Pimples and blackheads can put you in a big mood, and it can seem like no matter what type of product you try, you still get breakouts. At Furtuna Skin, we understand the frustration. No matter your age or skin type, you need solutions that really work.
Get ready to change the way you think about caring for blemish-prone skin.If using oil-free products and harsh cleansers and skipping moisturizer have been your go-to solutions (that aren’t working), we’re here to help.
We’ll help you understand your skin, why it’s breaking out, and learn how using plant-based ingredients like extra virgin olive oil can help soothe your stressed-out skin.
What Is Blemish Prone Skin?
There are four main skin types: normal, oily, dry, and combination. Blemish-prone skin can also be dry or oily. Normally, those who struggle with pesky bumps and pimples tend to have oilier skin, especially in the t-zone.
Blemish-prone skin is characterized by clogged pores that form whiteheads, blackheads, and breakouts. You might get them in one area or all over your face. They may follow a monthly pattern or spring up unexpectedly.
Is Blemish-Prone Skin the Same as Sensitive Skin?
Because sensitive skin can sometimes develop breakouts, it’s easy to assume that sensitive skin is the same as blemish-prone skin. In reality, they are two separate skin issues. Sensitive skin is skin that is prone to irritation like:
- Redness
- Itching or burning
- Flaking and peeling
- Rashes
A person with sensitive skin might experience a flare-up when they try a new product or as a result of sun exposure. The skin over-amplifies the external stressor and produces an inflammatory response that causes irritation.
Blemish-prone skin, however, is the result of clogged pores. Pores become clogged when sebum, the skin’s natural oil, mixes with dirt and dead skin cells and forms a plug inside the pore.
What Causes Blemishes?
Figuring out why your pores are clogged can be a little like trying to understand the moods of a cat. Sometimes, there’s no logical explanation for why you’re getting a breakout, and many times, there’s more than one reason.
Genetics
One of the biggest reasons you might be developing pimples is heredity. If you have a family member who deals with acne, your chances of developing bumps and blemishes may be higher.
Genetics also play a role in how our skin behaves and in the size of our pores. People with larger, more visible pores tend to have oilier skin. Oilier skin can be a factor in developing pimples.
Hormones
Your hormones regulate virtually every process in your body, including sebum production. Sebum production increases when certain hormones, called androgens, are in high production. In addition, sebum becomes thicker and stickier, making it easier for it to grab onto dirt and dead skin cells and take up residency in your pores.
Environmental Stressors
Your skin is your largest organ, and it protects your entire body. It’s exposed to environmental stressors every day that can lead to irritation, infection, and, yes, blemishes.
Free radicals, which are unbalanced molecules that cause damage to your skin, can lead to skin irritation and acne.
Sources of free radicals include UV rays from the sun, cigarette smoke, and environmental pollution, just to name a few.
Improper Skincare
We’re all guilty of leaving our makeup on before bed every now and then, or maybe even skipping moisturizer if we’re in a hurry to get out the door. But over time, these practices can lead to habits that wreak havoc on your skin.
Using the wrong products can also cause your skin to break out more frequently. Unfortunately, most of the products that target pimples can strip your skin of its natural moisture barrier, interfere with its natural pH balance, and cause sebum production to increase to make up for the dryness.
It’s time to fight back with ingredients and methods that actually work.
Can You Combat Oil With Oil?
Like fighting fire with fire, using like-kind to dissolve and eliminate the over-production of like-kind works on your skin, too. For skin that is producing too much oil, that means fighting back with natural, plant-based oil that works synergistically with your skin to help regulate sebum production and protect the skin barrier.
A solution? Furtuna Skin’s single-origin, award-winning, organic extra virgin olive oil.
Here’s how to incorporate it into your skincare routine and eliminate the products that are harming your skin.
Stop Using Harsh Products
The products you’re using to fight your blemishes could be causing them. Read that again. Even though it can feel like sebum is your enemy, it’s a really important and beneficial oil your skin needs to maintain health and radiance.
When you use products that strip the skin of sebum and dry it out, your skin responds by producing more oil. The excess oil production can lead to a build-up that clogs pores.
Switch to Natural Ingredients
Plant-based ingredients contain phytonutrients and compounds that help keep your skin balanced and healthy. While not all synthetic ingredients are bad, plant-based ingredients offer your skin vitamins, minerals, and protective properties that are hard to duplicate in the lab.
One of the most powerful, natural ingredients you can use on blemish-prone skin is extra virgin olive oil.
How Can Extra Virgin Olive Oil Support Skin Health?
The olive tree produces a skin-loving oil that can help soothe irritation, protect against free radical damage, and help repair and restore the skin barrier.
Protecting the Skin Barrier
The skin barrier is home to a microbiome of flora that helps regulate the skin’s pH balance and keep your skin safe from infection. When the skin barrier is damaged by harsh products that strip it of moisture and deplete it of its natural flora, you can develop breakouts.
The extremely high vitamin E, vitamin K, and sterol content in extra virgin olive oil not only helps replenish and repair the moisture barrier, but it also works as an emollient, keeping skin soft and supple.
Helps Balance Natural Moisture Levels
Because blemishes form as a result of over-production of oil, you need a product that will help bring your skin’s moisture levels back into homeostasis. Drying products with harsh, oil-free ingredients can cause your skin to produce more oil, which can lead to more breakouts.
Extra virgin olive oil helps naturally balance your skin’s moisture levels, dissolving excess oil where it is produced and deeply hydrating dry areas.
Soothes Irritation
The high levels of the omega-9 fatty acid oleic acid give extra virgin olive oil the ability to soothe stressed skin, helping areas that are red, irritated, and uncomfortable settle down and gradually disappear. For skin that is prone to blemishes, this can be the difference in large, noticeable bumps or small, barely visible blemishes.
Does It Matter What Kind of Olive Oil I Use?
Yes! Not all oils are created equally. In fact, some olive oil could cause your blemishes to worsen. The key is to use products that contain the purest, most naturally undefiled extra virgin olive oil, and you’ll find those at Furtuna Skin.
What Makes Furtuna Skin Extra Virgin Olive Oil Different?
At the heart of every product we carefully craft at Furtuna Skin is our award-winning, organic extra virgin olive oil. You simply won’t find any olive oil in the world that compares. Our olive trees, grown on our private farm in Sicily, are between 600-1,500 years old and have grown in soil that is undefiled by chemicals, chlorinated water, or machinery that could bruise or damage the olives we hand-harvest.
The extra virgin olive oil we use in our products is the highest quality, food-grade, and extracted in a heat-free manner that preserves the fatty acid, antioxidant, and nutrient profile of the oil so your skin gets all the benefits. Here’s how we do it.
Free acidity. This measure defines the quality of olive oil by a set of standards determined by the European Commission.
The highest quality EVOO must have a free acidity lower than 0.8%. Some skincare products contain olive oil with a free acidity level of 2%. This isn’t just inedible, it’s not safe for skin. Furtuna Skin’s extra virgin olive oil is 0.18%, some of the lowest in the industry.
The lower the acid level, the higher the antioxidant level in the product, and the more beneficial to your skin.
Fatty acid quality. Extraction matters, and when heat is used to extract olive oil, the fatty acid content is diminished. We never use high heat or water to extract our oil.
A perfect balance between oleic acid and polyphenol content. Some olive oils contain unbalanced levels of fatty acids to other plant compounds called polyphenols. This can cause the olive oil to underperform on the skin.
At Furtuna Skin, our extra virgin olive oil is perfectly formulated to contain a balanced amount of fatty acids to polyphenols to ensure maximum skin benefit.
You’ll find our extra virgin olive oil infused into each and every one of our products. For blemish-prone skin, we recommend the Transformation Set, an uncomplicated, three-step process for cleansing, treating, and protecting your skin against breakouts and free radical damage.
For skin that needs serious soothing, Furtuna Skin’s Replenishing Balm contains ingredients that help quiet stressed skin and restore moisture balance.
Blemishes Be Gone!
You’ve got great skin, it just needs to be treated with ingredients that help it radiate health and wellness. Extra virgin olive oil can help soothe irritation, keep pores clarified, and allow your skin to thrive. Trust Furtuna Skin to deliver the highest quality extra virgin olive oil in products that work synergistically with your skin.
Sources:
Acne Symptoms and Causes | Mayo Clinic
Addressing Free Radical Oxidation in Acne Vulgaris | PMC
Potential Health Benefits of Olive Oil and Plant Polyphenols | MDPI.com
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