Cleansing wipes should be banned from your pm routine – here’s why

Cleansing

(Not so) breaking news in the skincare-world: Makeup cleansing wipes are bad.

While often beloved for their convenience, these quick-solution wipes can actually cause more long-term harm than you might think – both on your face and to our planet.

We get it, they’re very handy when it comes to the number one rule of healthy skin: never sleep with makeup on(!) – just a few rubs of the nice-smelling wipe, and the job is done, right?

Actually, there’re countless reasons why using cleansing wipes is doing your skin a disservice. We’ve lined up our most important reasons why you should only opt for wipes when other (read: better) options run out:

1. They don’t do the job

We hate to break it to you, but rather than removing makeup, build-up, and other skin pollutants, your wipe actually spreads it around on your skin. Meaning, if you don’t cleanse and rinse thoroughly afterwards, you’ll leave the grime to thrive on your face. Kind of defeats the purpose of a cleansing wipe, don’t you agree?

Remember: Most cleansing wipes are formulated to break down makeup, not cleanse the skin. Instead, try an indulging and treating double cleansing routine for clarifying and refreshing results.

2. They contain non-skin-friendly ingredients

To put it briefly, most wipes contain harmful ingredients such as alcohol and harsh chemicals that can disrupt your skin mantle (the layer that keeps all the goodies in and the bad stuff out of your skin), which can lead to breakouts, irritations, and inflammations. The takeaway: Your acid mantle protects you, so you should do your best to protect it too.

3. They’re a recipe for premature signs of aging

It’s quite ironic how most people view make up wipes as an easy choice for removing makeup, as the process often includes rubbing and tugging on the skin. Dragging your wipe across stubborn mascara is especially harmful, as the harsh movement can lead to tears in the delicate eye tissue.

Conclusion: You’re practically setting your skin up for premature signs of aging such as wrinkles and loose, dull skin by pulling it with your wipes. It seems that this quick fix isn’t so quick nor fixing after all.

4. They create unimaginable waste

Don’t even get us started on this one…

To put it into perspective: Try imagining your wipes as plastic bags. We know, it’s bad, right? Several one-time-use wipes are part of many people’s routines, creating a staggering waste daily. As the wipes aren’t recyclable or biodegradable, the harmful plastics and fibers get to contaminate oceans, food sources, and the overall environment (Not forgetting that they’re known to clog multiple drains daily…). So, not only will ditching the cleansing wipes protect your skin, but also the animals and nature around you.