Wheat Germ Oil
Plant oil · INCI: Triticum Vulgare Germ Oil
Reviewed by Elysiana Aguilar, master esthetician
How we read it
Clogs pores for some people. Fine for many, worth watching if you're mid-breakout.
Is Wheat Germ Oil comedogenic?
Sometimes. Wheat Germ Oil is potentially pore-clogging, so we read it as one to use with caution. Plenty of people use it without trouble; if you're actively treating acne, it's worth watching.
Why we read it this way
Wheat germ oil is extracted from the germ of the wheat kernel, a thick, amber oil used for its natural vitamin E and the rich feel it gives a formula. We read it as an oil to use with caution on skin that breaks out.
The nuance
Many sources read it more harshly than we do and place it among the worst oils for acne-prone skin. We keep it at caution. A little low on a label is a smaller matter than a formula that leads with it.
Where it shows up
Wheat germ oil turns up in rich face oils, stretch mark and scar oils, massage blends, cuticle oils and conditioning hair masks.
Names we read the same way
- Triticum Aestivum
- Triticum Vulgare
- Triticum Aestivum (Wheat) Germ Oil
Related ingredients
One ingredient rarely tells the whole story. The acne ingredient checker reads everything in a product at once, the pore-clogging ingredients list has the rest of what we flag, and there is more on what comedogenic means. Also in the guides: What causes acne.