Singapore Skincare Tips: Living in Singapore With Oily Skin? Why You Must Still Use Moisturiser
March 12, 2024
Welcome to Skincyclopedia – Singapore Edition by me, board-certified dermatologist Dr Teo Wan Lin. For all who are looking to survive Singapore’s heat and humidity with great skin still, you’ve come to the right place. I’ll be dishing out my skincare tips (nearly) every day and covering the latest developments on skincare and the world of dermatology as well — so stay tuned to this page and also follow me on social media @drteowanlin on TikTok and IG where you can also post your questions and I’ll be sure to answer them.
EP 1: Oily skin woes in Singapore? Dermatologist Recommends Using Moisturiser to Fix it! Your skin is always losing water to the environment, it’s known as trans-epidermal water loss.
Moisturisers for skin barrier repair: reduces trans-epidermal water loss
If you live in a humid country like Singapore, there is less evaporation to the environment but skin can still get dehydrated. If you choose to use astringent aka drying skincare such as deep cleansing foams and alcohol-based toners to treat oily skin, you may end up with even more oil production.
Your skin may produce even more oil if you don’t moisturise
Why? This is known as paradoxical reactive hyperseborrhoea. Essentially when you deprive skin of moisture, the oil glands may overwork themselves to restore the balance, leading to dysregulation.
Moral of the story? If you live in humid Singapore and think you can skip moisturiser because your skin is oily, your skin may produce even more oil!
FAQ Ask a dermatologist: how do you apply moisturiser?
Pro Tip for Night Moisturiser: for a sleeping mask hack, use a palm sized amount of your favourite moisturiser over your face and leave on overnight
Day moisturiser: choose an emulsion/lotion form which is less sticky in humid climates like Singapore’s and/or if you have combination/oily skin.
To increase absorption:
1. Facial massage with a jade roller can increase blood circulation and enhance skin absorption
2. Wet occlusion with sheet masking can also create a moisture sandwich that enhances the humectant and occlusive properties of the moisturiser
What are your favourite moisturiser brands? Do you have a preferred method of application?
Stay tuned for the next few episodes where I’ll cover the types of moisturisers to use if you have oily skin.
Follow me on Tik Tok and Instagram @drteowanlin where I share more of these tips