Howdy! It’s a been a while 🙂 I hope you are all well! I won’t bore you, and get right into the details of this post….

Below you will find a list of over 1,450 products that are safe for fungal acne a.k.a. malassezia / pityrosporum folliculitis including cleansers, toners, chemical exfoliants, serums, sunscreens, makeup items, face masks, hair products and much more!

Note that I said these are “safe” for malassezia — that doesn’t necessarily mean that I think they’re GREAT for skin! In fact, some of the products below I wouldn’t buy in a million years haha…. But from a technical standpoint, they aren’t food grade for malassezia, and therefore shouldn’t exacerbate the following conditions:

Atopic dermatitis

Dandruff

Pityrosporum Folliculitis

Psoriasis

Seborrheic dermatitis

Tinea versicolor

Because sorting through this list can be a bit overwhelming, I tried to make your life easier by bolding some of the products I think are best. These are skincare items I have either tried, or want to try in the future!

Secondly, several of the products below contain essential oils. These are “technically” fine for malassezia because unlike carrier oils, their main components are terpenes and not triglycerides. (1) There is some evidence showing that certain essential oils can inhibit malassezia, but the concentrations needed generally exceed 30% (2, 3, 4, 5).

With that said, I wouldn’t say that essential oils are the best thing to put on skin, given that fragrances (derived from terpenes) are the most common cause of contact dermatitis (5), so try them at your own discretion. Some might be fine, others could be irritating. If you’re a fungal acne newb, I recommend avoiding them altogether.

Besides essential oils, I have also marked items with lecithin, which depending on the source may contain soybean oil and / or phospholipid fatty acids.

As you may recall from the original blog post, the hydrogenation of fatty acid fractions (which can be found in soybean oil) also promote the growth of malassezia, so hydrogenated lecithin should be no exception. I’m still debating whether or not to remove items with lecithin. For now, they shall remain but be labeled as such.

And last but not least, I want to thank everyone for constantly recommending products over the past two years! You’re all incredible and this wouldn’t have been possible without you. I will continue updating this list as time goes by, so please leave your comments below.

If you want me to vet a product make sure to include the ingredient list! If it does not get approved, that means the product you suggested isn’t safe.

Huge shoutout to u/royalsincognito for doing the bulk of the grunt work. You’re the true hero of this story :p

Without further ado….

What do the asterisks mean?

One asterisk (*) = contains fatty alcohols. These may or may not feed malassezia.

Two asterisks (**) = contains esters or polysorbates. These DO feed malassezia.

Three asterisks (***) = contains both esters and fatty alcohols.

Four asterisks (****) = contains a concoction of unsafe ingredients.

I highly recommend avoiding any products that have asterisks until your skin is clear.

For more information about what ingredients promote or inhibit the growth of malassezia, please see the original blog post.

Micellar Water & Makeup Removers

Cleansers

Oils & Oil Cleansers

Note: if you are using squalane oil, I recommend using one derived from sugarcane. You can read more about why here. That link also includes the sources of various squalane products.

Fun fact: to make your own oil cleanser simply mix 85-90% of your chosen oil with 10-15% cromollient SCE. Shake it up and viola!

Body Washes

Chemical Exfoliants / Treatments / Active Ingredients

Toners, Essences, Ampoules, Mist

Serums

Moisturizers & Gels

Eye Cream / Gel

Sunscreens

Some Asian sunscreens can’t be found on Amazon because the FDA has started to crack down on the use of certain UV filters. However, you might have better luck on the bay of e…. if you catch my drift. o_O

NOTE: all three of the Biore sunscreens above have been reformulated as of February 2019, and contain isopropyl palmitate and stearic acid. I know…. tragic. If you recall they were the water and sweat-resistant sunscreens that were the second place finishers in this AWESOME sunscreen experiment! The first place sunscreen has stearic fatty acid which we can’t use. -___-

Occlusives

Given that most of these contain petroleum or mineral oil they should be used cautiously! Maximum once or twice weekly.

Makeup

I personally do not wear makeup, but I gotta say I’m impressed with NYX and how many safe products they have!

Primers

Base

Blush

Highlighter

Shading & Contour

Finishing Powder / Setting Powder

Shadow & Pigment

Eyebrow

Eye Liner / Mascara

Lip

Note: the lip balms below contain mineral oil or petroleum derivatives, which are better than beeswax alternatives but still not entirely safe for malassezia.

Setting Spray

Face Masks & Sheet Masks

Shampoo, Conditioner, & Hair Products

Note: all products in this section contain fragrance, unless explicitly stated otherwise.

Tanning Products

Not that I recommend tanning, but….

Shaving

Unfortunately, this section is still lacking. If anyone has recommendations for more shaving creams / gels and such, please let me know. Thanks!

Laundry Detergent

This is a work in progress…. give me your recs everyone!

Biokleen Free & Clear Laundry Powder

Biokleen Premium Laundry Powder

Charlie’s Soap

Ecos Ecosnext Liquidless Laundry Detergent Free & Clear

Molly’s Suds Laundry Powder* or Unscented Laundry Powder

Molly’s Suds Unscented Super Powder

Nellie’s Laundry Soda

Seventh Generation Concentrated Laundry Detergent ( Note: contains sodium oleate, a fatty acid salt. Though we have no direct studies of malassezia’s metabolic effect on these, they are known to induce comedogenesis)

contains sodium oleate, a fatty acid salt. Though we have no direct studies of malassezia’s metabolic effect on these, they are known to induce comedogenesis) Seventh Generation EasyDose Ultra Concentrated Liquid Free & Clear ( Note: contains sodium oleate)

contains sodium oleate) Seventh Generation Laundry Detergent Free and Clear ( Note: contains sodium oleate)

contains sodium oleate) Seventh Generation Laundry Stain Remover Free and Clear

Seventh Generation Oxy Booster Packs

Seventh Generation Ultra Power Plus Laundry Detergent Free and Clear (Note: contains sodium oleate)

Anti-fungals!

For more information about what these active ingredients do, please see the original article on how to treat malassezia folliculitis.

Miscellaneous

Let me know your favorite products in the comments!

Cheers,

—f.c.