silicone

[p800asia]

I am confused. I want to add silicone like Cyclomethicone and Dimethicone to my DIY skincare products. Sometimes I heard that it creates a breathable layer on the skin, which helps to guard the skin from external irritations, and will not clog the pores, but sometimes, I was told it's actually bad to your skin.

"Silicone emollients are occlusive - that is they coat the skin, trapping anything beneath it, and do not allow the skin to breathe (much like plastic wrap would do.) Recent studies have indicated that prolonged exposure of the skin to sweat, by occlusion, causes skin irritation. Some synthetic emollients are known tumour promoters and accumulate in the liver and lymph nodes. They are also non-biodegradable, causing negative environmental impact."

So is silicone good or bad? Thank you.

[orangehrzn]

I use silicone mattifier which is sold as 'chaffing relief protective gel'. Never got any breakout from it. On the other hand many 'natural oils' will give you quite a few pimples, exceptions are Emu and Jojoba oils.

[Dfontaine]

as far as I know, skin doesn't breath. I think that saying "let your skin breath" meant something more like "air out" or "take a rest" which is something I think is probably very important. Meaning, take a few days off now and then from your entire regime and let your skin adjust naturally.

I haven't seen many studies on how much oxygen gets into the skin from the air but the skin is not a breathing organ.

Silicones are basically used in skin products for cosmetic reasons (slip and texture) and I've seen websites (can't trust everyone) that claim they act as carriers to the carrier oils, then seal the skin.

Long story short IMO, the skin doesn't breath and it's not a bad thing to seal the skin.

[PattiK]

I've read that silicones limit penetration of actives, so if you use a product with silicones it should be the last thing in your routine.