If you’ve been dealing with Malessezia Folliculitis (an overproduction of yeast on the skin), finding Fungal Acne safe moisturizers is no easy task. The truth is the majority of moisturizers on the market do not contain fungal acne safe ingredients. In fact, there is still a lot of research and controversy about whether certain ingredients are actual triggers or not. I will break down the best fungal acne safe moisturizers for every skin type based on my own experience.
I happen to have combination skin. In the winter months, I use more moisturizing creams; in the summer months when it’s hotter, I stick to lightweight moisturizing gels. If I have dryer areas, I’ll just as a dab of a heavier moisturizer in that area. I have a fairly good idea based on my own skin type of what will work best on others. If you have combination skin, I recommend having both lighter and heavier fungal acne safe moisturizers on hand.
Fungal Acne Safe Moisturizers for Oily Skin
If you have oily skin, live in a humid climate, or tend to sweat a lot either naturally or from being active, you’ll want to use a lightweight fungal acne safe moisturizing gel. Luckily, these are actually much easier to find. Here are my personal favorites. There are also popular brands which I do not recommend and I am going to explain why as well.
- Clinique – Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel: This is what I personally use when I need a lighter moisturizer. It goes on as a weightless light cream and absorbs into the skin effortlessly. It is completely Fungal Acne Safe. If you are using a website called the folliculitis scout, please take note, they get a lot of information wrong. The ingredient, Helianthus Annuus Sunflower Seedcake, is actually a powder. It is not the same as sunflower oil which they have listed as a Mallasezia trigger. Helianthus Annuus Sunflower Seedcake is mainly a lecithin that helps treat inflammation and irritation of the skin.
- E.L.F. Super Hydrate Gel Moisturizer: I like this gel moisturizer because it is super budget friendly and only $12. While not quite as moisturizing as the Clinique Moisturizing Gel, it is definitely more so than a serum. This hydrating gel is especially great for those who have extremely oily skin or live in very humid climates.
- Murad Nutrient-Charged Water Gel – Hydration Face Moisturizer: Though pricey, this moisturizing gel is revered by it’s users and great for combination skin. Those with oily skin claim it does not make their skin more oily, and those with dry skin claim it still provides wonderful hydration. If you prefer more high-end skincare lines for anti-aging, then this is likely the one you want to use as it is full of vitamins and peptides.
- Garnier SkinActive Moisture Rescue Refreshing Gel-Cream for Oily/Combination Skin: This incredibly popular moisturizing gel is budget friendly and has over 12,000 5 star reviews. It is incredibly lightweight and absorbs into the skin quickly. This is probably the lightest moisturizer listed here.
- Garnier SkinActive Moisture Rescue Refreshing Gel-Cream for Dry Skin: This gel-cream by Garnier is super budget friendly and has over $1900 5 star reviews. It feels beautiful on the skin. However, even though it says it is a gel-cream, it is more of a gel and better for combination skin that is not super dry. This would not provide enough moisture for dry skin. It also has a slight fragrance.
Fungal Acne Safe Moisturizers for Dry Skin
Unfortunately, if you have dry skin, there are a lot fewer options when it comes to fungal acne safe moisturizers. However, there are a few I have used which I think are excellent.
- Krave Beauty Oat So Simple Water Cream: This cream is wonderful and uses squalane which is incredibly moisturizing as well as Oat Extract to calm and soothe the skin. It also has minimal ingredients which is always a plus in my book.
- Farmacy Daily Greens Oil-Free Gem Moisturizer: Even though this is a gel formula, it is incredibly moisturizing and made for dry, red, or irritated skin. It contains polyglutamic acid which is even more hydrating than hyaluronic acid.
- SkinFix Barrier+ Skin Barrier Niacinamide Restoring Gel Cream: This product is pretty remarkable and one of the only mainstream brands to actually promote that their cream is “free from known fungal blemish triggers”. It is specifically designed to promote and restore the skins moisture barrier. Though this brand is a little pricier, it’s worth it.
- Innisfree Youth-Enriched Cream: Though, not my favorite, this is a wildly popular rich cream and reasonably priced. My main reason for not liking it is that I do not like heavily scented products, but if this does not bother you, then you may want to give it a try.
- Cerave Moisturizing Cream: This popular cream is controversial because of the listed ingredient of CETEARYL ALCOHOL. Now, I have used Cerave for years with no issues and find it incredibly moisturizing without being heavy. After about 15 minutes, it is completely absorbed and I have had nothing but amazing results. There is no conclusive research that proves there are any issues with Cetearyl Alcohol. So if you have incredibly dry skin, then give it a try. If you have extremely irritated skin and you need to replenish your skin barrier, use SkinFix.
Fungal Acne Safe SPF
Using good fungal acne safe moisturizers and SPF go hand in hand. Here are the two SPFs I use and sometimes I even double them up together.
First, the Skin Aqua Moisture Milk SPF 50 is my holy grail sunscreen. It is amazing and super silkly on the skin with no white cast or irritation. it also causes no piling on the skin and works well with makeup. You can also just use this as your daily moisturizer. This SPF is great for dry skin.
If you have very oily skin or live in a humid climate, I recommend either TiZO3 Facial Mineral Sunscreen and Primer or TiZO2 Facial Mineral Sunscreen and Primer. These both go on with a matte finish and feel like a primer similar to Benefits Pore No More. I personally prefer the tinted, but either of these is great to use.
Products I Do Not Recommend
Finally, now that I’ve gone over my recommendations, I want to clarify that I do not recommend Hado Labo Plumping Cream. This is the only product that ended up breaking my skin out. After doing some research, there is a study that shows a lipid source when combined with arginine can increase the production of yeast on the skin and Hado Labo contains both Arginine and Squalane.
Maybe this is the reason, but I also found it to be very heavy on the skin, like a sticky paste. It did not absorb well and so I personally do not recommend it.
Second, The Avene Extreme Emulsion was discontinued and their other line of products are NOT Fungal Acne Safe. A very similar product is the La Roche-Posay Toleriane Sensitive Fluide Protective Moisturizer which is still available, however, they changed their formulation and it is no longer I product I recommend.
Both of these moisturizers had squalane as the main ingredient. Now the closest moisturizer to these would be the Krave Beauty Oat So Simple Water Cream. This moisturizer uses squalane and minimal ingredients. It is probably the best fungal acne safe moisturizer currently on the market so let’s hope they keep this formula the same!
Here is the full ingredient list for Krave Beauty Oat So Simple Cream: Water, Butylene Glycol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Squalane, 1,2-Hexanediol, Trehalose, Behenyl Alcohol, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/VP Copolymer, Avena Sativa (Oat) Meal Extract
I hope you found this article helpful and if you have any questions do not hesitate to leave a comment. Be sure to also check out my other articles below.
Sondra Barker
