Coconut oil is a very essential ingredient that proves to be helpful for the skin. Enriched with antioxidants and vitamin E, it heals and promotes more smooth and radiant skin. As coconut oil shares characteristics with the skin’s natural defenses being free of chemicals and made from natural extracts, it can aid in restoring the skin’s barrier function and promote healing from environmental or cosmetic damage. The debate arises about whether coconut oil can be used on the face or not.
Coconut oil is seen to improve skin elasticity and lessens itching sensation. Moreover, it helps to heal the cracks and keeps your skin hydrated by providing important lipids to your skin. It is often used as lip balm due as it helps soothe dry, chapped lips. However, its use on the face has not been suggested.
Why coconut oil is not to be used on face?
This is due to the fact that coconut oil is considered comedogenic which means that it can clog your pores, hence contributing to acne. Therefore, if you have acne prone skin then coconut oil is never a good option for your skin. It cannot perforate into the pores and thus result in suffocating the skin. Although coconut oil is used as a good soothing moisturiser, it is not recommended to apply on acne prone skin as it contains lauric acid and can cause irritation making the condition worse.
However, some contradict this opinion and say that lauric acid has antimicrobial properties that aid in the prevention of viruses and bacteria which makes it useful for treating minor skin infections. Moreover, the oil can help improve any rash and soothe dry skin by promoting a better recovery process but does not guarantee to work well for all skin types, in fact, it can trigger skin conditions like eczema and dermatitis so it’s always recommended to do a patch test in order to avoid worst case scenarios.
Despite the fact that coconut oil proves to be safe for most of people, but be careful if your skin is allergic to nuts, oil or you are prone to coconut solely. Furthermore, if one has oily skin, excessive use of coconut oil may also increase blackheads and whiteheads leading to inflammatory acne. In some cases, white or yellow bumps may develop on your skin as a result of clogged pores, especially where the skin is extremely soft and thin like under the eyes, making the scenario worse.
Coconut Oil as a makeup remover
Moving on to another point that sparks controversy regarding, is the use of coconut oil as a makeup remover, while some say that it is very effective and that its oily consistency helps remove all dirt and impurities, some say that it’s extremely unhygienic and not the suitable option, rather one should deeply cleanse and take makeup off the skin using a face wash or cleanser.
It’s always better to first consult with your dermatologist before using any product or oil as everyone has a certain skin type and not all products suit them. Since the face is a very important and sensitive part of the skin, one should always take it slow rather than experimenting and making things worse.