We’re all for beauty shortcuts. And actually, now that we think about it, if we’re able to knock off a beauty step in the shower it’s way more likely to get done.
Shout out to in-shower body moisturisers and gradual tans, you guys are great.
But recently, we discovered an in shower no-no they’ve we’ve been doing since, well, forever. As it turns out, cleansing your face while under the steamy hot comfort of running water is less than ideal.
At least that’s what scientist and skin care lover, Hannah English, revealed in a recent ‘Ask Me Anything’ segment on Instagram. She explained that the water we use to wash ourselves in the shower is most likely too hot of a temperature for our delicate faces and that cool to lukewarm water is best (and more easily controlled by the sink).
And after a bit of further research, it seems most dermatologists agree with Hannah too…
Why shouldn’t we be washing our faces in the shower?
Essentially, the hotter your water is, the more drying it is.
“If you’re heating oils in the skin it’s likely you’re emulsifying, dissolving and literally washing them away,” consultant dermatologist, Dr. Justine Hextall, told Women’s Health. “These oils play an important role in protecting your face against external aggressors via the skin barrier.”
She also mentions that by washing your face in the shower, you could unknowingly be subjecting it to harsher ingredients as well as a hot temp, and that’s not an ideal combo. Think: the residue from your shampoo causing irritation, redness and flaking.
How should we be washing our faces?
Instead of the shower, Hannah prefers to use a lukewarm muslin cloth to cleanse her face. In fact, you can catch her entire routine via our Sunday Skin Diaries.
However, if you don’t want to give up your in-shower face cleanse, consciously turning down the temperature when you get to this step will help. Dr. Hextell also recommends facing away from the shower head (to save your complexion from the harsh water pressure) and letting the water run gently over your face from behind instead.
Is it better to wash your face before or after your shower?
If you are considering making the switch to the sink, it’s a good idea to shower first and then complete your face cleanse. This way the steam from your shower will open your pores and prepare it for the following skin care.
One last tip: Regardless of whether you wash your face at the shower or sink, it’s a good idea to store your cleanser outside of the shower to preserve the quality of the ingredients. “Anything containing active ingredients will degrade under the bright lights and warm, damp conditions in the shower,” says Dr. Hextall. So if you’re a big fan of AHAs and BHAs in your face wash, get it outta there.
5 face washes we’re loving right now:
- La Roche-Posay Toleriane Dermo Cleanser
- La Mav® Hydra-Calm Cleansing Crème
- Billie Goat Soap Gentle Cream Face Cleanser
- em&mary Coastal Naturals Facial Cleanser
- Amarānté Cleanse
Do you cleanse your face in the shower or at the sink?
Just switch water to lukewarm when washing face in shower – easy. I don’t have hot showers anyway so this article makes quite a general assumption that we all prefer the same.
Shower and sink. All same to me. Though I do not blast water directly into my face as I do not wash my hair every day.
A little guilty of doing the hot water face wash. Pretty hard to wash hair in shower and not get hot water on your face.
Oh need to switch
I tend to keep the water temperature in the shower luke warm.
I usually cleanse in the shower, but I don’t have hot showers: warm in winter & cool or cold in summer.
I cleanse in the shower and I am very aware of not having the water too hot. In Winter its something I watch very closely
I never wash my face in the shower.
I cleanse in the shower, but make sure isnt too hot when doing my face.
I remove my makeup at the sink, but I do my second cleanse under the shower. I never have the water really hot, because it dries out my skin.
Didn’t know that you shouldn’t be washing your face in the Shower, will remember not to do that anymore.
Ah good advice – I always wash my face first and it is pretty hot.
I like to wash my face in the shower but I make sure that the water isn’t hot
I do both but I now realise I should be more careful in the shower! omg
In the shower I usually wash my face first then turn up the temp for my body. I’m pretty sure I have it too hot for both.
I can’t be bothered washing my face in the sink afterwards, I just wash it in the shower, but the water is not too hot anyway
I do both, probably a bit too hot in the shower, oops!
Not to mention the waste of water wetting your whole body whilst washing your face or brushing your teeth in there.
I wash my face in the shower. I dont have my face submerged in water long. It’s quick and convenient. I’m guilty of having showers that are quite warm or hot as others would stare. I know it’s not ideal for skin. I do give my skin a burst of cold water from time to time.
I apply and massage product onto my face before I pop into the shower and I rinse it off in the shower.
I am guilty of too hot water, I cannot stand the cold…
Same 🙂
I cleanse my face at the sink but must admit I love the feel of warm water on my face in the shower.
My showers are not hot. But I do not out my face under the shower… I collect the water in my palms and splash it. I think the shower pressure is too harsh on my skin… Yes I’m obsessed. Haha!
My water is warm
I wash my face in the shower because the water is lukewarm like you mentioned. I never have hot showers even in winter.
Shower in the morning, sink at night for me
I wash my face in the shower, if I’m having a shower. At the basin if I’m not. I’ll remove my makeup first though with cotton pads and micellar water. Then wash my face at the end of my shower. Turn the water temperature down lower because I’ve always been told that hot water gives you broken capillaries!!!. Then just splash the lukewarm water until all product is removed. Never had any issues. I usually keep one cleanser in the shower and one at the basin.
I usually wash my face in the sink rather than in the shower but only because I keep my cleanser in the cabinet.
I do wash my fae in the shower in the morning but cleanse at the sink at night.
Couldn’t we just do the cloth thing she mentioned in the shower???
Good information, I’m using AHA cleanser at the moment and I do use it in the shower but won’t do that anymore after reading this article
I like to use a flannel
I do wash my face after shower.
I always wash my face under the shower in the morning (not too hot, and I always finish with cold water to wake me up haha), but use the handbasin at night.
OMG you’re saying I’ve been cleansing my face wrong for decades? Dr. Justine Hextall has only been practicing as a Dermatologist for 16 years.
I use the cold water then warm water that comes through the pipes of the shower before it comes through warm enough to shower.
My face even gets warm water over my face (not intentionally) when I wash or dye my hair. All of this has been working for me.
I wash at basin sink becasue that’s where my cleanser is and I’m very prone to broken capillaries, so hot water is a no go on my face.
Oh dear there is always someone telling us what we do is wrong…….
Interesting. I learned something new.
Good to know. If I’m lazy, I do wash my face in the shower
I’ve always told friends not to wash there face in the shower now I can send them this article! Haha.
I wash my face in the shower in the evening, but always splash the water from my hands, as I once read that if you stand directly under a running shower, it can cause burst capillaries (which explains why you sometimes see people with a reddish circle on their face!)
Ooops I mostly cleanse my face in the shower.
I use a flannel too and at the end of my shower I turn the hot water of, wet the flannel with cold water and then put it over my face to close my pores. I’ve always done it this way.
Always cleansed my face at the sink.
Yes they are nice and gentle too
too many broken capillaries from washing the face in the shower,,, now i turn it down, rinse with cool water and then was face outside in the sink.
I wash my face at the sink using luke warm water and a cream or foaming face cleanser in the morning. But I do wash my face in the shower at night and before I go to bed. However, I don’t like very hot showers and instead of lifting my face up to the shower head, I let the water run down over my face. So my shower water isn’t so hot as to cause broken capillaries. I will now remove my face cleansers from the shower cubicle so thank you for this article :).
I always wash my face after a shower at the sink when I clean my teeth. Interesting to hear that I have been doing it in a good way.
I’ll probably still wash my face in the shower though – it’s just so easy!
I always wash my face in the shower in the morning and at the basin at night, I was taught years ago not to remove your makeup in the shower as the steam opens your pores and pushes the makeup in further