If you suffer from oily skin, the hot humid summer weather can mean that oily skin starts to become hard to manage.

Excess sweating, suncreams, hot swollen skin and external bacteria and dry dust and dirt in the air can send sebum production into overdrive and leave skin feeling extra oily which can cause make up to run and skin to look shiny, as well triggering breakouts as the excess sebum pools in swollen open skin pores.

However, while it’s understandable to see sebum as your enemy if you suffer from oily skin, in fact sebum is your body’s mechanism for protecting skin against any perceived threat. Any minor reactions to cosmetics or sun creams, swollen skin, over-scrubbed skin or sunburned skin triggers sebum to come to rushing to the rescue. It’s your skin’s natural healing moisturiser.

In short, sebum is not your skin’s enemy, in fact it’s the skin saviour so you don’t want to try and stop it, you just need to work with it by helping it to process in a healthier way that avoids secondary problems that can result in high sebum production.

Here are a dermatologist's five essential skincare hacks that can help improve sebum control in summer weather and keep oily skin feeling calmer, clearer and cleaner.

Exfoliating

Exfoliation is a tricky one because while its excellent for unclogging congested pores and improving skin cell production in oily skin, too much exfoliation can cause skin to become more sensitive and dry which in can trigger increased sebum production.

On the other hand, during the summer months when oily skin can have a tendency to ramp up sebum production, it’s beneficial to increase exfoliation.

Dermatologist Dr Eva Melegh says, “when increasing exfoliation to perhaps daily when the skin is especially oily, it’s important not to use a harsh exfoliant such as those containing salicylic acid or increasing the use of chemical exfoliants. Doing this can result in making the skin more sensitive and drying it out which will only trigger more sebum production.”

If you begin to exfoliate more often such as during summer weather, it’s more effective and better for your skin to switch to a more natural and gentler exfoliant with ingredients that mimic the actions of harsher chemical exfoliants but in a less severe way to keep pores clean without risking triggering dryness or sensitivity.

Clarol Silver & Birch Exfoliating Wash contains two main ingredients are Birch Bark and Microsilver ™. Birch Bark contains natural and gentler equivalents of both salicylic acid and methyl salicylate which are found in chemical form in many exfoliating products aimed as oily and acne prone skin. Microsilver is a smart naturally derived anti-bacterial agent that kills off bad acne bacteria while feeding good skin bacteria, effectively re-balances skin flora.

Purifying

The key to not only preventing pore clogging from increased sebum production but also to controlling how much excess sebum is produced is not trying to dry up sebum, which only results in the body producing more sebum to compensate, but to keep the sebum being produced pure and uncontaminated.

Acne isn’t caused by greasy skin, it’s the sebum pooling and then going ‘rotten’ in the skin pore that causes the problem.

Acne is caused by the oxidisation of excess sebum as it reaches the skin’s surface mixed with external dirt and bacteria. This contaminated mix causes the sebum to quickly become rancid, leading to pore blockages and inflammation.

“What works better for both controlling and regulating increased sebum production is to keep the sebum preserved and clean as it passes out through the skin pore. This method of subtle intervention doesn’t alert the body to produce more sebum, if anything it’s likely to signal the body that there is less urgent need to produce so much sebum and so it will naturally start to regulate itself,” says Dr Melegh.

Clarol Sebopure is an innovative treatment whose sole function is to keep sebum production pure via a patented ingredient derived from wild mustard leaf oil called Pixalia™. Pixalia™ has been proven as an active sebum preserver. This ingredient doesn't attack the skin’s natural sebum production process through the use of sebum blocking mechanisms. Sebopure works in harmony with the skin’s natural sebum production, keeping sebum pure to prevent acne while not damaging or drying skin.

Toning

Toning is beneficial for oily summer skin because toners are lighter than normal cleaners so they help to remove excess oil, dirt, and makeup residue that can clog pores while also helping to balance the skin's pH, making it less prone to excess oil production and minimizing the appearance of pore. Toners help to create a clean base for other skincare products, giving them better ‘sticking power’ on oily skin.

“Toners are excellent for cleaning oily skin, especially in summer as they are a lighter alternative to normal cleansers. Ones with pore-minimising ingredients can be especially useful for oily summer skin. A double system of cleansing first with a gentle exfoliant followed by a toner to which will clean away all residue and freshen up oily skin and tighten gaping skin pores is a great way to clean oily summer skin. You can put toners in the fridge in hot weather for an even fresher feel on hot oily skin.”

Clarol Nordic Birch Pore-Minimising Toner is a bioactive skin toner containing two Nordic plant extracts, Nordic Birch Sap and Wild Red Clover, which is designed to help to minimise open pores and balance tone in oily acne-prone skin.

Studies show that Nordic Birch Sap, which grows throughout the Nordic region and in particular in Finland, helps improve skin tone and elasticity and leaves the skin with a smoother texture thanks to the birch sap’s natural film-like protective and skin smoothing composition.

Extract of Wild Red Clover, that grows in abundance in Artic regions, is incorporated into the patented extract Miniporyl ™ and is proven to help tighten gaping skin pores and give an instantly smoother skin tone,

The combination of these two Nordic bioactives helps to improve texture and smoothness and shrink open pores in oily and acne-prone skin.

Priming

Primers are an essential addition to your skincare routine if you suffer from oily summer skin as they help to soak up excess oil throughout the day and reduce that dreaded shiny appearance.

All primers are not born equal ad though some may work for their primary function, they can trigger the body to start producing more sebum if they are too basic in their function, acting more like blotting paper without any other therapeutic or protective actions.

If you suffer from oily skin that is prone to acne you want a primer that also includes other ingredients for guarding against acne.

“Primers for oily skin are effective in the short term for the application of cosmetics, however if they use talc ingredients or silicone, in the longer term this can end up causing congestion in the skin pore which combined with excess sebum can lead to inflammation and acne. It’s better to look for primers whose only focus isn’t to simply ‘blot’ sebum, they need to also have therapeutic ingredients with some preventative and protective action,” says Dr Melegh.

Clarol Nordic Birch & Japanese Algae Mattifying Primer is formulated with a bioactive blend of Nordic Birch sap, Japanese Algae and a targeted skin prebiotic. The lightweight primer forms a breathable, invisible bioactive barrier that helps reduce the impact of external irritants while refining skin texture, reducing inflammation and underlying redness and improving the appearance of uneven tone and creates a matt base for other products.

The sap from the birch tree has been proven in studies to help improve elasticity and integrity of damaged skin as well as offering an immediate skin-smoothing action due to the natural film-like composition of the birch sap.

The Japanese Algae extract (Sacran) is derived from Aphanothece sacrum, a rare freshwater alga traditionally cultivated in Japan and known for its exceptional water-retention and skin-shielding properties. Sacran forms a breathable, protective film over the skin, helping to defend against external irritants like pollution and bacteria.

The primer also incorporates a plant-based skin prebiotic Inulin, which is extracted from chicory root (Cichorium intybus). It works by supporting the balance of the skin’s natural microbiota, helping to maintain a healthy skin environment. By encouraging the growth of beneficial surface bacteria, Inulin helps reinforce the skin barrier, smooth texture, and reduce moisture loss.

Protecting

Sometimes it’s mistakenly thought that sun can help ‘dry out’ oily skin or that oily skin is more resilient against UV damage. Both of these are a myths. Oily skin is just as vulnerable to UV damage as normal skin. In fact, if oily skin gets sun damaged often the body will produce even more sebum to try and address the damage.

“When the skin gets sun burned it first becomes inflamed and then it becomes dry. If you suffer from oily skin, then sun damage is likely to trigger an increase in sebum production,” says Dr Melegh.

However, many suncreams can add to the oiliness of skin as they are oily formulas. So while it’s very important to use an SPF if you have oily skin, which SPF you use can makes a huge difference to helping or hindering oily skin.

Mineral SPF’s and in particular those containing zinc oxide are great for oily skin because they offer high factor sun protection, the zinc itself has excellent sticking power and so doesn’t slide off oily skin and zinc oxide has a natural anti-inflammatory effect so helps keep skin calmer.

Kalme Day Defence contains pure zinc oxide SPF plus an anti-redness ingredient take from young caper buds and potent antioxidants to help calm down inflammation. It’s also free from perfumes ad chemicals and so great for very sensitive skin. When applied it has a mildly mattifying effect making it ideal for oily skin.