From battling breakouts in Singapore’s tropical heat to navigating the maze of K-beauty trends and TikTok routines, skincare is a daily challenge for teens and young adults. How different does this make skincare in Singapore different from the rest of the world?
Jane Kan,20,from Singapore, first got into skincare at the age of 9. “What prompted it was the popularisation of Korean culture and skincare. Isaw a lot of new korean celebrities advertising for big skincare companies and started getting interested in all these active ingredients such as cica and ginseng, cantella etc” she says.
Jane currently has a skincare routine that involves multiple steps. “ Currently I wash my face with cold water in the morning followed by a toner and sunscreen in the morning. Before bed I double cleanse. starting with an oil cleaner followed by a foaming wash. I use two serums after that and sometimes a facemask.” However, over the years Jane says that her routine has simplified with less products and her focus is on hydration and anti wrinkle serums.
Singapore has a tropical climate with a blend of humidity, high heat and frequent rain showers. Maintaining the health of your skin in these conditions can many times prove challenging. Jane says,”Singapore is very humid. Thankfully we don’t experience changing seasons so I don’t have to worry about my skin being oily one day and then dry and flaky during winter. Due to the humid and hot climate, I tend to perspire a lot and my skin tends to get a little oily by the end of the day.”
The T zone refers to the area across your forehead, nose and chin. It is shaped like the letter T hence the name. This part of your face has comparatively more oil glands than other parts and due to this it often gets greasy or shiny faster than the rest of your skin. Oily T zones can result in more shine, black heads, or break outs in that area, especially in hot and humid weather like in Singapore.
“Due to the humid and hot climate, I tend to perspire a lot and my skin tends to get a little oily by the end of the day. When I was younger I definitely found myself to have a more oily t-zone and had problems regarding clogged pores and some breakouts especially during puberty.’ says Jane.
With Singapore’s weather conditions usually being hot and humid, UV protection becomes extremely important for your skin.”I use a spf 50 ++ sunscreen every morning as part of my skincare routine whether I go out in the sun or not. On certain days where I am out under the sun for especially long hours, I also reapply my UV protection with a sunstick.” she says.
According to thompson medical acne is amongst the most common skin conditions that can develop due to Singapore’s climate.
“Growing up, acne was definitely something a lot of us experienced back home due to the humidity. whilst i have not personally experienced any fungal infections or heat rashes, i have heard of many people around who do experience these. ‘ COVID also had an adverse impact on jane’s skin,” Especially in our hot country, long hours of wearing the masks and not regularly changing new ones led me to develop quite severe acne for a few years. “
In order to treat her acne and take care of her skin, one of the biggest challenges Jane faced was finding the right products that were also affordable.
Read more about Your Weekly Supermarket Skicnare offers: http://Here is a recap of the best skincare offers in this week’s supermarket sweep
“ My biggest struggle in finding products that suit my skin in Singapore was finding products that are both affordable and light on the skin. Some of the cheaper products, while very hydrating, were quite thick and sometimes even irritated my skin and made me break out even more. It took me a while to find what suited me, but it was not a cheap process.”
When it comes to products, Singapore has seen an increasing trend in Korean products.The market is projected to reach US$14.784.8 billion by 2030, with an expected 11% compound annual growth rate from 2023 to 2030 according to Grand View Research.
Jane has also been an avid user of Korean products. She feels that Korean beauty companies are ‘ living in the year 3000 as they are always developing new products which uses new, unheard of natural ingredients.’
Jane says,”I gravitate towards using Korean skincare brands such as Reedle, VT cosmetics, Roundlab and Medicube. I find their products to be light, and non irritating and effective. They are also quite innovative and are always coming out with new products backed up by science and there always seem to be a new active ingredient which targets a certain skin issue.”
Jane usually sees promotions of products on social media and often researches them before buying them.
In general the climate in Singapore can lead to skin problems such as Acne or rashes and much more. It is important to take care of your skin and as we at Radiance always say, consult a dermatologist when necessary and make sure you do your research.
Jane says,”my advice i would give would be to focus on sun protection and to keep your routine to a minimum- focusing on protection and hydration. Sometimes less is more. “
