Skin Slugging: Why is this Trending?

Skin Slugging is a term that comes from K-Beauty (Korean Beauty). It involves coating the skin with a layer of Vaseline, petroleum jelly, or the like before going to bed. It acts to serve as a response to the common problem of dehydration in the skin.

The idea of skin slugging is to apply a thick layer of petrolatum onto the skin at bedtime. This will form an occlusive layer, prevent moisture loss during the night and therefore increase hydration levels in the skin. It is an extreme measure.

According to K-Beauty, moisture in the skin is paramount. And while we agree, we do see that skin slugging in this way is not only unnecessary but in fact potentially damaging to the skin (or at the very least, counterproductive).

Skin Hydration and the 15% Rule

The idea of skin slugging is to apply a thick layer of petrolatum onto the skin at bed time. This will form an occlusive layer, prevent moisture loss during the night and therefore increase hydration levels in the skin. It is an extreme measure. We believe it is not only unnecessary but in fact potentially damaging to the skin.

It is certainly true that the right level of hydration in the epidermis is important. We have been teaching our clients for over 20 years that the moisture content of the Stratum Corneum must not fall below 15%. Below that, we see various common symptoms that get progressively worse as the level of dehydration increases. We categorise them as follows in order of severity:

Symptoms that go hand in hand with the above are common issues such as sensitivity, diffused redness, rashes, perioral dermatitis, itching and tingling.

So we agree on the concept that skin hydration is a vital factor in skin health. Where do we disagree with slugging? The answer is found in careful study of the skin and in the term ‘hydro-lipidic barrier’.

Our skin’s natural barrier is a combination of water (hydro) and sebum (lipids/oils). It also contains some chemicals called NMFs (Natural Moisturising Factors) but that does not seem relevant in skin slugging. The skin barrier is not occlusive. In fact, the full term for this barrier is ‘hydro-lipidic permeability barrier’. For our skin to be healthy it must be protected by a ‘permeable’ barrier. It must be able to exchange water vapour, oxygen and carbon dioxide with the environment. Skin slugging – layering the skin with petrolatum – stops this exchange. This will generate pro-inflammatory reactive oxygen species (free radicals) and increased microbial growth. [1]  Prof. Wolfgang Raab of Vienna Dermatological University states that an occlusive layer on our skin will lead to disturbance in the production and maturation of skin cells. The skin’s natural barrier will be disrupted. (2) It would seem that Skin Slugging is not an optimal solution to the problem of dehydration of the skin.

OmniDerm have been offering a superior alternative to skin slugging since 1996

Scientists and dermatologists in Germany and in Italy have established in clinical trials that oil-based skin care creams ensure superior hydration of the skin. [3] These reverse emulsions are able to ensure perfect levels of skin hydration for 12 hours or longer. Water-based skin care creams, serums and the like are excellent delivery vehicles for actives but they lack the hydration potential of oil-based creams. This is why we are so often seeing the symptoms mentioned above, caused by a deficit of moisture in the skin.

A well-formulated oil-based cream works on three levels.

1. It will restrict the evaporation of precious water from the skin to natural, healthy levels. It is not occlusive – it allows the exchange of water vapour, oxygen and carbon dioxide just like the intact hydro-lipidic permeability barrier does. A light oil-based cream is the perfect repair and support medium for barrier-impaired skin.

2. This cream contains humectants that help to bind moisture in the Stratum Corneum. Humectants include, among others, biomimetic substances such as glycerine, lactates, urea, sodium PCA, hydrolysed collagen and hyaluronic acid. Generally a small selection of these actives is used, as preferred and chosen by the formulating chemist.

3. A third category of ingredients found in a well-formulated skin care cream are emollients. These impart softness and smoothness to the skin. Non-occlusive emollients include jojoba oil, glyceryl, certain stearates and castor oil. Suppliers of jojoba oil claim that it is remarkably similar to human sebum. It is therefore a very beneficial biomimetic ingredient.

Finally, well-hydrated skin is highly receptive to scientifically proven active ingredients the chemist will add to their formulation based on the skin conditions/concerns they are looking to target.

These are the reasons that we refer to our Dr. Spiller creams as ‘biomimetic’. They are oil-based. They mimic both the water retention capacity and the permeability of the skin’s natural barrier. The formulations include humectants and biomimetic NMF substances that optimise skin hydration. Note the word ‘optimise’ – we do not aim to ‘maximise’ because that would be equally undesirable as dehydrated skin. Maximise is what skin slugging does. It is not a natural condition of healthy skin.

Message from the author:
“Our greatest blessing today is the great variety of choices we have. Good choices are based on good information. You now have a new point of view about skin slugging that will better inform your choice in the care of your skin.

On another note, the industry has certainly come full circle. Experienced industry practitioners will remember the days when petrolatum and other hydrocarbons such as mineral oil were maligned to the extent that many popular brands eliminated them from their INCI listing. Now they are back, not in small percentages as in the past but as 100% Petroleum Jelly or other paraffin-like material.

This approach was not taken in the days of mineral oils and would have been unthinkable even before the trend away from hydrocarbons got underway. Whilst mineral oil, used in small percentages, can be beneficial to the skin we are surprised to see the enthusiastic uptake of petrolatum, this hitherto unloved lipid ingredient.”

[1] The New Ideal in Skin Health: Separating Fact From Fiction, Carl R. Thornfeldt, MD and Krista Bourne, LE, ISBN: 978-1-932633-69-6, Allured Business Media, Carol Stream, IL 60188 USA, p.63 and p.69

[3] J Bettinger, M. Gloor, W. Gehring, Influence of a pretreatment with emulsions on the dehydration of the skin by surfactants, Int. Journal of Cosmetic Science 16, 53-50, 1994; Alessandro Teglia, Antonella Mondelli, Influence of cosmetic treatments on the intercorrelations of skin elasticity, hydration and microrelief, 19th IFSCC Congress Sydney, October 1996.