What Causes Oily Skin in Men? Hormones, Heat and Habits Explained

Your forehead shines by 11 am and you have already washed twice. Here is what is going on under the skin, why men get it worse, and the few things that help.

By Abhishek Jain 17 Oct 202616 min read

Illustration of a young Indian man in the back seat of an auto-rickshaw in afternoon traffic, a light shine on his forehead

Men's skin makes more oil than women's because male hormones set how hard the oil glands work. Heat, humidity, age and genes change the amount, and washing too hard makes it worse. You cannot switch the glands off, but a short routine with the right actives can keep the shine under control.

It is 9.40 am on the Delhi Metro in June. The coach is air-conditioned. You washed your face an hour ago. Somewhere between Rajiv Chowk and Hauz Khas, your forehead has started to shine anyway.

By lunch, the phone screen slides on your cheek. By 4 pm, the office washroom mirror shows a nose that could signal ships. You wash again. By 6 pm it is back.

So what is going on? Why does this happen to you, and not to the colleague with the dry, papery skin at the next desk?

The short answer

Your skin makes an oil called sebum. Male hormones tell the glands how much to make, which is why men run oilier than women. Heat and humidity turn the output up, over-washing makes it worse, and your genes set the baseline. None of that is your fault. The fix is not more washing. It is a short oil control routine that lowers the shine without stripping the skin.

Why Does Men's Skin Make So Much Oil?

Every pore on your face has a small gland attached to it. It makes sebum, a mix of fats and waxes. A 2017 review of oily skin says these glands are packed most tightly on the face, upper chest and back. That is the same map as pimples, and that is not a coincidence.

Think of each gland as a tap. Hormones decide how far the tap is open. Heat turns it a little further. A face wash only wipes up the water on the floor. It cannot reach the tap.

The taps never stop. The same review puts the average adult output at about 1 mg of sebum every three hours from a patch of skin roughly 3 cm by 3 cm. Sleep for eight hours, and the night shift has built a full film. That is why your face is at its oiliest when you wake up.

The review also says something worth hearing. Why one man's taps run harder than another's is still not fully explained. So if your skin is oilier than your brother's, nobody can yet tell you exactly why. The face wash guide for oily skin covers what to do about the floor.

Labelled cross-section diagram of human skin showing the epidermis, dermis, a hair follicle and the sebaceous gland attached to it — The sebaceous gland is the small sac beside the hair. It empties oil into the pore, and your hormones set how hard it works. (Photo Credit: BruceBlaus, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0)

Is Oily Skin Caused by High Testosterone?

Not in the way most men think. Hormones run the glands, but oily skin is not a sign that your testosterone is high.

Here is the science. The 2017 review says androgens, the male hormones, drive the growth of oil glands and the amount of sebum they make. The strongest one is DHT, a form of testosterone. The gland makes its own DHT from the testosterone in your blood. The review says men make more sebum than women, and it puts that down to higher testosterone.

Hormones are not optional here. A 1993 study measured people whose bodies cannot respond to male hormones at all. They made no sebum. Their foreheads matched those of small children.

But more hormone does not mean more oil. A 1999 study of skin samples compared men with acne to men without it. Blood hormone levels were the same in both groups. What differed was the gland itself. The enzyme that turns testosterone into DHT was more active in men's glands than in women's. In plain words, oily skin is about how your glands respond to normal hormone levels. It is not about having extra hormone. A blood test will not explain your forehead.

Men versus women. A German study of 300 people aged 20 to 74 found men's sebum higher at every age. It stayed stable with age, while women's fell. One Indian study is worth a look too. Doctors in Bhavnagar measured 500 healthy volunteers aged 5 to 70. They found no clear difference between men and women. They did find that the nose was the oiliest spot at every age, and that sebum was higher in the middle and older age groups. Different tools and different cities give different answers. The honest summary is that men tend to run oilier, and nobody's nose is innocent.

Age. The 2017 review says sebum jumps at puberty and in men does not drop until the sixties or seventies. Your glands retire at sixty. Until then they show up every day, including Sundays.

Genes. A Korean study of 388 identical and 82 non-identical twin pairs put the genetic share of sebum output at about 21 per cent. Most of the rest came from environment, especially the one a family shares. So your father's shine is partly in your genes and partly in the same city, food and bathroom habits.

The gym exception. This one is a real hormone problem. A 2023 dermatology paper on bodybuilders explains why. Anabolic steroids are man-made testosterone. They enlarge the oil glands, and the paper reports acne in 43 per cent of users. If the shine and the pimples arrived with a new supplement from someone at the gym, that is the cause, and it can leave scars.

Why Is My Face So Oily in Humid Weather?

Because heat opens the tap. The 2017 review says several studies found more sebum in spring, summer and humid climates. It lists humid climate as a risk factor for oily skin. If you live in Mumbai, Chennai or Kolkata, your climate is on the list for most of the year.

The numbers back it up. A study of 100 Korean men aged 20 to 59 measured the same men in summer and winter. Sebum was higher in summer, and the men had more visible pores in summer too. An older British experiment warmed the skin directly. A 1973 cosmetic science paper reports the result: about 10 per cent more sebum for every 1°C rise in skin temperature.

Now think about your day. A helmet in May traffic. A site visit at noon. The walk from the metro at 2 pm. Each one warms your face, and the glands answer. Pores look bigger in summer for the same reason, which the open pores guide explains.

Sweat makes it look worse than it is. Sweat is water, not oil, but it spreads the oil film across the face and catches the dust on the ride home. That mix is what a face wash with salicylic acid is for after a sweaty commute. The after-workout guide covers the gym version.

Winter is the quieter season. Less heat, less oil. The Korean men made less sebum in winter. If your face feels less oily in a Delhi December, that is not your new skin type. It is the weather, and June will return.

What Can Men Do About Oily Skin?

You cannot close the tap. You can lower the pressure and mop the floor better. The evidence points to three actives and four steps.

Niacinamide, a form of vitamin B3. A trial of 100 Japanese volunteers used a 2% niacinamide moisturizer for four weeks against a placebo. The niacinamide group had a lower sebum excretion rate at week 2 and again at week 4. A smaller study of 30 white volunteers over six weeks saw less oil on the surface but no change in the rate. So the result is strongest in Asian skin, and it builds over weeks. THERŌ's Active Oil Control serum carries niacinamide at 5%. The product page says it helps control excess oil and refine the look of pores. The niacinamide serum guide has the full story.

Salicylic acid. It is an acid that dissolves in oil, not water. A 2015 review says that lets it collect inside the pore, where the oil and dead cells build up, and clear the plug. That is why it sits in every product in the oil control range. The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) notes that acids like this help reduce oiliness but can be too harsh for some skin. Start with one product and patch test.

Green tea. The 2017 review lists two small studies. Ten patients used a 3% green tea emulsion for eight weeks, and 22 people used one for 60 days, and both saw less sebum. Small numbers, so treat it as a helpful extra, not the main act. It is in the Active Oil Control moisturizer along with salicylic acid.

Here is the routine. Four steps, under two minutes.

Cleanse, twice a day. The AAD says to cleanse up to twice daily and after sweating. Use a gentle foaming wash. Lukewarm water, fingertips, no scrubbing. A niacinamide and salicylic acid face wash does the job in 30 seconds. The mild face wash guide explains why twice is the number.
Treat. Pat dry. Put 3 to 5 drops of a niacinamide serum on the face and neck, morning and night. Give it four weeks before you judge it.
Moisturise. Yes, even you. The AAD puts moisturizer right after cleansing. A lightweight moisturizer made for oily skin stops the tight feeling that makes men over-wash. The moisturizer for oily skin article explains why skipping it backfires.
Protect. Sunscreen every morning. The AAD asks for it outdoors, and it matters more once you use acids. Pick a light gel or fluid and reapply if you are out at noon.

For the 4 pm shine, the AAD has one more tip. Blotting papers, pressed on, not rubbed. The one piece of office stationery that works on your forehead.

Illustration of an Indian man at an office desk pressing a small blotting sheet to his forehead, laptop and a steel water bottle in front of him — Press, do not rub. Rubbing spreads the oil around and the paper ends up cleaning the wrong half of your face. (AI-generated image)

Mistakes and Myths That Make Oily Skin Worse

Washing five times a day. It feels right and it backfires. An Indian dermatology review says scrubbing with soap and water several times a day only aggravates acne. It even has a name for the result: acne detergicans. The AAD adds that a face wash that is too harsh can irritate the skin and trigger more oil. Twice. That is the number.

Bar soap on the face. The same Indian review puts bar soap at pH 9 to 10. Skin is mildly acidic. Soap strips the fats that hold the skin together, so the face feels tight and then shines again. The soap versus face wash guide has the details. Keep the bar for the body.

Ice cubes and cold water. Ice feels wonderful in May. So does a cold drink. Neither one changes what your glands do. The AAD asks for lukewarm water for washing. Pores do not open and close with temperature, and an ice cube cannot reach the gland.

Drinking more water to dry out the face. A 2018 review of six studies found the evidence on water and skin weak. It called the link between water intake and sebum unclear. Drink water for your body. It will not turn off your forehead.

Blaming dinner. Food has a small say in pimples and not much in shine. A 2022 review of 34 studies looked at high glycaemic foods, the white rice, maida and sugar kind. It found a modest but real pro-acne effect. The dairy evidence was mixed. One trial in that review saw people rate their skin as less oily on a low glycaemic diet. That was a self-rating, not a measurement. Eat better for the pimples, and see the pimples guide for the rest.

Blaming stress. Stress gets blamed for everything, and here it is only half guilty. A study of 94 school students in Singapore measured sebum before exams and during holidays. The oil did not change. Acne got worse under stress, especially in the boys. So exam week will not make you shinier, but it can make the pimples angrier.

Skipping moisturizer. Stripped skin feels tight and still shines. The AAD puts moisturizer right after cleansing. Pick a light one made for oily skin, not your father's cold cream.

A steroid or "fairness" cream from the chemist. This is not a myth. It is a hazard. A study across 12 Indian dermatology centres screened 2,926 patients with facial skin problems. Of those, 433 were using a steroid cream, most without a doctor's advice. Of the users, 29 per cent had it as a fairness or general-purpose cream. Side effects showed up in 392 of the 433 users, and the most common one was acne or worse acne. No tube from the counter is worth that.

How Long Until Oily Skin Improves?

Be honest with yourself about the two speeds here.

A face wash works in 30 seconds and lasts a few hours. It clears the oil already on the surface. It cannot change how much the glands make.

Leave-on products work over weeks. In the Japanese trial, 2% niacinamide lowered the sebum rate by week 2 and again by week 4. That is the honest timeline for a niacinamide serum: four weeks of daily use before you judge it.

Seasons move it too. Expect more shine from March to October and less in a north Indian winter. And the 2017 review says men's sebum falls in the sixties. So oily skin does turn to normal. Eventually.

When to See a Dermatologist

Oiliness or pimples that arrived all of a sudden, especially with a new supplement, protein powder or anything injected. Steroid acne needs a doctor, not a face wash.
Deep, painful or cystic pimples, or any pimple that leaves a pit or a scar.
Small itchy bumps on the forehead, chest or back that get worse in humid weather and ignore acne products. A 2026 review in the Journal of Drugs in Dermatology says this can be Malassezia folliculitis, a yeast infection of the hair follicles that is often mistaken for acne. It needs antifungal treatment after a proper diagnosis.
Burning, peeling or a rash after any new product. Stop the product and get it looked at.
No change after 8 to 12 weeks of a steady routine.
Never use a steroid cream or a "fairness" cream from the chemist without a prescription.

FAQ: Oily Skin in Men

Which gender has more oily skin?

Men, in most studies. A German study of 300 people found men's sebum higher at every age, and a 2017 review puts it down to testosterone. One Indian study of 500 volunteers found no clear gap between men and women, so the difference is real but not huge. Either way, a routine built for oily skin works the same on anyone's face.

How to stop hormonal oily skin?

You cannot change the hormones, and you do not need to. Most men with oily skin have normal hormone levels. Their glands just respond harder. What you can change is the output. In a Japanese trial, 2% niacinamide lowered sebum over four weeks. A 5% niacinamide serum is the leave-on step for that. A salicylic acid wash clears what the glands put out. If the oiliness came on fast with a gym supplement, see a dermatologist.

Is oily skin caused by dehydration?

No study shows that. A 2018 review of six studies found no clear link between water intake and sebum. Skin can be oily and dehydrated at the same time, which is why a light moisturizer still belongs in the routine. Drinking more water is good for you, but it is not an oil treatment.

Does oily skin age slower?

Partly, and only on the forehead. The AAD says people with oily skin tend to have thicker skin and fewer wrinkles. A Japanese study of 58 donated bodies found shallower forehead wrinkles where oil glands were denser. At the outer corner of the eye, no such effect. So the shine buys you a smoother forehead, not a younger face. Sunscreen still does more for ageing than sebum ever will.

How to avoid an oily face all day?

Wash twice, not five times, with a face wash made for oily skin. Follow with a niacinamide serum and a light moisturizer. Stripped skin over-produces. Carry blotting papers and press, do not rub. In summer, wash again after a sweaty ride, and wear sunscreen.

How to remove oily skin naturally?

You cannot remove it. It is your skin type, and the glands will keep working into your sixties. What works without products is modest. Wash twice with lukewarm water. Keep the face cool where you can. Eat fewer high glycaemic foods for the pimples. Sleep. The healthy skin habits guide covers the rest. For the shine itself, the evidence is on niacinamide and salicylic acid, not kitchen remedies.

Takeaway: What Causes Oily Skin in Men?

Hormones set the tap, heat opens it further, genes set the baseline, and over-washing makes it worse. None of that is a flaw. It is how men's skin is built, and it stays that way until your sixties.

Tonight: wash with the Active Oil Control face wash, pat dry, 3 to 5 drops of the niacinamide serum, then a light moisturizer. Tomorrow morning, the same, plus sunscreen. Give it four weeks. If you want one place to start, the bestsellers are it, and the 4-step routine guide shows the order.