✔Will my face burn off if I use all of these exfoliating acids together?
✔Could they be layered, mixed how much chemical exfoliation is too much?
✔Will they brighten and smooth out my skin?
Today we're gonna be talking all about chemical exfoliation and in particular two particular ones that we've seen everywhere AHA and BHA.These AHAs and BHAs can be found in toner,serums,face mask moisturizes,all the things,basically everything, and then you're kind of questioning,what does it do, and will it burn off my face,and how much is to be used?
Today we're gonna talk about what exactly is chemical exfoliation:
▶What's the difference between AHA and BHA?
▶How often to use them and what are the best acids for different skin types.
Some of you can have oily, combination sensitive skin and some can have dry, combination dehydrated,so there is something for all of you.
Let's get into exfoliating acids and learn what exactly is chemical exfoliation,how is it different from physical exfoliation?
Physical Exfoliation:
The main difference between chemical and physical exfoliation is pretty straightforward,when you're using a physical exfoliator,you're generally using something to scrub the face,it's either dry brushes clarisonic brushes,towels things with the little beads in there,scrubs or even the peeling gels,so these physical exfoliants and scrubs definitely do work,but the main thing is it's important to be gentle,because it could cause micro tears in your skin and your epidermis,if you're not careful enough,and you hear a lot of this with physical face scrubs,because they contain walnut shells and other kind of like nut shells which sound really natural,but they can actually be really abrasive and cause your skin to tear,it's kind of like sandpaper on wood,but that's not saying all physical exfoliators are bad,if you want to use it try buying the one which is really gentle,that's also really good at buffing away dead skin.
Chemical Exfoliation:
Moving on to chemical exfoliation there are two types AHA and BHA,so with chemical exfoliants,even though it sounds really intense especially when you talk about acids,you’re like burning your face,but it's actually a lot gentler and maybe even a little more efficient and reactive at removing dead skin cells without physically rubbing or like scrubbing,because actually these chemicals are naturally derived a lot of the time like AHA,but you only need to know two main things:
▶They're basically there to unstick the glue that holds your dead skin together which is what causes breakouts and clogged pores,
▶It also helps to increase the cell regeneration,that your skin isn't dull all the time.
AHA:
There are many different types of AHAs,and today we're going to focus on four of them.
There are Glycolic,Lactic Mandelic and Malic acid.
Glycolic Acid:
Glycolic acid is like the monarch of all the AHAs,it is usually found in sugar crops,and because of its smaller molecular size,it can penetrate the skin better than most other AHAs,which is why it's found in almost every single product that has AHA.
Lactic Acid:
Lactic Acid is less irritating on the skin,but works the same way by removing off the top layer of skin cells to reveal fresher,brighter and plumper skin underneath,it's a popular alternative to Glycolic because it works in the same way,but it is milder and it works more to moisturize the skin while it exfoliates,so lactic acid is sometimes derived from milk,but don't worry it's nothing like the smell of sour milk.It tingles a little bit but that's completely fine when it comes to AHA,your skin gets used to it.
Mandelic Acid:
This is generally the AHA which is antibacterial and exfoliating,it is great for people who have acne,and it comes from bitter almonds.
Malic Acid:
Another popular AHA is Malic Acid,it's an AHA that lacks the exfoliating punch of Glycolic and Lactic Acid but is most often used with other types of AHAs and it tends to pop up particularly in brightening exfoliants,and is found in many fruits like apples,it helps to resurface the overall texture of your skin,and then also even out the skin surface while brightening your skin.
In all of these exfoliating acids you can find the capability of shedding the outermost top layer of dead skin,it naturally does brighten because your new skin is fresh.
BHA:
BHAs are Beta Hydroxy Acids.BHA the main one is Salicylic Acid,it is good for any of you who suffers acne.We all know what Salicylic Acid is,but mainly because you know how AHA was water soluble BHA or Salicylic Acid is oil soluble,so because it is oil soluble,it can penetrate deeper into your pores and break down the sebum that's causing inflammation and breakouts and hormonal acne it's the only thing that can actually help in the pores,so that it can dissolve that tastes like sebum that's clogging your pores,which actually is the cause of breakouts,it's also anti-inflammatory,so in a nutshell BHA basically goes where AHA's can't go which is into the deep crevices of your pores,and to dissolve all the dirt and the oils that causes breakouts,actually AHA and BHA work in different ways,and they could be used together.
Some tips about chemical exfoliants:
✔The first one that we have is that it's best to find these like a AHAs or BHAs that are leave on treatments or formulas,because if it's something like you can find them in cleansers,you can find them in these things that you can wash off,but because they are acids,it does take time for it to penetrate into your skin,it's important to find something that you can leave on your skin.A serum form and a mask form can be a good choice.
✔Then second thing is read the labels before you use any of these acids because there are detailed instructions of how to use them,what to do what not to do,because the differences of percentage will actually be like high concentration,it might be more stronger,and you have to leave that on for less time,so it is best to read the instructions before applying them.
✔Next point of these acids are supposed to burn a little like slight tingling for the first three to five seconds,it's very normal,but then if it's prolonged burning like after a minute or two,wash it off.If it's not the tingling sensation you're used to or it doesn't feel right or your skin turning red, wash it off.
✔The most important thing for you who are just starting out with these chemical exfoliants is you have to build it up slowly,just use one product at the beginning,see how your skin reacts to it,first read the label, because for example a toner,on the bottle that says use two to three times a week,that might be because the concentration is a little bit higher,it's a little bit more intense,so you can't use it every day,you can use the lower one every day,but also it like depends on are you using this for the first time versus having to use this for like months already,if you're starting out,it's recommended to just try it one night,and then leave at least a day or two before you use it again,just to see how your face and your skin reacts to it,and you have to probably start off with the least concentrated version at the beginning.If it's a sleeping mask,obviously you don't use a sleeping mask every day,that's more of like two times a week type thing,whereas if it's in a toner or a serum maybe you can use that more but just filled it up incrementally,and your skin will start changing itself.
✔ Another thing to note is if you're already using brushes or things like physical exfoliants,be mindful of how you're using that in tandem with the acids because you're just gonna be like triple exfoliating your face.
We hope you now know a little bit more about chemical exfoliation, physical exfoliation,what these AHA, BHA terms really mean because they are really great for your skin.
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