Cleansers that foam up are extremely satisfying when cleansing your face, but are they really all that good for your skin? After trying out Clinique’s Cleansing Gel I had some questions because it didn’t foam up in the fulfilling way some cleansers do. I wanted to know why, and ended up down the rabbit hole that is whether foam cleansers are good or bad for your skin.
Foaming cleansers are made to clear your skin of dirt and oils, and often upset the PH balance of the skin by making it too alkaline. This can cause overdrying and irritation to the skin barrier. Plus, because the oils have been stripped away the skin cannot moisturise itself which can also cause dullness.
Although most foaming cleansers can be drying, it won’t help your oily skin in the long run. They may make you feel less oily temporarily, but your skin will start to push more oil to the surface if it’s feeling dehydrated.
One of the main ingredients in most foaming cleansers is sodium laureth sulfate (also known as SLES). SLES is a surfacant and works as an inexpensive and effective foaming agent but it can also be an irritant. This kind of irritant can slowly chip away at the protective barrier your skin has, which can negatively impact sensitive skin. It can increase irritation, inflammation and worsen rosacea or acne.
Surfacants in general can be irritants, so watch out for any of these in your personal care products:
- Sodium laureth sulfate
- Ammonium laureth sulfate
- Disodium lauryl sulfosuccinate
- Cocamphocarboxyglycinate
- Cocoamidopropyl betaine
- Alpha-Olefin sulfonate
You may not get a reaction at all from the products they are used in, but I would always recommend spot testing any new product just in case. Especially if you have sensitive skin, or if you’re prone to problems like acne and eczema.
So if foaming agents are bad for your skin, why do people use them? The big reason is that foam cleansers do what they say they do. They clean your skin. The problem is that they clean the skin too much, which is what causes more oiliness and irritation.
Some people also just prefer that format, whether it’s because of habit or the foaming action creates a visual stimulus of cleaning in action. Foam cleansers often feel much lighter on the skin than cleansing gels, milks or other cleansers and some people dislike heavy formulas.
Foam cleansers are also work faster and are more easily used on the skin. Instead of using a heavier cleanser which will take a couple of minutes to fully absorb and benefit the skin, a foaming cleanser usually just needs to be lathered up and then rinsed.
Have you ever tried a high foaming cleanser? What did you think and will you continue using it?
