Androgens are the hormones mostly responsible for oil production, and sometimes they can fluctuate, stimulating an increase in sebum production.
EXCES SEBUM SKIN
Hormones and oily skin seem to go hand in hand. Poor-quality cosmetics tend to be harsher, damaging the skin and making the sebaceous glands pump out more oil. For example, if you use a product for combination skin or dry skin when your skin type is actually oily, you can either dry out your face, causing more oil production, or use a product that is too greasy. It’s important to always use skincare products that are appropriate for your skin type, are of a high quality and are labeled as either oil-free or noncomedogenic. Many medications can also cause dehydration that leads to a production of excess oil. Oral contraceptives and hormone replacement medication can cause an increase in oil production, and acquiring oily skin is one of the possible side effects associated with taking certain kinds of steroids. Scrubbing too hard with washcloths, other abrasive tools or with coarse exfoliators will strip the skin of moisture, causing glands to overproduce oil – that’s why gentle cleansing is so important.
If your skin is looking shiny, the last thing you want to do is over wash your face using harsh products. Conversely, in arid or cold climates, skin can dry out, causing oil glands to go into overdrive to compensate. Humidity and hot weather tend to stimulate the secretion of sebum, leading to more oil on the skin.
Oily skin can be passed on through your genes, as having larger sebaceous glands that produce excess oil is a hereditary attribute that can be handed down the family tree. While it also stems from sebum blocking the hair follicle, it's a little more specific than your average sebum plug so don't be alarmed if your diagnosis has a more technical name-it may have a slightly different makeup, but the root of the issue is that excess oil trapped within your pores.If your mom or dad have oily skin, it’s likely you will have inherited the trait. For example, board-certified dermatologist Ellen Marmur, M.D., might diagnose sebaceous hyperplasia, which is "a pink doughnut-looking bump, usually multiple, that often grows after the age of 25 on the oily areas of the forehead, nose, and cheeks," she tells mbg. These oily bumps have a multitude of names with slightly different profiles. Your back, chest, and scalp are also common hotbeds for sebum plugs, but there are also other places (albeit, unlikely) they can pop up as well. While they're most common on the nose, chin, and forehead, says board-certified dermatologist Hadley King, M.D., sebum plugs can be found anywhere on the body that has sebaceous glands (i.e., everywhere except the palms of your hands and soles of your feet). Essentially, it's all in the name: Sebum plugs occur when sebum is quite literally plugging your sebaceous glands (a fancy term for pores). When you have an excess of sebum mixed with dead skin cells and bacteria, that buildup can block the oil from reaching the surface of your skin.
But it's when there's too much sebum that it becomes a problem. Everywhere on our body, our pores produce sebum, that yellow oil necessary for keeping our skin and hair moisturized.