Pore-Clogging Ingredients to Look Out For

Life would’ve been much easier if we could trust the companies responsible for making our skincare products, right? But, why can’t we, and is it all their fault? 

We wish we could put all the blame on the big companies and demand more consideration, but the truth is, we all have different skin, and we’re all susceptible to different things, while resilient to others. If we pair that with the fact that acne is a multifactorial disease involving genetics, hormonal balance, environmental factors, and our lifestyle choices, we can begin to understand the struggle to create a product that won’t irritate any type of skin. 

If you’re thinking right now of chemicals versus natural ingredients, let us tell you that the most natural and pure ingredients like lemon juice and olive oil can create more damage than any skincare product, if not used correctly.  

Let me paint you an all too familiar scenario we’ve all probably experienced. 

You’re walking inside your favorite cosmetic store and you notice the brand you’ve been loyal to has just launched a new line of their oil-free foundation lotion for acne-prone skin. All excited, you buy it thinking of the smooth appearance you’re going to have tomorrow, but instead, you wake all blemished with a new breakout announcing itself. 

What went wrong? 

Many things can go wrong, especially if you’re guilty of the three most common skincare sins most of us make without even being aware of them. 

The Skincare Sins Leading To Clogged Pores

Not Knowing Your Skin Type 

The first sin most people commit is not knowing their skin type. Why is this important? Before we continue onto the pore-clogging ingredients, we need to address the ingredients that are relatively beneficial and a godsend for some people, while a devil’s trap for others. This is because our physiology is influenced by our unique genetic predisposition and hormone levels. For example, a thick moisturizing agent can be very beneficial to dry skin, but just a little too much for oily skin. 

You can’t blame the products or the ingredients if you essentially don’t know your own skin. Fortunately, we’ve made a practical guide on how to know your skin type that won’t take you much time to go over, but it can save you a lot of trouble.

Not Knowing The Ingredients And Buying Products That Are not Suitable

Whether it’s because people are not that interested in doing the research or because the names mean nothing to them, they end up buying products they know nothing about, only to be later faced with severe consequences. Buying products that are not suitable for your skin type is the next major skincare sin. 

We have identified three reasons why this happens. First, you don’t know your skin type. Second, you don’t know the ingredients good for your skin type, or third, you don’t really care that much. But, our guess is, if you’re here reading about the pore-clogging ingredients you need to look out for, you must care enough to do the legwork. 

So, where is your mistake? 

Just because the ingredients in the product are FDA approved and labeled safe, that doesn’t mean they are suitable for your skin type. 

Assuming that you already know your skin type, you still might not know the ingredients beneficial for it. And we have you covered here, too. Read about the cosmetic ingredients to look for according to your skin type where you can find information about the best ingredients for each skin type. 

Have in mind, these are not the same as the pore-clogging ingredients you need to avoid, because pore-clogging ingredients don’t necessarily raise the alert for extremely dry skin for example.

Many of the ingredients used in certain cases can be beneficial for the skin even though they have a high-comedogenic potential, like coconut oil for example. 

What this means is that you need to learn how to identify pore-clogging ingredients to avoid causing more trouble to your condition. 

Not Using The Products Correctly 

Yet, another common mistake is not using the products correctly. Today, we have solutions designed to target specific issues and skin ailments. Many of them are packed with high concentrations of potent ingredients meant to heal, treat, and fix problems. So, where’s the problem? 

Well, by applying a strong product designed to target a specific skin concern you can easily overwhelm your skin - especially if you apply the product on your whole face rather than on a certain affected area. This is why it’s not uncommon to see situations where an anti-acne product irritates the skin and causes more breakouts. 

To prevent this, pay attention to the instructions, or if you’re using homemade DIY packs, google the ingredients and learn about their characteristics to make a better decision about what’s the safest way to apply them.

For example, lemon juice must be diluted and it’s best for a spot treatment, coconut and olive oil for body use, and after using retinol or glycolic acid you must moisturize to prevent drying out the skin.

What Are Pore-Clogging Ingredients And How Are They Defined?

Pore-clogging ingredients are simply ingredients that have been proven to clog the pores and create a plug inside a hair follicle. Some ingredients can bond with keratin more easily and form a plug, while others can stimulate the sebaceous glands to produce even more oil. 

For these reasons some of the common ingredients used in cosmetic products can sometimes be more harmful than beneficial. You might have heard of coconut oil, but many others are not so easy to identify and have rather scientific names which makes them even more difficult to remember. 

Nevertheless, in this article we included a well-researched table that contains the most common pore-clogging ingredients you should look out for - so save it, and use it to check the ingredients whenever you’re using a new product. 

The Most Common Pore-Clogging Ingredients You Should Avoid

The list below is not exclusive nor definite (surely there’s more), but it’s scientifically based. All the ingredients we mentioned are well-researched in various studies. We’ve noticed that over the internet there are many misconceptions and great deal of confusion about which ingredients are truly comedogenic, for example, the overly spread belief that shea butter is comedogenic - which is not true. Shea butter has a comedogenic rating of 0-2. Another controversial ingredient is olive oil, which is neither here nor there - it’s relatively comedogenic with a comedogenic rating of 2/3. Using pure undiluted olive oil can clog your pores, but in products with low concentrations it’s probably safe. 

To avoid such mistakes or misunderstandings, we played it safe and used a couple of studies and academic literature to figure out which common ingredients were tested for their comedogenic rating using various methods.

According to a study published in the American Academy of Dermatology in 1994, another study published in the Journal of Cutaneous and Ocular Toxicology in 2007, and the Handbook of Cosmetic Science And Technology by Barel, Paye, and Maibach, these are the pore-clogging ingredients to look out for: 

Oils

Let’s start with the most famous ingredients wearing the label “acne-causing”. You don’t have to check the ingredients label to know that moisturizers based on coconut oil and coconut butter, for example, are not good for acne-prone skin. But, have you wondered why is that?

Comedones are clogged hair follicles - something that happens when keratin combines with oil and forms a plug. This is the reason why some oils can create a plug when applied to the face and absorbed into the pores, and this can lead to comedones and acne. 

But, not all oils are the same. Fortunately, most of them have a well-researched comedogenic rating which can help us figure out which oils are safe and which ones need to be avoided.

Oils act as amazing moisturizers packed with powerful vitamins and minerals and shouldn’t be avoided completely. 

Coconut oil and coconut butter are two examples of oils that are highly beneficial and antibacterial, but that are still comedogenic oils - so it’s best to use them for body treatment instead of on the more sensitive skin on the face. 

If you want to learn more about the pore-clogging factors of oils in particular, you can head on to our “What Is "Non-Comedogenic" & Why Is It Important in Skincare?” article where you can find the comedogenic scale for most types of oils. 

Lanolin and derivatives

Lanolin is a wax secreted by the sebaceous glands of wool-bearing animals, like sheep. 

High-purity grade of lanolin consists of long-chain waxy esters, lanolin alcohols, lanolin acids, and lanolin hydrocarbons. Because lanolin is composed of long-chain waxy esters it’s used for producing an amazingly high amount of lanolin derivatives. 

Being comedogenic and also known to cause allergic reactions, why the heck is lanolin used in skincare products? 

According to “The Lanolin Book” from 1999, written by authors Hoppe and Beiersdorf, skin bioengineering studies have shown the powerful effect of lanolin as a skin-smoothing ingredient (emollient). Apparently, applying 2 mg/cm2 of lanolin to the skin reduces roughness by about 35% after one hour and 50% after two hours, with the overall effect lasting more than eight hours. 

One study from 1996, published in the journal Dermatology Reviews, the so-called “The Lanolin Paradox”, showed why this ingredient is considered a topical therapeutic agent and safely used in many cosmetic products worldwide, but it’s also linked to adverse reactions, allergies, and acne breakouts. 

Whether or not your skin is sensitive to lanolin is still completely personal - it depends on whether you suffer from acne or have sensitive skin. In those cases you should definitely watch out for lanolin and lanolin derivatives on the product ingredient list. 

Fatty acids and Esters (Surfactants and detergents)

Surfactants are compounds that lower surface tension - hence their name. The classification of surfactants is diverse. Some surfactants are composed of fatty acid esters of polyhydroxy compounds, like glycerol, sorbitol, sucrose, and others. 

In skincare, surfactants are mostly used as detergents for cleansing or emulsifiers in creams and lotions. Cleansing products with mild surfactants can remove surface oil and dirt without compromising the skin’s barrier function, which can actually be very beneficial for acne sufferers. 

Unfortunately, some fatty acids, esters, and surfactants have been identified as irritants with a high comedogenic rating and can make things worse. 

Be careful of products containing lauric acid, cetyl acetate, isopropyl isostearate, isopropyl lineolate, isopropyl myristate, myristyl lactate, myristyl myristate, or sodium lauryl sulfate.

Alcohols, Sugars, and Their Derivatives

Just as oils, acids, and alcohol can also have both beneficial and problematic derivatives.

Living in a decade where we’re surrounded with incomplete or misleading information online, it’s easy to think that if an ingredient is part of a skincare product, it must be beneficial. 

People with oily skin probably love the quick-drying, tight, almost weightless feel on the skin that formulas loaded with alcohol (SD alcohol, ethanol, denatured, isopropyl, methanol or ethyl alcohol) produce. Plus, alcohol is great at increasing the absorption level of other skincare products, which can be beneficial sometimes. 

However, alcohol is very drying and almost never good for your skin. First, if used in higher concentrations it can cause irritation and redness. Second, it can dry the skin very fast, stripping it from its natural oils. Understandably, this is very damaging to dry skin, but what about oily skin? 

You would think that drying the skin is beneficial when you see yourself in the mirror and there’s no more greasy shine, but quick-drying can provoke the sebaceous glands to go into overdrive. In the long run, this means more excess oil on your face and more frequent breakouts.

According to the research that allowed us to create the table above, isocetyl alcohol, oleyl alcohol, and oleth-3 are the ingredients you should look out for if you have acne-prone, problematic or sensitive skin. 

Pigments

Pigments are used by cosmetic companies to give color to their skincare and makeup products. If you are a makeup enthusiast, you probably even know the pigment numbers for each shade of your favorite makeup palette. 

However, research has shown that a couple of red pigments are problematic, highly comedogenic, and can contribute to acne development.

Whenever you are buying a skincare or makeup product check for D & C RedNo. 9 or D & C RedNo. 27. If the product contains these ingredients your best bet is to stay away from it. 

Pore-Clogging F.A.Q.

What If I Have Dry Skin - Should I Avoid Pore-Clogging Ingredients?

It depends. The comedogenic potential of an ingredient won’t change regardless of your skin type. Nonetheless, people with dry skin are probably more resilient and won’t be affected as much as people with oily and acne-prone skin. 

And, here’s what’s really going on.

People with dry skin usually have very low-active sebaceous glands. This brings other consequences and downfalls, but when it comes to clogged pores, it probably won’t lead to acne breakouts. 

No acne-breakouts doesn’t mean clear pores. Even if the risk for acne breaking out is low, your pores can still be clogged. Why should you care about this?

Well, clogged pores increase the risk of bacteria, viruses, and fungi to grow and cause infection. Additionally, the plug will be noticeable on the surface, which means it will impact your appearance. 

Having said that, a product with a low concentration of one or two pore-clogging ingredients will probably won’t have an adverse effect on people with dry skin. 

It really depends on the sensitivity of your skin. 

My Favorite Product Contains a Pore-Clogging Ingredient. What Now?

The reason why we decided to write this article is to offer you an opportunity to learn something more and become more aware of the pesky little ingredients behind the curtain which might be responsible for your never-ending breakouts, even when you have tried everything else. 

It’s quite empowering to be educated about these things, but you shouldn’t take them as rigid rules. 

Unfortunately, we can never predict exactly how much can these ingredients influence your condition. Our advice would be to pay attention to the details. 

Here are a couple of questions which might give you the answer you’re looking for:

• How does your skin react after applying the product?
• How’s your condition when you don’t use the product for a couple of weeks?
• Reintroduce the product to your skin after a couple of weeks. How’s your skin reacting now? 
• Has your condition improved or got worse?
• Use the product for a couple of weeks. Are you noticing anything different?

Theoretically, yes, the above-mentioned ingredients have the potential to clog your pores and cause problems. They’re listed here for a reason and they should definitely be on a “watch-out” list for everyone with sensitive, oily, acne-prone, or problematic skin. 

That said, you shouldn’t discard the product immediately. Have it in the back of your head, and if problems emerge, know what to eliminate first. 

After all, the concentration and combination of ingredients in one product can change the outcome for better or for worse. The comedogenicity of an ingredient is not the same as the comedogenicity of a product. Comedogenic ingredients not always make comedogenic products. And, there’s your silver lining if you were hoping that you won’t have to throw away your favorite product. 

We hope that this article has helped you learn about pore-clogging 101. Final thoughts? If you have problematic skin our best advice would be to stay educated, make informed choices, and brush up on the ingredients you need to stay wary of in your cosmetics. Last but not least - check ingredient lists!