Should I stop using the niacinmaide product if it turns foamy on my skin?
I have explained two possible scenarios and what you should do in each of these scenarios below:
Scenario 1 ~ The product on your skin is foamy, and your skin is irritated after use.
In this case, stop using the product. Not because it is foamy but because it irritates your skin.
How do you know if your skin is irritated? If your skin has some dry patches and is red & inflamed here and there, then your skin is irritated. Also, irritated skin feels a bit sensitive.
Scenario 2 ~ The product on your skin is foamy, but your skin is not irritated after use.
In this case, it is okay to continue using.
There could be several reasons for this foaminess, and you can do a few things to stop it from foaming. I have explained this in more detail below.
Reason for foamy, white patches on the skin when it is applied
The reason is an emulsifier in the product. An emulsifier is an ingredient that mixes the unlike ingredients in a product and brings them all together. Unlike ingredients, don’t mix with each other unless an emulsifier is used.
Without emulsifiers, a product will not work. Without emulsifiers, all the ingredients in the product will separate. So, an emulsifier is essential in a skincare product.
One thing about emulsifiers is that they have some surfactant properties. This is not a bad thing. However, it is essential to know that they have some surfactant properties. Surfactants are primary components of cleansing agents—they are the reason cleansing products cleanse and produce foam as they cleanse.
The range of surfactant properties in emulsifiers differs from emulsifier to emulsifier – in some, it is high, and in some, it is very low.
When you apply a niacinamide product, the primary reason for the foaminess and white patches is that you are rubbing that product a lot on the skin. Just as a cleansing product produces foam as you rub it, your niacinamide product will produce foam as you rub it.
But not all niacinamide products produce that foam…Why?
This is because not all emulsifiers behave the same way—their foam-producing property is not the same. For some, it is high; for some, it is very low; and for some, it is in between.
So, whether the product produces foam depends on the emulsifier used.
But what about the white stuff?
The white stuff is foam. The foam the product produces has very tiny bubbles, and all together, it appears as some white marks – but it’s foam.
Why does The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1% produce foam?
This product uses an emulsifier called isoceteth-20. This emulsifier is highly foam-producing.
So, does the foam product produced have anything to do with niacinamide?
Yes. It has to do with the emulsifier in the product.
Does the foam affect performance?
No.
But if your skin feels irritated and you have a burning sensation, stop using the product. Also, check the expiry date. If it is expired, stop using the product.
Otherwise, it should not affect the performance.
What can we do to reduce or prevent the foam?
~ You are probably using too much of the product. The more product you use, the more foam it produces. You only need a couple of drops for each section of your face. So, use less product
~ Don’t rub the product in your palms, and then apply it to your face. Pat the product on your face. Basically, first, take some product onto your palms or drop it directly onto your face, then pat that product on your face. Don’t rub.
~ Make sure your skin is dry before applying. It should not be wet. If you have applied a different product on the face, wait 30 seconds for it to dry and then apply this niacinamide product.