Acne-Causing and Pore-Clogging Ingredients should be Avoided in Skin CareProducts
If you have oily and acne-prone skin, you know all too well the importance of avoiding acne-causing ingredients. Acne-causing compounds are described as compounds that tend to clog pores and cause blackheads when applied to the skin. Because oily skin and people prone to acne usually have large pores, they are more likely to break out from the use of acne-causing ingredients.
To eliminate any potential acne triggers from your skin care routine, you need to know the following acne-causing ingredients. They score between 1 and 5, with 1 indicating unlikely to clog pores and 5 indicating very likely to clog pores.
If your skin is normal or dry and usually acne-free, you can use ingredients with scores as high as 4 or even 5. However, oily, combination or acne-prone skin must avoid using ingredients with a high acne score higher than 2 to avoid breakouts.
List of Acne Causing Ingredients
1 Acne-causing score
Anhydrous lanolin
Lanolin Oil
Caprylic acid
Hexadecyl ester NF
Butylene Glycol
Propylene glycol dioctanoate/decanoate (alcohol)
Dehydrated sorbitan laurate
Dehydrated sorbitan sesquioleate
Dehydrated sorbitol isostearate
Glyceryl Stearate NSE
Glycerol trioctyl/decanoate
Polyethylene Glycol
PEG 20 stearate
Candlewood wax
Brazilian carnauba wax
Lanolin wax
Carboxypropyl cellulose (thickener)
Hydroxypropyl cellulose (thickener)
Carbomer 940 (thickener)
Talc (thickener)
Castor oil
Hydrogenated castor oil
Chaulmogra oil
Babassu oil
Simethicone oil (silicone)
Polydimethylsiloxane (silicone)
Vitamin A palmitate
Lithium stearate
Magnesium stearate
Zinc oxide
Squalane
2 Acne-causing score
Capric acid (fatty acid)
Palmitic acid (fatty acid)
Stearic acid (fatty acid)
Eicosanoic acid (fatty acid)
Ascorbyl palmitate (fatty acid)
Ethylhexyl nonanoate (fatty acid)
Isodecyl oleate (fatty acid)
Myristyl alcohol
Cetearyl alcohol
Cetyl stearyl alcohol
Stearyl alcohol
Ceteareth-20
Propylene Glycol Dinonyl Acetate
Propylene glycol octanoate/decanoate
PEG 150 Distearate
Steareth-2
Steareth-20
Oleth- 10
Oleth-3 Phosphate
Lance- 10
Beeswax (actually, acneogenic score between 0-2)
Jojoba oil (actually, acne-causing score between 0-2)
Olive oil
Sandalwood seed oil
Almond oil
Almond oil
Mineral oil (actually, acneogenic fraction between 0 and 2)
Phytanetriol
Triethanolamine
3 Acne-causing score
Myristic acid
Butyl stearate
Decyl oleate
Dioctyl malate
Dioctyl succinate
Isostearyl neopentanoate
Sorbitan Oleate Lost
Glyceryl Stearate SE
Wheat germ glycerides
PEG-8 stearate
PEG 200 Dilaurate
Laureth-23
Oleth-5
Myristyl propionate
PPG-10 Cetearyl Ether
Hydrogenated vegetable oil
Sesame oil
Corn oil
Avocado oil
Evening primrose oil
Mink oil
Soybean Oil
Shark liver oil
Cottonseed oil
Tocopherol (actually, acneogenic fraction between 0-3)
Stearic acid
Algae extract
4-5 Acne-causing score
Acetylated lanolin alcohol
Lauric acid
Hexadecyl acetate
Ethylhexyl palmitate
Isopropylidene ester
Isopropyl palmitate
Isostearate of isostearic acid
Myristyl lactate
Stearyl heptanoate
Isocetearyl alcohol
Oleyl alcohol
3-Diisostearic acid glycerol ester
Polyglyceryl 3-diisostearate
Steareth-10
PPG-5-Ceteth-10 Phosphate
Cocoa butter
Coconut oil
Xylene
Isopropyl isostearate
Myristic acid myristyl ester
Laureth-4
Oleth-3
Footnotes
The list of acne-causing ingredients is taken from the Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, “Acneogenicity and Irritation of Commonly Used Ingredients in Skin Care Products,” Acne Research Institute, 1236 Somer, November/December 1989.
If you do not find any ingredient in the above list, it is not acne-causing and you can use it safely.
