Review: Cetaphil DermaControl Oil Control Moisturizer SPF 30

I was super excited when I found this product at Walgreens. I actually did not purchase it the first time I saw it because it retails for about $17 + tax and I am always hesitant to try new products because I break out very easily. After a week of thinking about it and trying to find reviews online (there was none at the time since this product is new), I caved in and bought one for my sister and me.

Product Claim

As stated on the box the product claims that it is "clinically proven to help manage oily skin" as well as, "lightweight formula absorbs quickly and provides a matte finish." The most important claim, at least for me, was that it is "formulated for acne-prone skin."

As for managing oily skin, I did not find this product to control my oily skin. I tried this product alone under make-up (liquid and powder), and found my face to be oily and in need of blotting within 3 hours. I then tried this product first, waited for it to absorb, then applied my favorite moisturizer Origins Make a Difference Skin Rejuvenating Treatment, then liquid foundation and found my face to be oily and in need of blotting within 4-5 hours. So, to make the long story short, if you buy this product hoping that it will control your oily skin, don't hold your breath. If you have dry skin, normal skin, or combination skin, this product might work for you.

This product is definitely lightweight. I don't feel it on my face once it fully absorbs.

The product is very thin and applies easily on the skin. It doesn't really dry to a matte finish. I mean, if you look at it, it is matte, however, when you touch it, you feel something there. Make sense? As for the claim of being formulated for acne-prone skin, I have not noticed breakouts from using this product. I have used this for 2 weeks.

Ingredients and Scent

Knowing the ingredients is always important to me, so count on me to include ingredients in my reviews. Again, please do your own research =) But, if you have any questions on any particular ingredient, let me know and I will try to help find information on it for you. The following ingredients were retrieved from Skin Deep.

• Avobenzone: a sunscreen agent that absorbs UV light.
• Octisalate: a sunscreen agent that is known to be a weak UV absorber.
• Octocrylene: a sunscreen agent that produces oxygen radicals upon exposure to UV light.
• Isopropyl lauroylsarcosinate: binder, skin conditioning agent, emolient.
• Glycerine: solvent, humectant.
• Dimethicone: sylicone based used as a lubricant or conditioning agent.
• Diisopropyl sebacate: emolient, solvent.
• Silica: anti-caking agent, absorbent.

As far as the scent, it has a very slight smell of sunscreen. Other than that, there is no other noticeable scent.

Packaging

The product comes in a pump bottle. One pump covers my whole face, and I use another pump for my neck and chest.

Final Thoughts

I have used Shiseido Ultimate Protection Cream for Face in the past and for some reason, after 4 or 5 months of use I started to break out so I stopped using it. After that I tried using Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Liquid Daily Sun Protection spf 55 and after 1 week of use I started to break out. So, for about 1 year now I have been trying to find a good lightweight sunscreen since my face is already so oily. I know how important sunscreen is for the face because after 1 year of not wearing sunscreen, I noticed my acne hyperpigmentation has gotten a lot worse as well as takes ages to fade away. So, hopefully I'm not speaking too soon by saying that this new Cetaphil sunscreen is my new favorite sunscreen. Hopefully (and I'm crossing my fingers), I won't all of a sudden start breaking out. If I do I will definitely update.

**Edit (1/17/13). While this product did not break me out, when the weather started to reach the Spring/Summer months, my makeup would just slide off my face =( For that reason, I stopped using this product and continued to use it just on my chest and arms.