Stripping happens when a cleanser removes more than just dirt, oil, and impurities. The best cleansers target the things you want gone—makeup, SPF, excess sebum, environmental residue—while leaving the skin's natural moisture barrier intact. A stripping cleanser takes everything: the impurities and the lipids, proteins, and moisture your skin needs to stay healthy, balanced, and resilient. 

The signs are familiar: that tight, squeaky-clean feeling after washing, skin that looks dull or feels uncomfortable within minutes of cleansing, or a cycle of oiliness and dryness that never quite resolves. These aren't signs of a thorough clean—they're signs of a disrupted skin barrier. 

Over time, a stripping cleanser can compromise the skin barrier's ability to retain moisture and defend against environmental stressors, contributing to the very dullness, sensitivity, and unevenness that people are often trying to solve with their skincare routine. 

• Surfactant selection is the most fundamental factor. Surfactants are the cleansing agents that lift impurities from skin—but not all surfactants are equal. Harsh sulfates and synthetic detergents clean aggressively, often disrupting the skin barrier in the process. Gentler, skin-compatible surfactants deliver the same thorough cleanse without the collateral damage.

• According to Riva Barak, VP of Product Development at OLEHENRIKSEN, the surfactant blend in the Peach Glaze Cleanser was chosen with sensitive skin compatibility as the primary criterion. "All the surfactants, to some extent, are coconut oil-derived. They are known to be better and more appropriate for people who really struggle with their skin feeling stripped and irritated. They treat the skin but build a really rich lather and give enhanced cleansing." 

• pH balance is equally critical—and often overlooked. Healthy skin has a slightly acidic pH, maintained by what's called the acid mantle: a protective film that keeps moisture in and irritants out. A cleanser with a pH that's too alkaline disrupts this balance, leaving skin vulnerable even if the surfactants themselves are gentle. Barak explains how the Peach Glaze team approached this: "We formulated the formula at a specific pH range where it supports what we call the skin's natural acid mantle. It was really important for us when developing this cleanser that we were marrying these ingredients that help support a healthy skin barrier through its pH range. All of these factors ensure that this formula cleanses while also providing skincare benefits." 

• Replenishing ingredients are what separate a merely gentle cleanser from one that actively leaves skin in better condition than it found it. The Peach Glaze Cleanser contains custom-developed Peach Juice, which visibly plumps skin with antioxidant-rich hydration and supports a strong skin barrier, and Scandinavian Cloudberry Fruit Juice, a Scandi superberry known for its antioxidant content and brightening capabilities. Together with 2% niacinamide—which improves the skin barrier and visibly refines pores—these ingredients mean every wash ends with skin that's more replenished, not less. 

• Skin that feels oily a few hours after cleansing (a common response to barrier disruption) 

• Increased sensitivity or redness after washing 

• Dullness or flakiness that persists despite moisturizing 

• A "squeaky clean" feeling that sounds good but signals over-cleansing 

If any of these are familiar, the issue is likely your cleanser's surfactant blend or pH

—not your skin type. 

• Gentle surfactant sources. Coconut oil-derived surfactants, such as those used in the Peach Glaze Cleanser, are among the most skin-compatible available. They cleanse effectively while respecting the skin barrier. 

• pH-balanced formulation. Not all brands disclose pH, but if a cleanser is marketed as gentle or barrier-supporting, look for language about acid mantle support or skin-compatible pH. This is a meaningful formulation claim, not just marketing. 

• Barrier-supporting actives. Ingredients like niacinamide, hyaluronic acid, ceramides, and antioxidant-rich botanicals signal a formula designed to replenish as well as cleanse. 

• Clinical claims with study context. Specific claims backed by study data—like "100% agreed it does not strip skin of essential moisture, in a 1-week clinical study on 33 people"—are meaningful indicators of real-world performance. 

Brightening cleansers present a particular risk. The ingredients that address dullness and uneven texture—acids, vitamin C, strong actives—can also be the most disruptive to the skin barrier if not carefully balanced. The result is a cleanser that brightens in the short term while sensitizing skin over time, making it more reactive and paradoxically harder to treat. 

The Peach Glaze Cleanser avoids this trap by using niacinamide as its primary brightening active rather than exfoliating acids or high-concentration vitamin C. Niacinamide brightens skin and improves texture through a mechanism that doesn't require disrupting the skin barrier—making it one of the most compatible brightening ingredients available for daily use on all skin types.