The Skin Nerd: Why you should never use face wipes to cleanse your skin

Swiping skin with face wipes is never an alternative for proper cleansing and they are bad for the environment too

Face wipes do not properly cleanse the skin.

The culprit for congestion, redness and “drinkles” (aka dehydrated wrinkles)? Using face wipes to cleanse and remove makeup. Face wipes seem tempting when we’re desperate for our head to hit the pillow, and I can’t deny their convenience, but truth be told they’re doing more damage than good to your skin.

For starters, face wipes do not properly cleanse the skin. Unlike a thorough double cleanse, face wipes leave a film of residual makeup, excess sebum, SPF, dead skin cells, and physical pollution particles on the skin. Traces of debris make it much harder for active ingredients to penetrate the skin and work their magic. Using face wipes can also spread sebum, dead skin cells, and Cutibacterium acnes (acne-causing bacteria) across your face – a recipe for unwanted spots and blackheads.