Acne and the Correlation Between Comedogenic Ingredients in Skincare Products

When I first began my training as an Aesthetician in 2011, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I quickly came to realize that the program was mainly focused on massage techniques and how to interact with clients. Although these are both important aspects, I wanted more. I wanted to know the science behind it all. How skin conditions are developed and how the body reacts. I wanted to learn about ingredients and what they were derived from. Over time I learned that it was up to me to explore the deeper areas of aesthetics, and properly educate myself. This passion for knowledge is what helps me be the best Aesthetician I can be.

I love all types of skin care treatments, but the main area I focus on educating myself in is treating acne, which brings us to the main focus of this article today: the correlation between skincare ingredients and acne. Before we jump into that, lets first talk about acne and what it is.

Acne is a skin condition that occurs when your hair follicles become plugged with oil and dead skin cells. When someone is prone to acne their pores clog with dead skin cells much faster than normal. There are two main types of acne: non-inflammatory and inflammatory.

What is non-inflammatory acne? When dead skin cells and oils form a plug inside the pore and do not become inflamed, it can become a whitehead, a non-inflammatory lesion under the skin, also called a closed comedone. This is also known as maturation arrest meaning it has not matured into a blackhead. Another non-inflammatory acne lesion is a blackhead or open comedone. The tip of the plugged follicle darkens as it is exposed to oxygen in the environment.

What is inflammatory acne? As oil and dead skin cells build up they put pressure on the cells surrounding the pore, when P. acnes bacteria is involved, the surrounding skin becomes infected, creating a red bump or pimple. The medical term is an inflammatory papule. There are three other types of inflammatory lesions: a pustule which contains white blood cells and create pus in the pore, a solid dome shaped lesion called a nodule, and cysts which can appear similar to a nodule but contain pus and have a diameter of 5mm or more.

This is a skin condition almost every human being will experience in their lifetime, and almost everyone will recommend a different way to treat it. Hormones, genetics, diet, stress, and medications can all contribute to acne. However, there is a large component I rarely see talked about: skincare ingredients.

We all want to use products that will make our skin better and give it a healthy glow. For acne prone skins that can be a difficult process. Plenty of products falsely labeled non-comedogenic do contain pore clogging ingredients that the average consumer is not aware of.

I personally struggled with closed comedones and blackheads for many years. The Aesthetician I saw in LA taught me about comedogenic ingredients and I have never looked back. I learned how natural oils such as coconut oil and cocoa butter are highly comedogenic. Some Retin-A products, acne creams, and even oilfree products can have pore cloggers.

With this new information I was determined to clear my skin and avoid all pore clogging ingredients. I went through my skincare products, shampoos and conditioners, even toothpaste. If any had comedogenic ingredients I threw them out. Within a month my skin completely cleared up. To this day I might get the occasional comedone, or a friend during that time of the month, but by changing my products I truly changed my skin.

I recommend doing research online to find a thorough list of comedogenic ingredients to avoid. At first the list of ingredients might seem overwhelming. I find that a handful are ingredients you will start to see repeatedly and be able to identify. To start out, you can print the list and use it for reference when looking at skin care products. It may take a little more time when shopping but it could make all the difference in your skin.

Remember that acne does not define you and with or without it you are beautiful. I can only hope that my little slice of information will make the difference in your skin that you have been searching for.

Pore Cloggers

• Isocetyl Alcohol

• Isocetyl Stearate

• Isodecyl Oleate

• Isopropyl Isostearate

• Isopropyl Linolate

• Isopropyl Myristate

• Isopropyl Palmitate

• Isostearyl Isostearate

• Isostearyl Neopentanoate

• Kelp

• Laminaria Digitata Extract

• Laminaria Saccharina Extract (Laminaria Saccharine)

• Laureth-23 and 4

• Lauric Acid

• Mink Oil

• Myristic Acid

• Myristyl Lactate

• Myristyl Myristate

• Octyl Palmitate

• Octyl Stearate

• Oleth-3

• Oleyl Alcohol

• PEG 16 Lanolin

• PEG 200 Dilaurate

• PEG 8 Stearate

• PG Monostearate

• PPG 2 Myristyl Propionate

• Plankton

• Potassium Chloride

• Propylene Glycol Monostearate

• Red Algae

• Seaweed

• Shark Liver Oil (Squalene)

• Shea Butter

• Sodium Laureth Sulfate

• Sodium Lauryl Sulfate

• Solulan 16

• Sorbitan Oleate

• Soybean Oil

• Spirulina

• Steareth 10

• Stearic Acid Tea

• Stearyl Heptanoate

• Sulfated Castor and Jojoba Oil

• Wheat Germ Glyceride and Oil

• Xylene Be Aware

•Natural oils can be some of the worst offenders, like cocoa butter and coconut oil which are found in many “organic” skin care lines.

• Other oils such as jojoba, olive, and lanolin are mildly comedogenic and can be a problem if formulated with other comedogenic ingredients.

•Some prescription products like the cream form of Retin A have pore cloggers. Many over-the-counter acne medications also have poreclogging ingredients.

•“Oil-free” products can be comedogenic

• Acetylated Lanolin

• Acetylated Lanolin Alcohol

• Algae Extract

• Algin • Butyl Stearate

• Carrageenan

• Cetyl Acetate

• Cetearyl Alcohol + Ceteareth 20

• Chondrus Crispus (aka Irish Moss or Carageenan Moss)

• Chlorella

• Coal Tar

• Cocoa Butter

• Coconut Alkanes

• Coconut Butter

• Coconut Oil

• Colloidal Sulfur

• Cotton Awws Oil

• Cotton Seed Oil

• D & C Red # 17, # 21, # 3, # 30,# 36

• Decyl Oleate

• Dioctyl Succinate

• Disodium Monooleamido PEG 2- Sulfosuccinate

• Ethoxylated Lanolin

• Ethylhexyl Palmitate

• Glyceryl Stearate SE

• Glyceryl-3 Diisostearate

• Hexadecyl Alcohol

• Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil

• Polyglyceryl-3 Diisostearate