Clinique’s 1-2-3—Just Say NO!

My intent with my writing is not to tear down other product lines, but in this case I can’t help myself! Clinique is thought to be a great product for problem (especially teenage) skin, and as you’ll read below I even used it as my first skin care product line as a teen. I have found professionally that these products usually cause problems with clients I have seen. Here is what one emailer sent me:

I have used Clinique but am not very happy with it. I am a new mom, and I think it’s time for a new me and a new skin care regimen. I am 39 years old. My skin is oily in the T-zone but dry everywhere else. Thirty minutes after I wash, it still looks like an oil slick, yet my skin feels taut and dehydrated. I have lines around my eyes from previous sun damage. My skin breaks out a lot, which I think is unusual for my age.

These comments are very common, so I will breakdown this email and explain what she could do.

Well, not happy actually

I have used Clinique but am not very happy with it. I have tested several of the Clinique products and many have turned out to be alkaline on the pH scale. Hopefully you know that you want to use pH balanced products (acidic) on your skin—only—and avoid products that are alkaline.

As a teenager I remember using Clinique as my first formal skin care line. And I also remember having to apply the yellow moisturizer twice before my skin felt hydrated. At this young age, I didn’t know the reason for this was because everything I had used up to that point (the soap cleanser and the Clarifying Lotion toner) was alkaline, basically drying the surface of my skin out and encouraging more oil to be produced to compensate. So beware if you are a Clinique user.

My skin is oily in the T-zone but dry everywhere else. Technically, you are probably oilier in the facial axis (T-zone) and normal everywhere else. You feel dry because alkaline products (like Clinique) remove too much oil and water from the surface of the skin. Thirty minutes after I wash, it still looks like an oil slick. This is because your oil glands are compensating for the loss of oil that was stripped from your skin by these alkaline products. Yet my skin feels taut and dehydrated. Exactly. This is the normal response to using alkaline products. Your skin feels dry but is truly just dehydrated—it has lost all the surface water and oil that normally holds in moisture and makes your skin feel soft and supple. Instead your skin feels tight and dry (dehydrated).

I am 39 years old, and I have lines around my eyes from previous sun damage. At 39 you will definitely start seeing the effects of the natural aging process. That you have had a lot of sun exposure will only increase the lines, for sure. But 39 is normal to start seeing lines (actually mid-30s), although your psyche is surely in disagreement.

My skin breaks out a lot, which I think is unusual for my age. The reasons for your breakouts need to be found out before passing judgment. Until you are no longer alive and as long as you have started puberty, you are going to be subject to full-functioning oil glands. So at 39, it is not unusual for you to be breaking out. Why you are having skin problems is the more important part of your question.

I recommend getting pH test papers so you can test all of the products you are using on your skin. Without this data, it is hard to determine if a product is pH balanced. Then, armed with this knowledge, you can be sure to use products that are acidic and therefore won’t strip the oil and water from your skin or otherwise cause many of the problems you are concerned about.

If you are not already using eye cream—start now. Only through the use of eye creams will you be able to moisturize the area where your crow’s feet are forming.

By changing your skin care routine (only using pH balanced products) and looking at your diet and how that may be contributing to your problem skin, hopefully you can start experiencing skin that reflects the proper care you are now giving it.

UPDATE: 3/2016

Here is a test I did looking for the pH of the Clinique 1-2-3 products. As you can clearly see in this photo, #2 and 3 have turned the paper dark green meaning those 2 products are alkaline. Apparently the cleanser is pH balanced—or acidic, which is good (that product didn’t turn the test papers a darkened color). The yellow soap, not pictured here, has always tested alkaline in the past.

For more information, see:

• Questions about pH and pH papers
• Here is a cleanser you DON’T want to use on your face! 
• Finding the Right Products—for You