What is coconut oil in skincare?
Coconut oil is extracted from the dried flesh of the coconut. It is unusual among plant oils in being mostly saturated fat – around half of it is lauric acid, a medium-chain fatty acid with strong antimicrobial activity.
Virgin coconut oil retains more of its polyphenols than refined. It is solid at room temperature, melts on contact with skin, and is highly occlusive, which is both its main strength and its main problem.
What skin concerns does coconut oil treat?
On dry body skin, hands, feet and cuticles it is an effective occlusive that reduces water loss, and research on plant oils credits it with anti-inflammatory and antibacterial effects, including activity relevant to atopic dermatitis.
On the face it is a different story: coconut oil rates high on the comedogenic scale and reliably causes congestion and breakouts in oily and acne-prone skin. Its lauric acid does inhibit acne bacteria, but the pore-clogging usually outweighs that.
What ingredients are best paired with coconut oil?
Treat it as a body occlusive. Apply it over a humectant such as glycerin or hyaluronic acid on damp skin, or over a ceramide lotion, so it seals rather than sits.
For the face, choose non-comedogenic alternatives: squalane, jojoba, rosehip or grapeseed oil give emollience without the congestion. It is also a good pre-shampoo hair treatment. Take our Skin Quiz.
What are dark spots?
Dark spots are localised patches where the skin has produced more melanin than the surrounding area. The umbrella term covers sun spots, post-acne marks, melasma patches and freckles – different causes, same visible result.
They are flat rather than raised, vary from light tan to deep brown, and are most noticeable on the face, hands and chest. In deeper skin tones they tend to be darker and to last considerably longer.
What causes dark spots?
Two mechanisms dominate. Ultraviolet exposure triggers protective melanin production, and inflammation – from acne, ingrown hairs, eczema, friction, burns or harsh treatments – leaves post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation behind as it heals.
Hormonal change, some medications and heat add to it. Picking at spots is one of the most avoidable causes: the extra inflammation reliably makes the mark darker and longer-lived than the original blemish.
What ingredients are best for dark spots?
Vitamin C, niacinamide and azelaic acid are the everyday workhorses. For stubborn pigment, alpha arbutin, tranexamic acid, kojic acid and liquorice root extract interrupt melanin production directly.
Retinoids and gentle AHAs clear pigmented cells faster from the surface. Give any routine twelve weeks before judging it, and wear broad-spectrum SPF daily or the spots will simply redarken. Take our Skin Quiz.
