin will then send a message to the skin, generating excess sebum, causing oily skin that will clog pores and create imperfections.
What tips to remedy oily skin?
To degrease your skin, several solutions exist. Starting with food, choosing products containing natural sebum regulators such as:
– Zinc, an essential trace element that reduces the secretion of sebum and limits inflammation, especially in acne-prone skin. Zinc is found in many foods, including seafood (oysters, crab, lobster, etc.), calf’s liver, or foods compatible with a vegetarian and vegan lifestyle such as wheat germ, pumpkin, soy, sesame seeds, cereals…
– Omega 3 present in fatty fish (salmon, tuna…), walnuts, flax seeds or avocado help to fight against inflammation in the various systems of our body, including our largest organ, the skin.
– Finally, bet on green tea : its high tannic acid content reduces skin inflammation in addition to draining toxins from the body. It allows to have a beautiful skin and a body purified of accumulated toxins.
Laurent Pan also advises the use of clay maskand recommends thehydration skin and body. Indeed, drinking 1.5 liters of water a day will eliminate the toxins that cause the generation of sebum.
It is also preferable to avoid oily components (such as certain vegetable oils) in applied cosmetics, and prefer mattifying components such as rice powder for “absorb sebum during the day.“.
Expert tip: how do I know if I have oily skin?For Laurent Pan, there is a very simple trick to know our skin type, with a single accessory: a tissue ! “We take a paper handkerchief that we will separate into two thin sheets. On a skin previously cleaned, place one on the T-zone and another on the cheeks. We let it sit for a few seconds, then we’ll come and observe in the light the fat content present on the paper: more it is transparent, the oilier your skin.” |
Our expert:
Laurent Pan, skincare influencer @secretdepeau.
Co-author Skin care Objective beautiful skin
After several years with a leader in dermocosmetics, he masters the ingredients that are effective on all skin types.
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