Summer skin care essentials: Oils can banish acne and other woes

Skin care routines are never easy, and with the current weather conditions, things tend to get sticky. Clogged pores, sunburn, and acne are some of the most common problems brought on by the summer heat. It might sound strange, but you can counter oily skin woes with more oils. We’re talking about essential oils.

Acne, in most cases, is the result of bacterial or yeast infection. It’s the infection and inflammation of the sweat glands on the face. If you’re struggling with acne, add essential oils to your skin care regime. “Essential oils like lemongrass and tea tree are good for oily skin. For mature and combination to dry skin, lavender oil works best,” says dermatologist Dr Deepali Bhardwaj. “Apricot oil is known to contain essential oils that are very similar to those already present in our skin. Applying it will make the skin firmer and the pores will become smaller. Use at night, wait for 5-10 minutes, wipe off extra and apply night cream.”

In case the plants are not available, Dr Bhardwaj advises buying capsules of these plant oils, breaking them open and applying the contents directly on the face.

While these oils can be used daily, some caution needs to be exercised. “For treatments, they are diluted with pressed oils like almond, olive or sesame seed oils, which are called carrier oils. The recommended dilution is one drop of essential to three drops of carrier oil. For instance, add 10 drops of tea tree oil to 100ml rose water. Apply on acneprone skin and oily scalp with cotton wool,” advises beauty expert Shahnaz Husain.

Essential oils should be mixed according to the accepted blends. “One cannot just mix two or more essential oils at random, as it can change the constitution of the oil and the result will also change. It’s best to follow the recommended combinations and ratios,” adds Husain.

Oils and topical gels or ointments work up to a certain

depth of skin. So for severe acne, it’s best to seek medical help. “Whatever we apply on the face, gets absorbed up to 250mm-300mm depth; acne is present up to 400mm depth,” says Bhardwaj. So in this case, anything applied topically will, at best, target only mild acne. “Tea tree oil, for instance, is only effective for mild bacterial infection.”

Severe acne and pus need antibiotics. “As the severity comes down, you can resume the oil regime,” she says.