Jo-Anne Bustamante, PA-CIt is important to understand that your face tends to have thinner skin and more oil glands than the skin on other parts of your body. The skin around your eyes is even thinner than others. Therefore, depending on what type of moisturizer you apply on your face, your facial skin can be more sensitive and more prone to breakouts. This does not necessarily mean that you cannot apply a body moisturizer on your face. A body moisturizer that is labeled “noncomedogenic” is generally safe to apply on your face. Noncomedogenic is a term used to describe skin care and makeup products that are formulated in such a way that they are not likely to clog pores or cause breakouts.
Before you apply body moisturizer on your face, be sure to examine the ingredients first. Many body moisturizers have strong fragrances as well as a wide variety of irritating ingredients, such as isopropyl palmitate or isopropyl myristate. These ingredients can cause problems for people who have acne-prone skin. Examples of nonirritating moisturizers that do not have any added perfumes or dyes include CeraVe, Cetaphil and Vanicream. Aside from these over-the-counter moisturizers there are also a few prescription strength moisturizers that are noncomedogenic and can safely be applied on the face, such as Hylatopic Plus Cream, Neosalus cream, and Epiceram. The bottom line when it comes to applying body moisturizer on your face is the type of skin you have (normal, dry, oily, acne-prone, sensitive, etc.) and whether or not the moisturizer is noncomedogenic.