Vaseline is the best-known brand of petroleum jelly, and most Indian homes have a tub somewhere. In winter it ends up on faces, often at night and often in thick layers. Whether that is a good idea depends on what you expect it to do.
What petroleum jelly is
Petroleum jelly is a soft mixture of hydrocarbons, refined from crude oil until it is colourless and odourless. Cosmetic grades are highly purified. The safety worries about contamination apply to unrefined material, not to the jelly sold for skin.
It contains no water and no active ingredients. It does one thing.
What it does: it seals
Skin is always losing water to the air, faster in dry winter air and faster still when the skin barrier is damaged. Petroleum jelly forms a film over the surface that water cannot easily pass through. Very few ingredients slow that loss as well.
This kind of ingredient is called an occlusive. Hydration and moisturisation explains how occlusives differ from humectants, which draw water in.
What it does not do: add water
Because it holds water in rather than adding it, petroleum jelly on dry skin seals in very little. The face feels greasy and stays tight underneath.
The fix is order. Apply it last, over damp skin or over a moisturiser, so there is water underneath to keep.
Vaseline on the face at night
Putting a thin layer of petroleum jelly over the rest of a night routine is sometimes called slugging. For dry, flaky or wind-chapped skin in winter it works well.
A few rules make it work better:
- Use very little. A pea-sized amount warmed between the fingers covers the face. A thick layer adds nothing but mess on the pillow
- Put it over gentle products only. A seal helps whatever is underneath sink in further. That is useful for a plain moisturiser and harsh with retinoids or exfoliating acids
- Keep it to dry areas if the rest of the face is oily. Cheeks and around the nose, not the forehead and chin
- Wash it off in the morning with a gentle cleanser
Does Vaseline clog pores?
Petroleum jelly molecules are too large to get into pores, and dermatologists generally regard it as non-comedogenic. What non-comedogenic means covers what that label can and cannot promise.
The catch is what it seals over. On skin that breaks out easily, a heavy layer can hold sweat, oil and other products against it, and some acne-prone people find their skin worse for it. If that happens, keep it to the driest patches or stop.
Where it helps most
- Winter dryness on the cheeks and around the nose
- Chapped skin from wind or a cold, including the skin under the nose
- Skin left dry by acne treatments, used on the dry areas only
- Dry lips, as a balm at night
For the body it does the same job: cracked heels, elbows and dry shins all do well with a layer on at night.
The claims it does not live up to
- Lightening or tan removal. Nothing in petroleum jelly affects pigment. Skin looks a little brighter when it is well sealed, because a smooth surface reflects light evenly
- Wrinkle removal. It plumps the surface of dry skin a little, so fine dry lines look softer. Deeper lines are unchanged
- Longer eyelashes. There is no evidence it makes lashes grow. A little on the lash line is harmless, but keep it out of the eye
Who should skip it
- Oily and acne-prone skin, at least across the whole face. Does oily skin need moisturiser covers the lighter options
- Humid weather. The seal is less needed and feels heavier
- Fresh burns or hot, inflamed skin. Cool the skin first and let a doctor look at anything blistered
How it compares with coconut oil
Both seal. Coconut oil also contains fatty acids that some skins react to and that are more likely to clog pores. Petroleum jelly is the more predictable of the two on a face. Coconut oil on the face covers the details.
Where the Cham range fits
No Cham product contains petroleum jelly.
The Brightening Face Cream lists glycerin, ceramide NP and C13-14 isoparaffin, a lighter relative from the same hydrocarbon family, so it hydrates and helps support the barrier without a heavy seal. On very dry winter nights, a thin layer of petroleum jelly over the cream is a reasonable combination. Winter skincare routine puts it in a full routine.
