Exfoliating Your Skin
Why Exfoliating is an Important Part of the Best Skin Care Routines
Your skin is constantly on the go. The largest organ in the body, the skin regenerates itself every 28-31 days on average. But sometimes it needs a little help.
The Natural Exfoliation Process
As you go about your daily business, your skin is going about its own. Skin cells that have been around for about 25 days are starting to shed, making room for the new skin cells that will be taking their place. Sometimes the old skin cells remain attached to the surface of your skin, which can create challenges for the new skin: blackheads, whiteheads, rough texture, or an uneven appearance of the skin tone.
When the natural process of shedding the dead, dry skin cells doesn't work, you need to step in and help it along. Keeping the skin exfoliated helps ensure that your other skin care products, like serums and moisturizers, are more effective. When they don't have to penetrate a layer of dead skin cells, they can target the new skin cells, which is where they need to work.
The Two Types of Exfoliants
There are basically two ways to exfoliate your skin. The first is called manual exfoliation and, as the name implies, manual exfoliation is when you physically remove the dead skin cells. The other, chemical exfoliation, is when one of the ingredients in the product you are using chemically dissolves the old skin cells, without any additional effort required from you.
Most manual exfoliating products are referred to as “scrubs”. There are many different exfoliating scrubs available to you, but there are important things to look for when deciding which one to purchase. You will find exfoliating cleansers and soaps, treatment creams, lotions and many other kinds of products. Because the skin on the face is thinner in areas than it is on the body, it is important to choose a product that is designed for the face. Do not use a scrub for the body in the facial area.
Also, you should look for a product that boasts “beads” or “spheres”, denoting that the gritty ingredient that does the scrubbing is perfectly round. Many products use ground-up shells, which are abrasive and harsh. The shells have uneven, sharp edges that can create small rips, causing minor skin damage and irritation to the pores. You should avoid these types of manual exfoliants whenever possible.
Two of the most common chemical exfoliating ingredients, glycolic acid and lactic acid, are found in the alpha-hydroxy family. Alpha-hydroxy acids (AHAs) are derived from fruits and the sugars in milk. Nearly every professional skin care line, and many over-the-counter products, use these two ingredients. Glycolic acid and lactic acid are the most popular AHAs because they are better able to penetrate the skin than some of their counterparts. Alpha hydroxy exfoliants work by dissolving the “glue” that holds the dead skin cells to the new skin cells, allowing the old skin to be washed away easily.
In addition to their exfoliating benefits, AHAs also offer many restorative benefits. In higher percentages, they can stimulate collagen production and also help reverse the effects of sun damage, such as fine lines and spotty pigmentation. However, AHA products also make your skin more sensitive to the sun, making use of a daily sunscreen mandatory for those who choose to exfoliate this way.
