How to moisturise if I have dry but oily skin?

Hi there

That is a great question that is commonly asked by my patients. Patients with combinaiton skin usually have an oily T zone ( foehead and nose ) and drier skin on the cheeks. In our warm humid weather, regular moisturisers can often feel very heavy and sticky on the skin for patients with combination skin like yourself, so it important to choose wisely.

The most important step when you select a skincare product if you have oily/combination skin is to ensure that it is non-comedogenic in nature, meaning that it should not clog your pores. This will often be labelled on the product.

For a daytime moisturiser, you might want to consider oil- free gels or serums, which are water based and sit comfortably on the skin. Examples of these include Skinceuticals Hydrating B5 gel, La Roche-Posay Toleraine Fluide and TDF Ultra Light Hydrator. 

For nighttime, you may wish to use the same moisturiser, or, if you'd like a more intensive moisturiser, you can switch to a lotion or oil-free cream. Examples of which would be La-Roche Posay Hydraphase Intense Light and Ceradan Hydra.

I hope you find this information helpful

Wei Sheng

Dermatologist

Hi Ruzaini,

It is important to identify your skin type and issues before proceeding with recommending some moisturizers. A good moisturizer for acne-prone skin should have a good balance of occlusive, humectant, emollient and anti-inflammatory properties. Common ingredients used in moisturizers for acne-prone skin include aloe vera, bisabolol and glycerin. 

In addition to tips shared by my colleagues so far, you may also consider and benefit from hydrating skinboosters, of which there are a number available currently, which help to hydrate the skin from within. These also help with improving skin texture, tone and elasticity in addition to providing moisturizarion. Hope this helps!