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I have posted in another thread about my quest for the perfect facial cleanser for my very sensitive skin with Rosacea and facial Psoriasis. I have tried almost all cleansers targeted at dry/sensitive skin as these promise not to irritate sensitive facial skin. so far, I have covered Cetaphil Gentle, Cetaphil Oily skin cleanser, Neutrogena Extra Mild Cleanser, Aveeno Ultra Calming, Cerave Hydrating Cleanser, La Roche Posay Toleriane Foaming cleanser for combination skin, Purpose Liquid cleanser, Liquid Neutrogena, Olay sensitive cleanser, Aquanil, Liquid Neutrogena, Clinique Foaming Facial Cleanser and what not.
I am still looking as all of these cleansers leave my skin Oily and unlike most people with Rosacea and facial psoriasis; my face is extremely Oily.
So, what I really need is a cleanser for oily skin that is designed with sensitive skin in mind. I have picked up 4 new cleansers to try and have read about the ingredients on Beautypedia but I want to understand from the Brains and experienced members; which one has a safer ingredient profile for sensitive skin as the ingredients are very different and the prices vary a lot.
I am more keen on understand from a technical perspective, which one of these 4 has an overall safer ingredient profile for very sensitive and oily skin rather than reviews on the product itself. Which one is more advanced and which ones have not aged well over the years. There is no such thing as a perfect formula, but I want to know which of these comes close, at least on paper.
1. La Roche Posay Effaclar Purifying Foaming Gel
Claim - Effaclar Gel purifies oily and acne-prone skin without drying effects
thanks to cleansing agents rigorously selected to insure good
tolerance. It eliminates impurities and excess sebum, leaving skin
clear and refreshed. With soothing la Roche-Posay thermal spring water -pH5.5/ Soap Free / Colorant Free / Alcohol Free / Paraben Free.
Ingredients - Water (Aqua), Sodium Laureth Sulfate, PEG 8, Coco Betaine, Hexylene
Glycol, Sodium Chloride, PEG 120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate, Zinc PCA,
Sodium Hydroxide, Citric Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Phenoxyethanol, Capryl
Glycol, Parfum
What seems good - Very reputed brand, claims the ingredients are suitable for sensitive skin, Zinc PCA may be helpful, does not contain any active ingredients to irritate skin (AHA/BHA)
What seems wrong - SLS is the primary surfactant and that too in large quantity, is not fragrance free
2. Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser for normal to Oily Skin (Re-discovered)
Claim -- Removes surface oils, dirt and makeup without leaving skin tight or overly dry
- Rinses clean without leaving any pore-clogging residue
- Gentle enough for everyday use
Ingredients - Water (Purified), Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate, Acrylates/Steareth 20
Methacrylate Crosspolymer, Glycerin, PEG 200 Hydrogenated Glyceryl
Palmate, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Butylene Glycol, PEG 7 Glyceryl
Cocoate, Phenoxyethanol, Masking Fragrance (Parfum), Panthenol, PEG 60
Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Disodium EDTA, MethylparabenWhat seems good - Milder surfactant compared to Effaclar (I think)
What seems wrong - No information if suitable for sensitive skin, seems to sting and burn, may be appropriate for Oily skin without any sensitivity issues
3. Papulex Cleansing Gel - This is a new product from the amazing Sinclair pharma of Uk that gave us amazing products like Atopiclair and Sebclaim creams
Claim -
• Helps reduce skin blemishes
• Soothes and Moisturises the skin
• Gently cleanses skin
• Soap-free formula
• Dermatologically tested.Contains: 4% Nicotinamide, 3% active ABA (antibacterial substance).
Ingredients - Aqua, Decyl Glucoside, Glycerin, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine,
Niacinamide, PPG-14 Palmeth-60 Hexyl Dicarbamate, Tea-Lauryl Sulfate,
Sorbitol, Lauryl Glucoside, Citric Acid, Parfum (Fragrance), Disodium
Phosphate, DMDM Hydantoin, Disodium EDTA, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate,
CI 42090, CI 19140.What seems good - New age milder surfactants
What seems wrong - contains fragrance, colors and DMDM Hydantoin
4. Cerave Foaming Facial Cleanser
Claim - CeraVe® Foaming Facial Cleanser is a vital part of a daily skin care
routine ideal for normal to oily skin types. It gently removes dirt,
oil, and makeup without disrupting the skin's natural protective
barrier.Ingredients - Purified Water, Cocamidopropyl Hydrosultaine, Glycerin, Sodium Lauroyl
Sarcosinate, PEG 150 Pentaerythrityl Tetrastearate (and), PEG 6
Caprylic/Capric Glycerides, Niacinamide, Propylene Glycol, Sodium Methyl
Cocoyl Taurate, Ceramide 1, Hyaluronic Acid, Cholesterol, Sodium
Chloride, Phytosphingosine, Citric Acid, Edetate Disodium, Dihydrate,
Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Carbomer,
Xanthan GumWhat seems good - Milder surfacts compared to SLS, Hyaluronic acid may help prevent dryness, ceramides
What seems wrong - Loaded with parabens, problem ingredient for me - Propylene Glycol (I am allergic)
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la roche-posay effeclar gel is quite drying i have a friend with quite oily skin and even she has to use it every other day not to get dry patches. i wouldn't recommend it for your skin.
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Brains please, I need you to look at the formulas and tell me which one is the least damaging as my skin is falling apart :(
I am using prescription medication Protopic for both Rosacea and facial psoriasis but the cleanser just creates more problems.
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Maybe taking the list of products and ingredients in to your dermatologist and getting a recommendation there would be a good idea.
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Derms don't know squat. They just prescribe Cetaphil and steroid creams for everything.
Are you suggesting that the brains won't respond to my question?
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They don't respond to every question. They may respond, but they are very busy, and it may take them a while.
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Thanks sarahf, I may have confused this as one of those forums where a bunch of experts answer your queries. that's why I was surprised that they haven't answered yet. I will look for other forums, any suggestions?
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I can't think of any other forums to suggest in which experts will comment. I do think that you have excluded a large number of ingredients, and that is going to limit your choices quite a bit. For example, although some people are sensitive to certain fragrances, a large number of people are not. Having rosacea or sensitive skin does not mean you will automatically react poorly to a particular fragrance ingredient. I have rosacea, and use many products that contain fragrance. Although I'm not an expert, I suspect that a lot of oily skin cleansers will have sodium laureth sulfate. I have rosacea, and one of my fave cleansers (that is not at all irritating) has SLS as the 3rd ingredient. What is the problem with parabens and DMDM hydantoin? If you think you have allergies, have you been patch tested? I also think by getting too detail oriented about ingredients you may be unnecessarily ruling out products that may work for you. For example, you stated that "Toleriane cleanser works better than anything I have tried so far. However, my concern is that it lacks any cutting edge ingredients to calm the inflammation or redness. Plus, I am not sure the ingredients are really in line with 'Intolerant skin' requirements." It doesn't matter whether the ingredients map onto something you've read on the internet--if the product works for you, use it!
My second comment is that it seems to me that if your skin reacts to so many different products and ingredients, your rosacea is likely not under good control. I second Lindygirl's suggestion to check back with your derm about options. Have you ever been prescribed low-dose oral doxycycline? Why is metrogel bad for you?
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Pom Pom: Sorry we haven't been able to address this question. We're a bit backed up at the moment and I don't like to give an answer unless I've had a chance to do my own research. My quick answer is that the technical assessment that you gave on these 4 products is actually quite good. You identified the range of mildness in surfactants and specific ingredients that you know cause problems for you.
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Thanks Right Brain, I will look forward to a detailed response someday.
I have been patch tested and allergic to Propylene Glycol and DMDM Hydantoin.
I do use prescription topicals for Rosacea and it is under control. The trick with the cleanser is to clean the oilyness without drying the psoriasis lesions and without clogging the pores to avoid more papules.
Finished doxycycline and using something better than Metrogel now.
It is easier to deal with one skin condition at a time, two at the same time is a tough nut to crack. What helps one, bothers the other. Hence, the focus on the technical aspect.
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I hear you Pom Pom - skin care can be frustrating. I'm a little oily too btw - I don't think everyone with rosacea has dry skin by any means. But thankfully no psoriasis here yet. The reason I speculated more could be done for your rosacea is that I had such a hard time with reactions to products until I got proper treatment. But it sounds like that isn't your story.On a side note--correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think rosacea papules are caused by clogged pores. My understanding is they are caused by inflammation. I tend to get them if I dry out or irritate my skin rather than if it gets too oily. The catch is that I also get regular acne (aka acne vulgaris), and that IS caused by clogged pores. Oy veh...
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Sorry for the late response. I just went away for a few days hoping the Brains would have done some analysis for me :(
The rosacea observation is correct. However, the pores get clogged very easily and that makes me break out. It is hard to distinguish the Rosacea papules from the acne papules but both are ugly.
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Sometimes it just takes trial and error pompom. You have a list of products Right Brain has said looks promising.For one more step you could research those products on a site like makeupalley.com and see what others with skin types similar to yours have had success with.You could also call and leave a message at your dermatologist's office and ask the doctor to give an opinion on the ones you are considering.Perhaps try the simplest formula first. Less ingredients should mean less chance of irritation.Then try them one at a time. Use the one you think is most likely to work first.
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Cera Ve foaming cleanser works great for me. It cleans the oily parts of my face and doesn't irritate or dry out my skin at all. I'm allergic to most fragrances and some common ingredients that are even in "sensitive" products, but CeraVe doesn't have those ingredients. My facial skin is dry in places and oily in others, and it breaks out in zits every so often. Before I bought Cera Ve foaming cleanser, I looked up all the ingredients but I can't remember exactly what I found out, except that they probably wouldn't cause an allergic reaction in me.
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@professorauntie: I like CeraVe products, but I'm pretty sure pompom said on another thread that she tried the cleanser and it clogged her pores.
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Interesting indeed! Cerave Hydrating cleanser clogged my pores. Well obviously 'cuz it is for dry skin.
I am yet to try Cerave Foaming Cleanser though and that review certainly inspires confidence.
In the meantime, I am sticking with the Papulex Cleansing Gel and the Papulex Cream as both of them together for a week and I am able to go without my rosacea topicals and they don't irritate my psoriasis either.
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