Exfoliation: A Reality Check!!

Exfoliation: A Reality Check!!

You take a long luxurious bath on a weekend and you feel so relaxed. You exfoliate your skin and apply after bath lotion, thinking it is going to make your skin smooth, supple and wrinkle free. You do get a desired result too but in a day or two you feel to you have gone to the square one. On top of that, suddenly you start observing that the wrinkles have picked up a speed. You wonder why.....You are eating good, you exercising and also you are taking care of your skin. 

Sun damage and stages of menopause , i.e loss of estrogen reduces the ability of skin cells to reproduce in a healthy normal manner. Apart from the slower regeneration of skin cells in the lower layers of skin, the natural shedding process on the surface of skin also become inefficient, causing a build up on the skin surface.

Have you ever felt that you are itchy while you are bathing or just after you applying an after bath lotion? If yes, then the answer is very simple. Apart from Sun damage, menopause and slower rate of cell regeneration, the soap, the lotion,the oil etc that we use all leave a ‘Live on’ on our skin.
The so called “natural” products which has to have some preservative to increase the self life ends up being detrimental.
No amount of exfoliation can remove these ‘Live on'. 

The layers of these live-on, year after year become a part of your skin which are difficult to remove. As a result it is difficult for your skin to breath and the skin can become rough, scaly, thickened, discolored, and look more lined and itchy. Slowly the‘laugh lines’, the ‘crow feet’, the ‘frown lines’ all start becoming prominent, coupled with age spots. Now one might ask, “Do we ever get rid of these ‘live-ons’?

Different forms of exfoliation help to remove the built up on "Outer layer" of skin, to uncover a more normal, younger-looking layer hiding beneath. Alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) which comprises of glycolic, lactic, malic, citric, and tartaric acids helps on the outer layer. Beta hydroxy acid (BHA)-salicylic acid, on the other hand has the ability to penetrate the skin.

 

Using AHA or BHA every other day, would not only make the skin feel and look smoother, even-toned and have healthy appearance but they also provide protection from UV damage, provided one is regularly using a sunscreen.

The exfoliation of facial skin can also unclog pores by keeping dead skin cells from blocking the pore opening, so that sebum (oil) can flow more normally. Those struggling with acne need to know that it helps in reducing the blemishes and blackheads and it also allows antibacterial agents penetrate, where the bacteria causing acne is hiding.
Naturally, these AHAs and BHA would produce a better result by penetrating the skin, unlike the cosmetic scrubs, which work only on the exposed surface area. They exfoliate just the dead or damaged surface of  skin and leave the healthy skin alone. The  results dramatic and much more impressive in the beginning when the thickened, discolored layers of skin are being removed than the results from continued use.

 

As a rule, AHAs are best for normal to dry, sun-damaged skin because they only exfoliate the surface layer of the skin, increase moisture-binding ability and improves collagen production. On the other hand BHA or Salicylic acid can exfoliate inside the pores too. It is antibacterial anti-inflammatory  and has extra property that makes it better for normal to oily or combination skin and especially blemish- prone skin.

Some might experience a tingling or slight stinging sensation initially, with minor to severe flaking and redness. However, if any of these symptoms occur for long, one should reduce the frequency of use,though still regularly perhaps  two or three times a week and use a gentler concentrated.  If it gets too dry and flaky, use of moisturizer would be a great relief.