That shine and greasiness you feel on the face after some time of cleansing – it’s the indication of oily skin. Though oily skin brings a natural radiance to your face, excess oil can lead to clogged pores and acne breakouts. Oily skin men have a time of trouble dealing with their skin.

However, oily skin is not a bad skin type. Essentially it is just a skin type that you need to manage carefully and correctly. Maintaining skin well is just about balance. Simply put, you have to deal with the oily skin right, so it does not harm your appearance.

So, now let’s know what is oily skin, what leads to oily skin in men and men’s skincare routine for oily skin.

What is Oily Skin?

Oily, combination, dry or sensitive skin – the only way to define which of these is your skin type depends on how much oil the skin of your face produces. Though skin needs a specific amount of natural oils to remain soft and moisturized, it is oily skin that implies the production of excess oil on the face.

Since oily skin type produces excess oil, it leaves your skin with a greasy and shiny appearance. If you are wondering what leads to excess oil production in the skin, then large-sized sebaceous glands are to be blamed.

Aside from palm and soles, sebaceous glands are present everywhere in your skin. Sebaceous glands produce sebum from your birth onwards and proceed to increase as you age. This sebum (oil), in reality, protect your skin and hair from losing moisture. But, excess sebum results in men having oily skin, acne breakouts and clogged pores.

What Causes Oily Skin?

Oily skin can occur due to several factors, and some of them are:

Hereditary: If your family member has got oily skin, then chances are you might have inherited oily skin from them. As discussed earlier, you would have overactive sebaceous glands, thus leading to oily skin and hair in men.

Diet: What you eat is what your body displays. If you eat fried foods, milk, butter, cheese, fast foods, desserts etc., in excess compared to vegetables and healthy foods, this could be your reason for having oily skin.

DHT: One of the major contributors to men’s oily skin, leading to excess oil is Dihydrotestosterone (DHT). This happens because your testosterone changes to DHT hormone, which forces your sebaceous glands to produce more sebum.

UV Rays: Exposure to UV rays can lead to ageing, fine lines, discolouration and an increased risk of skin cancer. However, except that, UV rays also increase the oil production in your skin. Sun damage makes your skin dry, but that is temporary, as it initiates an inflammatory response.

Weather: Climate change has instant effects on the skin. Plus, if you have got oily skin, then you will notice the changes quickly. People who stay in hot weather may have oily skin. Higher humidity levels boost the level of oil production in your skin.

Pollution: The pollution and car exhaust fumes can invite clogged pores. While everyone knows it’s difficult to avoid pollution in this fast-paced lifestyle, the pollution can cause turmoil in your sebum by changing their composition.

Sleep: Sleep is essential to your skin and overall wellbeing. A good oily skincare routine for men includes sleeping since sleeplessness contributes to oily skin negatively. Sleeping less increases insulin in the body, which is considered to influence the sebum.

The Good and Bad of Having it:

You must have thought that oily skin comes with no benefits, but that is not true. Men with oily skin possess a thicker skin that survives against the ageing process quite efficiently. Also, natural oil works to protect and lubricate so they shield the skin. While men having dry skin or sensitive skin get age spots and wrinkles when getting old, men with oily skin would look youthful. Besides that, the oily skin issues begin to recede once you reach your mid-thirties because of the slowing production of oil in the skin.

Coming to the dark side, dealing with oily skin becomes pretty troublesome when it gives your face acne breakouts, unwanted shine, greasiness or dark spots, and you would find such issues getting triggered in summers specifically. Also, when oily skin results in severe acne breakouts and dark spots, it can break your self-confidence and make it difficult to deal with. Even though the biggest drawback of oily skin in men is clogged pores, you can treat them with a good oily skincare regimen.

So, what would be a good oily skincare routine for men?

Best Men’s Skincare Routine:

Cleanse Your Face

For healthy and bright skin, you need to cleanse your face with a facial cleanser twice a day – if possible, once in the morning and once at night. The first and most essential step for men’s oily skincare routine is cleansing. Cleansing will not just remove grime, build-up oil and dirt, but it will also prevent clogging of pores, thus preventing acne breakouts.

The best approach to cleanse your face is: Wash it twice a day, only if you feel your face has become oily, wash it in the afternoon. Plus, do not wash it with hot water; go for lukewarm or cold water.

To get good results in the oily face in men – pick a face wash based on your skin type, including ingredients like charcoal or volcanic sand that works well to remove excess oil, fight and prevent acne, regenerate cells, purify and detoxify skin. This is why The Men’s Lab Volcanic Face Wash for men with oily skin contains volcanic sand as the main ingredient and brings the best results.

Exfoliate Often

Exfoliation brings a new glow and vitality to the skin. Since exfoliation revives and rejuvenates the skin, it should be part of men’s oily skincare routine. The best way to exfoliate the skin is using a face scrub. Face scrub removes dead skin cells, oil & bacteria build-up, dirt, prevents acne, unclog pores and does more.

Since people with oily skin are more prone to acne and blemishes, face scrub works perfectly fine to give your skin a clean, healthy and bright look.

You should not exfoliate your skin more than once or twice a week because over-exfoliation can lead to skin dryness and irritation, which can cause excess oil production. While using a face scrub, make sure you use the one made using natural ingredients and deprived of harmful chemicals. You can also make homemade scrubs using all-natural ingredients like coffee, walnut, oatmeal, coconut oil etc.

Use a Toner

A toner is a skincare product made to balance the pH level of the skin, thereby inhibiting the production of excess oil in the skin. With a toner, dryness would not be an issue in case of over washing of the face. So, along with maintaining pH balance, a toner has a lot more to offer, but for that, you need to buy a naturally-made toner.

For men with oily skin, using a toner presents a bevy of skin benefits – removing impurities, lessening oil build-up, inflammation, shrinking of pores, are to name a few. Thus, including one in your men’s skincare routine for oily skin is essential.

A toner appears to provide skin with a sweet spot of holding excess oil formulation while reviving the skin. You must use a toner after you have washed your face and before you apply moisturizer. You can also use a toner after shaving to soothe your skin. Make sure you check the ingredients list of a toner you are buying since chemical and alcohol-based toners can lead to dryness & irritation.

Moisturization is Must

Many think that men with oily skin do not need a moisturizer. However, every person, irrespective of skin type, needs a moisturizer. Moisturization is another essential you need to adopt in your men’s skincare routine for oily skin. Ideally, you should apply a moisturizer twice a day -once in the morning and once at night and don’t forget to choose the one that suits your skin the best.

Moisturizers work to draw moisture from nature and embrace it inside your skin. However, a thick moisturizer does not go good with oily skin, and men with oily skin face a tough time with such moisturizers. Heavy and thick moisturizers encourage excessive sweating, oil-production and lead to clogged pores.

So, going for a lightweight moisturizer that is either cream-based or water-based is the best. You should choose a face cream for men with oily skin that tackles acne, removes excess oil, protect from damage of UV rays, reduce pigmentation, hydrates the skin and improves skin tone & texture.

Apply a Face Mask

Face masks for oily skin men are excellent to keep excess oil in check, refresh the skin, provide hydration, nourishment & glow, clean the pores, remove bacteria build-up and tone the skin. You can use a face mask once or twice a week to ensure deep cleansing. It is also good to go with clay mask to eliminate excess oil build-up and get an exfoliating effect.

it is also good to use a charcoal enriched face mask for men, as it is classic to remove dead skin cells, reduce blackheads, unclog pores, exfoliate & rejuvenate skin, de-tan, moisturize and provide oil-free skin.

Always remember, your oily skin will not respond to an intensive skincare regimen. So, do not overdo anything. You don’t have to think in a way that washing your face, again and again, would make your skin better or exfoliating every day will give good results. You need to be gentle on your skin, follow the above-stated routine nicely and remember that less is more!