It’s that time of the year when the heat is playing havoc with us. It’s sizzling at 44 degrees here! The heat is sapping us of our energies and appetite. Even if the lockdown were to be lifted now, where the hell would we go?!
Summer is an especially challenging time for oily-skinned people. The heat makes us sweat and causes excessive oil production. The face looks greasy and dirty even if you just washed it an hour ago, and skincare/makeup products break us out – that is if at all they stay on our skin for any duration of time.
It will get worse with monsoon. With the rise in humidity, I expect even more oiliness.
So, what are we supposed to do? Glad you asked!
I’ve put together a list of THIRTEEN ways in which you can take good care of your skin through these trying months.
1. Don’t overwash your face
With the skin being oily all the time it’s tempting to wash it more often, just like it’s tempting to not wash it often in winters. But stick to your trusted face wash/cleansing foam and only wash your face properly and thoroughly in the morning and in the night. Unless you have to go out and/or have to put on makeup, which you would also have to take off.
If you feel sweaty, dirty, or itchy at other times, splash your face with plain cool water. You don’t need anything else. Sweating is actually good for the skin so don’t be averse to it.
2. Keep the towels fresh and change pillow cases regularly
Frequently change up the face towels you use, especially if you are also breaking out. The same goes for the pillow case you sleep on. If you can’t change it every night, get a few pieces of silk cloth, lay one flat on the pillow in the night, and throw it in the washer in the morning. As we sleep, our sweat, oil, and bacteria are collected on the cloth overnight. It’s best not to reuse it unwashed. That is one trusted way of keeping the skin fresh and new breakouts at bay. Do this year-round, but more so in summers or at any time when your skin is not feeling good.
3. Keep your hair clean and dandruff-free
Goes without saying! We sweat on the scalp as well and grime collects there. It mixes with the dandruff and the result is… not pretty! Unclean scalp can also lead to breakouts on the forehead. So keep your scalp and hair clean. Wash it as often as you need to. Use a mild shampoo. I’m currently loving Wow Skin Science Apple Cider Vinegar shampoo. It smells heavenly and leaves my hair squeaky clean. I’ll be reviewing it in a separate post on haircare. Whatever shampoo works for you is great.
4. Skin still needs hydration
Summer doesn’t mean you stop using a moisturizer. You may want to switch to a lighter one, however. And you’ve got to get smart about using it, too. In my experience, absolutely any moisturizer will grease me up in this weather and very likely break me out. So what works for me is to mix it with a little bit of a calamine lotion and some prickly heat powder and then apply that to my face. Keep working with your trusted moizturizer.
But find a way to introduce a mild calamine lotion into your skincare routine this season. It’s good for the skin and also mattifies it. I personally love the Calosoft Lotion, but unfortunately it contains parabens, something I’m trying to move away from.) The addition of prickly heat powder, or any powder for that matter, also works at absorbing excess oil and sometimes sweat too. This combination will make your skin look fresh as opposed to stale and run down.
5. Use sunscreen, indoors or outdoors
You know the research on this. Every dermatologist worth his or her salt will ask you to use sunscreen, indoors or outdoors. So wear the sunscreen that has worked for you and apply it as the next layer.
Follow it up with powder as well. Pat the powder in, especially on your T-zone, as opposed to rubbing it in. You need only a little bit. And don’t worry, you won’t end up looking like a white ghost. Very soon it will all blend in nicely with your oil and sweat but the controlling mechanism will remain in place for at least a few hours, unless you are doing something that makes you sweat buckets.
6. If you start breaking out, stop using greasy products
Despite the above if you are breaking out, stop using any products on your face, with the exception of the calamine lotion. Use topical anti-acne creams as suggested by your dermatologist. OTC products such as Benzoyl Peroxide work reliably on new pimples.
Even if you so much as feel a zit coming on, stop the use of moisturizers, face serums, and facial oils. And stay away from makeup entirely.
7. Use essential oils with acne-fighting properties
While it’s important to treat acne, sometimes we get so caught up in oil and acne control that we neglect the quality of the rest of the skin. I recommend sticking to a skincare regimen on a regular basis, regardless of the season.
Stop only if you are breaking out. But when the skin is calm, add acne-fighting essential oils to your night skincare routine so that you keep pimples at bay and also nourish your facial skin.
9. Stay well-hydrated
On top of adequate amounts of water, also consume watery fruits and vegetables on a daily basis. In most cases this would mean seasonal fruits and vegetables. Fruits such as melons, sweet lime, pomegranates, and grapes. Vegetables such as cucumbers, tomatoes (which is technically a fruit), bottle gourd, pumpkin, green leafy vegetables, etc.
We have a wide variety of fruits and vegetables available in India in summer, choose what you like but I recommend keeping your intake varied. Oh yes, and mango! The king of fruits has a host of health benefits, but did you know it’s great for the skin as well?
10. Eat cooling foods if you feel body heat rising
Sometimes excessive body heat can also make us break out. Eat cooling foods to keep the body heat in check. I personally love buttermilk, lemonade, mint sherbet, and coconut water.
11. Rub ice on the face after exfoliation
I hope you are exfoliating regularly. Important as it is, it causes the pores to open, which leads to excessive oil production and pimples. Rub ice on your face to keep the pores tight and shut.
12. Use cooling face packs
It’s best to use homemade face packs. But if you’ve found good ones online, use them regularly. For oil control, plain old multani mitti is the best. Rose water makes me break out so I don’t use it, but if it works for you, great! I’ve also had good results with the Mamaearth Charcoal, Coffee and Clay Face Mask. It brightened my skin but the effects were short-lived. I find that to be the case with most masks. I’ll be doing a separate post on some of my favourite summer facemasks.
13. Use makeup minimally and take it off soon as you can
It’s best not to use makeup at the peak of the heat. Your skin needs to breathe. It also will sweat, which is good and you shouldn’t let anything come in the way of it.
But if you must use makeup, keep it minimal and only for as long as you need it. Check out some of my top tips for summer makeup along with a look for you to try.
What did I miss? How do you care for your skin in summers and monsoons? Please comment below or connect with me on Instagram to share your experience.
See you later!
