Looking for the most suitable skincare products can often be problematic as there is a huge variety of products available. It becomes important to choose the right product for your skin as it determines how well your skin would appear. Amongst these choosing a best cleanser which is gentle on your skin or suits your skin type as well is important.
Many formulations of face wash exist in the market including foam, cream or oil based cleansers. Now all these are meant for skin cleansing only but they all have a different cleansing action.
Gentle cleansers are lightweight and non-comedogenic cleansers which produce lather for cleansing. Cream cleansers are rich lotion-like cleansers which help in gently cleansing the skin without any discomfort. Oil cleansers are oil based formulations which usually help in clearing out the oil based impurities from the skin.
Choosing the best amongst all these cleansers for gentle cleansing depends on your skin type and the cleansing action your skin requires.
Skin types and their requirements
Before choosing the most suitable gentle cleansing agent for your skin you firstly have to understand your skin type.
| Skin type | Description | Requirements |
|---|---|---|
| Oily skin | An excessively shiny skin that happens due to excess oil sitting up on the face. It occurs because of the hyperactive sebaceous glands which go overdrive and secrete high amounts of sebum. It makes the pores enlarged and more oil is produced | Proper cleansing agent which wipes of the excess oil deeply from the pores along with cleansing the surface oil |
| Dry skin | Decreased or no sebum production on the skin makes it dry. It occurs due to low active sebaceous glands. The skin starts appearing dry, flaky and itchy. It makes the skin barrier damaged and compromised | It requires a gentle cleansing agent which does not damage the skin barrier or strip natural oils after cleaning. It must be able to hydrate the skin along with cleansing |
| Combination skin | Two skin concerns co-existing at the same time results in combination skin. It makes the forehead, nose and chin areas (T-zone) excessively oily due to more sebum production and the cheeks and jawline area (U-zone) dry due to less or moderate production of sebum in the skin. | It requires a dual cleansing product which helps in lifting off the excess oil from T-zone along with gently hydrating U-zone |
| Sensitive skin | A compromised skin barrier could make the skin highly sensitive. The skin gets easily affected by skincare products, environmental factors, climatic changes or many other factors and leads to skin redness, inflammation as well as itching and gets triggered by many factors. | It requires a mild cleansing and non irritating gentle cleanser |
| Acne prone skin | Frequent occurrence of breakouts makes skin acne prone as it gets easily triggered by many factors. It usually occurs due to many factors. Clogged pores and excessive oil production are one of them. Other major factors are hormonal imbalance or using unsuitable skincare ingredients. | It requires a mild cleanser which wipes off the impurities which could result in acne breakouts on the face |
Cleansing action of each cleanser
Foam cleansers are formulated using water based surfactants that create foamy lather on application which helps in removing excess sebum and dirt from the skin making them effective for oily skin. They have a deep pore cleansing action on the skin which allows proper cleansing.
Cream cleansers ideally use lipid based oil-in water emulsions to remove the surface impurities without damaging the moisture barrier of the skin. It gently clears out the impurities from the surface of the skin and is ideal for dry or sensitive skin.
Oil cleansers are based on the idea of ‘like dissolves like’ which makes it suitable for pulling out the oil based impurities effectively from the skin. It is also beneficial for clearing out heavy buildup of makeup from the skin and does not strip the moisture barrier of the skin.
Texture of each face wash
Cleanser textures matter a lot for delivering proper results for your skin. Foam cleansers have a soft airy texture which works to lift off the excess sebum, dirt and other impurities from the skin using gentle foaming action.
Cream cleansers have lipid-rich emulsions that feel soothing to the skin and also help in gently cleansing the surface impurities from the skin along with hydration. It feels calming on the skin and does not cause skin irritation which makes it suitable for sensitive skin.
Oil cleansers use oil bases in formulation which helps in removing the stubborn oil based impurities like makeup or sunscreen along with excess oil sitting up the face and clears them out effectively while leaving the moisture barrier of the skin intact.
Final thoughts
A gentle cleanser for your skin would help in effectively clearing out the impurities from skin without causing any skin damage. Among a foam, oil or cream cleanser, selecting the best one depends on your skin type along with the formulation of a face wash like a glycolic acid face wash. If formulated with soothing ingredients all three cleansers can help in gently cleansing and supporting skin wellness. Just look for the best option that aligns with your skin type.
