On my last trip to Singapore, I picked up a Sana Ho Jun Ki Royal Jelly Cleansing Oil from Sasa. I have a penchant for trying out new cleansing oils of the low end variety even if I know full well that my holy grail is the Kanebo Blanchir Make Off Conditioner, which is the cleansing oil from the Kanebo Blanchir line. Still, I can’t stop myself experimenting.
Anyway, I picked up the Sana Ho Jun Ki oil cleanser because I was intrigued by the fact that it is supposed to contain royal jelly. Also, the packaging looked pretty, even if I later found out that it was just the printing on the label.
There is no fragrance in the Sana oil cleanser so that’s good. However, a quick perusal of the label on the back of the bottle stopped me in my tracks a little. The label clearly stated that the Sana cleansing oil contains mineral oil. Now, we know that mineral oil can irritate many people’s skin so I was quite wary.
With cause too, because after 3 days of using the Sana Ho Jun Ki oil cleanser, my skin went crazy. I started having breakouts all over my face, and lots of raised bumps. As I am now very aware of my skin and the products I use, I immediately stopped using the Sana cleanser and within 2 days, my skin was back to normal. Thinking it might be hormonal, I tested it again after 2 weeks and boom! crazy bumpy skin after 2 days.
So, that’s S$19 down the drain for me, literally! I cannot say if its the mineral oil or the royal jelly that’s causing the breakouts for me, but I’m not going to try this a third time! So, I now have a barely used Sana cleansing oil sitting in my bathroom, mocking me. Sigh…
In terms of usage, I use the Sana oil cleanser the same way I use all oil cleansers – with dry hands and face, and by slowly emulsifying the oil with water to wash off. (read my tips for using cleansing oils effectively in a previous post) To its credit, it does wash off well. But because it brings bumps to my skin, I’m binning this one.
I have seen Sana products being sold in a little store in MidValley Megamall, near the Little Penang Cafe. Its a small empty looking store with a few shelves of products and some clothes. There are many products from Taiwan and Japan and one of it is Sana and yes, I’ve also seen the Sana Ho Jun Ki cleansing oil there.
Pros: No fragrance, inexpensive
Cons: Broke me out, contains mineral oil
[rating:1/5]
prettybeautiful says
December 24, 2008 at 9:14 amthanks for sharing. me next time will have to take note of the ingredients too. i switch products frequently and my skin suffers 🙁 tell me about the stupid raised bumps. cis
sesame says
December 24, 2008 at 10:01 amI tried this before. It was okay for me as in it cleansed fairly well and didn’t break me out (anyway I have thick skin :lol:). But I dumped it after half a bottle becos I decided to steer clear of mineral oil completely.
ParisB says
December 24, 2008 at 10:49 am@prettybeautiful : Yeah I’ve learnt to start reading ingredients else my skin dies.
@sesame: Lucky you not to break out from this! I won’t say I have sensitive skin but this was quite surprising to me.
plue says
December 24, 2008 at 4:55 pmthat place is freaking expensive! i’ve been there. customer service is lousy too. >_< not a recommended place.
ParisB says
December 24, 2008 at 5:04 pm@plue : LOL I disliked their customer service too. The girls scare me and no one speaks English. Still, its a good place to go ogle at some Japanese/Taiwanese stuff and bug the sales people.
karen says
December 24, 2008 at 5:23 pmooo i almost bought this! i didn’t know mineral oil can cause break outs. thanks for posting this information … i’ll learn to read labels from now on!
Cyndi says
December 25, 2008 at 2:05 pmI suffered from breakouts when I use ZA cleansing oil with mineral oil in it too. Now I try to stay away from everything with mineral oil in it. Just could not imagine days with bad skin anymore!
Kristin says
December 26, 2008 at 2:52 amHi Paris B!
Just wanna inform you that I’ve received the Xmas Giveaway set. Love it so much! Thanks 😉
yuki says
December 26, 2008 at 1:58 pmNice product… =)
I’m new to the cleansing oil stuff… currently using SKII’s cuz my mom doesn’t use it anymore…
was wondering whether skin food’s peach sake toner n moisturiser contain any mineral oil cuz I just started using them like 1 month ago and I’m having breakouts on my cheeks… *sobs*
Stephanie says
December 29, 2008 at 1:11 pmShu Uemura’s cleansing oils contain mineral oil too T_T Breaks me out, sadly.
¤nOtcUte¤ says
December 31, 2008 at 12:02 amSo happy to find this site by accident. Actually I only started using skincare abt 19. First product was Clean & Clear but it wasn’t that good. Then a friend introduced me to Nuskin. I’m a member and really love the products but not all of them. Some of the products also contain parabens (presevertives so product lasts longer) & mineral oil to some of their lotions. I’ve been using Nuskin since 2k & I totally love the toners coz it doesn’t contain alcohol and it does minimize pores.
As for cleansers I do recommend the milk cleansing lotion from Nuskin as it’s main ingredient is soya but do double cleanse for oily & combi skins. Also there is this wonderful eye makeup remover but it’s not available here in Malaysia. I *tumpang* a friend to buy from HK. It does contain oil but olive oil and really removes waterproof mascara with ease without giving you the *panda eye*. You can even purchase it online but in USD.
I am too new to cleansing oil and tried using the Shu Uemura cleansing oil but I still cannot get rid of the oily residue after washing my face. Anyways I’m allergic to mineral oil as I get itches even on my face and lips T.T…
Bebe says
March 16, 2011 at 2:51 pmI cant use products with mineral oil too, it causes me to have lumps and pimples.