Dealing with persistently oily skin can be a nuisance. These insider tips can help keep your skin shine-free.

• Mattifying lotions and anti-shine powders and gels can keep skin less oily, but they only address surface oil and don’t reach far enough into the skin to work directly on the sebaceous glands.

• The most effective way of keeping oil production under control is with betahydroxy acids, like salicylic acid, and oral doses of vitamin A, which slow down activity in the oil glands. “Vitamin A, also known as isotretinoin, cuts oil by decreasing the size of the oil gland,” says Miami dermatologist Janice Lima-Maribona, MD.

• The worst thing to do to an oily complexion is over dry it, which forces the skin to make more oil to compensate what it’s lacking.

• Some doctors are injecting the pores with Botox to temporarily decrease oil production.

• As of now, there’s no proven way to permanently reduce oil production or shrink the size of the sebaceous glands although antioxidants can help prevent oxidation of the skin and its cells.