Can You Use Body Wash On Your Face?

There’s nothing more relaxing than getting into the shower after a long day or a sweaty workout and lathering yourself up with your aromatic body wash.

You can feel the dirt and grime washing away down the drain, leaving you smelling fresh and squeaky clean.

Your face can get sweaty and dirty, too.

And it can be very tempting to put the same body wash on your face, especially when your face feels extra greasy.

Admit it, you’ve probably done that once or twice, when you’ve forgotten to buy a new face wash. “What’s the harm?” you think, “It’s just soap!”

But unfortunately, there is a reason why face wash and body wash exist as two separate products.

Can you use body wash on your face?

Technically, you can, but doing it regularly is actually bad for your skin. The skin on your face is thinner and more sensitive than the skin on your body so that body washes can be too harsh for it. It can lead to breakouts and dryness if applied too frequently to the face.

Read on for more information on why it’s beneficial to have a separate routine for your face and body.

Why Using Body Wash On Your Face Is A Bad Idea

Here are the main reasons why you shouldn’t use body wash on your face:

The skin on your face is much thinner than the skin on your body. This means chemicals more easily penetrate it and require gentle care.

The skin on your face dries out much quicker than the skin on your body, especially if you use chemicals like sulfates and fragrances, which are often found in body washes.

Individuals with thin skin are also more prone to irritation. Basically, it’s more delicate. And the ingredients in your body wash are a little too “heavy-duty” for the delicate skin of your face.

The skin on your face also has a much faster turnover rate. The turnover rate refers to the speed at which old skin cells die and are replaced by new ones, contributing to the skin’s thinness and sensitivity.

The fresh “baby” skin cells are soft and delicate, making your face more sensitive overall.

The body, on the other hand, has a much slower turnover rate, which means there are more old and calloused skin cells protecting the “baby” skin cells underneath.

That’s why it’s perfectly safe to put stronger and harsher chemicals on the skin of your body – there is a layer of protection.

Some areas of your body also have calluses and extra layers of epidermis on them.

Think of your hands or your feet – they encounter so much friction throughout the day that they develop thick skin.

This skin can handle rubbing, scrubbing, exfoliating, and lathering in a way that the skin on your face never could.

Another thing to consider is that your face is constantly exposed to the sun (even in cloudy conditions) because you’re rarely wearing any clothes or coverings on your face.

Constant exposure to UV rays can cause slight damage to your skin and increase its susceptibility to dryness and irritation.

This is yet another reason to use specialized face washes on your face: they’re often gentle and contain healing ingredients that help replenish and nourish the skin.

Your body wash typically doesn’t include these types of ingredients.

Ingredients in body wash are designed to clean off sweat, grease, and grime.

This is why body wash often contains SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate), a powerful detergent and lathering agent.

It’s really good at removing dirt and grease, but when applied to the face, it will remove the “good” oils that your face needs to protect its moisture barrier.

What Happens If You Use Body Wash On Your Face

If you’ve used some body wash on your face once or twice, don’t worry.

You’re likely not going to ruin your face by just doing it once or twice.

Many of us find ourselves without proper face wash from time to time, especially when traveling and staying at hotels.

In those instances, it’s perfectly ok to use body wash on your face.

It’s better to have a clean face than a dirty face after traveling, so pick the lesser of two evils!

But what happens if you’re using body wash on your face every day?

After a week or two, you’ll begin to experience some effects. The most common issues are:

Dryness and flaking
Irritation – redness, itchiness, puffiness
Breakouts

The SLS and fragrances found in body wash will slowly strip away your natural facial oils, which protect your skin’s moisture barrier.

Without the moisture barrier, your facial skin will begin to lose hydration and become dry and flaky.

When it has no moisture barrier, it becomes exposed and vulnerable to other chemicals, such as fragrances found in body wash.

This could lead to irritation and redness.

With no moisture barrier and the whole balance of your skin being thrown off, your skin will begin to act out – you’ll notice more bumps, pimples, and blackheads.

It’s challenging to repair the moisture barrier on your skin, and the process can take weeks.

So it’s better to prevent this from happening altogether with a high-quality face wash.

Over time, skin that lacks a moisture barrier will start to show early signs of aging and wrinkles.

Although it’s not a direct result of using body wash, signs of aging are an unfortunate and inevitable consequence of using the wrong product on your face.

Face Wash Vs. Body Wash

So, what’s so different about face wash that makes it safer to use on the skin of your face? The primary difference lies in the ingredients.

We already touched upon some of the ingredients of body wash, namely SLS and fragrances.

These ingredients aren’t “bad” – they are just not suitable for your face.

They’re perfectly safe to use on your body!

In fact, they are key to cleaning sweat and grime off your body, leaving your back free from blackheads and your armpits smelling fresh.

Additionally, body wash often contains parabens, sulfates, and synthetic dyes, all of which can irritate the delicate skin on your face.

Face washes are formulated with your facial skin in mind. They are much gentler.

They clean your face without stripping your oils because they don’t contain SLS or other sulfates.

Instead, they often rely on natural plant oils to gently remove dirt and bacteria without disturbing your natural moisture barrier.

You’ll notice that most face washes don’t create a lot of foam – that’s because there are no detergents, like SLS, in the formulation of your face wash.

A good face wash also won’t contain any artificial fragrances.

Your face doesn’t get stinky as your armpits do, so why douse it with an irritating fragrance?

Fragrances can irritate and dry out your skin, so most face washes omit them from the ingredients.

Many face washes contain additional healing and hydrating ingredients that are not typically found in body wash.

These ingredients include aloe vera, jojoba oil, essential oils, ceramides, and other skin-friendly ingredients (we love this face wash from CeraVe).

The purpose of these ingredients is to balance out your skin, hydrate it, and help maintain its pH balance.

Your body doesn’t really need most of these ingredients.

The skin on your body is much less fussy. As a result, most body washes don’t contain these healing and nourishing ingredients.

Meanwhile, the skin on your face loves these formulations.

They help keep your skin moisturized and healthy, preventing irritation, blackheads, and pimples.

Can You Use Moisturizing Body Wash On Your Face?

Some people have sensitive skin all over their body, which means regular body wash doesn’t work for them either.

They can usually find a special body wash that is designed to be more moisturizing and less irritating than traditional body wash.

Can this type of “moisturizing” body wash be used on the face?

It’s probably better for your face than plain body wash because it contains more hydrating ingredients; however, it likely still contains fragrances, which can be detrimental to your face.

It might also contain sulfates and parabens, so although it’s slightly better than regular body wash, it’s still not ideal for your face.

Your best bet is to read the ingredients list and see if it contains anything that would usually irritate your face.