dermatitis. Unfortunately, many cleansers, including good ol’ soap, have very
high pH that can be irritating to those with compromised skin.
This is where the chemists come in! Each cleanser you see on the market
is the hundredth trial of a chemist carefully balancing stability, support
ingredients, cleansing power, irritation potential, and user experience, so
read on! We will introduce some key ingredients to look for so you, too, can
hack your cleanser game.
I see—so cleansing is all about that
delicate balance of gentleness and
cleansing power. That squeaky,
tight feeling is
not
a good thing!
Cream cleanser
Classic creamy
goodness! Cleanse
very well, but can
be too stripping, so
check ingredient
lists carefully.
The Cleanser Landscape
Whether you’ve used the same brand of
soap since high school, or are experimenting
with the double-cleansing method, you may
be surprised how many cleansing options
there are out there.
Wipes Convenient and effective!
Weʼd still suggest a quick rinse
afterward to be sure thereʼs no
residue left on your face.
Micellar water Very gentle.
Effectiveness varies widely
between products.
Gel cleanser Can range from
super gentle to powerful acne
cleansers that can dry and strip
the skin. Read labels carefully!
Cleansing oil A great
way to take everything off.
Look for one that doesnʼt
leave an oily residue.
Powder cleanser Effective,
gentle, and adds a bit of physical
exfoliation. Just . . . messy . . .
Cleansing balm The much
more travel-friendly and leak-safe
alternative to oil cleansers.
Bar soap While some bar soaps can
be on the gentle side, most have a
higher pH and can be quite stripping.
SKINCARE DECODED • 38 CLEANSERS • 39
In Practice
W
elp! That’s a lot of different product types! Just remember, regardless of
product format, the trick of the trade is to look for a balance. The right
cleanser finds your skin’s sweet spot, balancing between effective cleansing and
gentleness. So, how does one go about perfecting their cleanser game? That’s
what we’re here for! We recommend that you first familiarize yourself with
common surfactants, then check the pH, and finally enhance the cleansing
power with support products instead of opting for a more aggressive cleanser.
Why Don’t You Love Me?
Meet SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate), one of the surfactants that any cleanser advertised as
“gentle, sulfate-free” is going to shun. Now, we just spent an entire section on finding
a gentle cleanser, so why are we talking about SLS here? One of the reasons SLS gets
blended into a lot of cleansers is because it’s cheap and cleans pretty well. It’s almost too
good at cleansing, hence, this is why it’s also used as a positive control in irritation testing.
That means that concentrated SLS is actually used to irritate the skin in a controlled
manner to test how it recovers with or without products. This is part of the reason SLS
gets a bad rep as irritating. But remember the Chemists’
Commandment #5: Concentration is key! A small amount
blended with other, more gentle surfactants can still
make an effective, but mild, cleanser. It’s what we do as
chemists—we create balanced formulas that bring together
the best characteristics of those key ingredients. So, don’t
freak out too much when you see it in the ingredient list of
a cleanser you’ve been using for the past three years.
SKINCARE DECODED • 38 CLEANSERS • 39
Cleanser Tip : Know Your Surfactants
For your staple cleansers, gel and cream, products can range from “So gentle—
is it really cleansing?” to “Holy moly, my skin actually squeaks!” Other than
going off of the often unreliable marketing claims, you should learn to quickly
decode that ingredient list! Finding your surfactant BFF can save you a lot of
heartache on your cleanser journey. This is why you have us, right? Here’s a list
of super-common surfactants to get started:
The Skinny
Classic SoapSulfatesCoco BetaineOther Gentle Surfactants
Who It’s Not For How to Spot One
Who It’s For
Great cleansing power,
but comes with a very
high pH that can be too
stripping.
Low pH, but still has
lots of foam and great
cleansing power.
The most common
gentle surfactant.
Skin friendly, good
cleansing power,
decent foam.
Tried all the most
common ones but still
haven’t found your true
love? Try some of the
surfactants here.
Both normal and
oily skin.
Almost all skin types.
All skin types looking for
a more gentle option.
Those with sensitive
skin or chronic dryness.
Dry,