Men's Skincare - Confused With Men's Combination Skin

Men's Combination Skin

The Confusion About Men's Combination Skin

Combination skin is a common skin type among men. It is frustrating having to deal with both dry and oily skin. The typical characteristics in a men’s combination skin is having an oily T-zone (the area along the center of the forehead and down the nose where most of the active oil glands on the face are located). Those areas of the face have more oil glands than any other part of the face and it is not uncommon that they are oilier and tend to break out more often than other part of the face. Simultaneously, the cheeks and those areas that lack oil glands can become dry and flaky.

Treating combination skin can be tricky and problematic as most men will try to treat it as one combined skin type. Skincare products that are suitable for the oily T-zone won’t help the drier part of the face (cheeks, eyes or jaw areas). Ingredients that are helpful for the dry areas would aggravate the conditions over the oily areas. Usually, different products are needed to tackle the different skin types on your face because different skin types, even on the same face, must be treated differently to truly feel and look better.

Combination skin can be kept balanced if men learn to adjust their skin care routine by using different skincare products on different parts of the face. The objective is to give the oily and drier areas with the right skincare products that concentrate on the precise needs to these skin types.

The basic rule for combination skin, as well as all skin types for men, is to treat skin gently. Using overly-abrasive or irritating skin care products on oilier areas, not only does not correct or improve oiliness in any way, it will only worsen combination skin's dual nature by making dry areas drier and creating a rough, reddened appearance over oily areas.

General Procedure for Men’s Combination Skin

1. Wash your face with a gentle, water-soluble cleanser that’s gel-based or mildly foaming versions.
2. Do not bar soaps or bar cleansers because the ingredients that keep them in their bar form can clog pores, and the cleansing ingredients are always much more drying than a gentle cleanser’s.
3. If you choose to use a toner, which is optional, it can be used all over the face if it does not contain ingredients that make oily areas feel slick or greasy. Water- and glycerin-based toners are great options. Ideally, they should have contain plenty of antioxidants, water-binding agents and cell-communicating ingredients.
4. Sunscreen must be used daily, 365 days a year. It must contain one of these UVA-protecting ingredients, titanium dioxide, zinc oxide, or avobenzone.
5. Exfoliate and renew skin regularly with a beta hydroxy acid (BHA/salicylic acid) product. BHA not only exfoliates the surface of skin, it also exfoliates inside the pore to improve its shape and function.
6. Treat dry areas, including the eye area, with a moisturizer filled with antioxidants, water-binding agents, and ingredients that mimic the structure and function of healthy skin. Frequent use of these state-of-the-art ingredients can eradicate dry skin. Ensure that the product is packaged in an airtight, opaque container to keep the antioxidants stable. Jars are not recommended.
7. If sun damage or wrinkles are present, think about including a tretinoin product, like Retin-A, Renova, among the options available through your dermatologist, to your nightly routine. Tretinoin is a cell-communicating ingredient that can produce normalized cells. These products come in gel-, lotion- or cream-based.

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