Exfoliation is the removal of dry/dead skin cells on the surface of the skin and is one of the most important aspects of your home skin care routine for face and body. Exfoliation not only helps may skin problems, it also increases blood circulation, which in turn helps you to achieve healthy and glowing skin.
THE BENEFITS OF EXFOLIATING
Exfoliation is the removal of dry/dead skin cells on the surface of the skin and is one of the most important aspects of your home skin care routine for face and body. Exfoliation not only helps may skin problems, it also increases blood circulation, which in turn helps you to achieve healthy and glowing skin.
While it is important to remove dead skin, it is also important NOT to strip away too many of your natural oils, so a good balance is essential, so it is suggested to exfoliate at least two times a week.
Because you are increasing blood circulation, breaking down toxins, and encouraging new cells to come through while exfoliating the best advice out there is to drink plenty of water which drains toxins and helps give those new cells a “drink of water from the inside”. Do not forget to apply a good moisturizer to hydrate your skin from the outside in, and make sure to not expose your freshly exfoliated skin to UV rays, the sun, or sunbeds for the first 24 hours.
SPECIFIC BENEFITS OF EXFOLIATION
BLEMISHED SKIN: It is important that people with blemished skin to use an exfoliator on the face or body at least twice a week. Most people believe that the best way to stop break-outs is to strip the skin, killing the bacteria, but, unfortunately doing so will dry out the skin and cause irritation. Remove dead skin cells while keeping the skin clean and hydrated with a good moisturizing lotion – lighter than a cream – just make sure that your hands are clean when applying the lotion, or moisturizer or choice, to prevent bacterial infections and spots.
POST-BREAKOUT, RED & DARK MARKS: After having a blemish on the skin there can sometimes be a dark mark that stay around for awhile. The best way to fade these dark marks is to exfoliate two times a week to remove the damaged cells and encourage the healthy and new skin cells to grow.
CLOGGED PORES: If you are one of the many who suffer from clogged pores (myself included into this group), exfoliating helps to draw out congestion, such as blackheads and whiteheads. Most common area for break-outs occur in the T-Zone (forehead, nose and chin)
PIGMENTATION: The dark areas come from age, pregnancy and changes within your hormonal balance and tend to become more apparent and darker as your skin ages. Exfoliation is very beneficial for breaking up pigmented cells and encouraging them to fade. Regular targeted facials with your local salon and skin care consultant is a good way to help promote and encourage healthy skin reproduction as well as helping the dark areas to fade, and your skin care consultant or dermatologist will be able to provide you some samples, suggestions and advice as how to keep them from darkening and what products are best for your skin type and skincare regime.
DRY SKIN: If your skin is dry or dehydrated, you may find that it is flaky or scaly in areas and that your skin could highly benefit from exfoliation of that specific problematic area, just remember with clean hands to apply a good moisturizer after exfoliation to help those new skin cells from drying out or becoming dehydrated.
INGROWING HAIRS: For an example, waxing your bikini line or even your legs, pulls the hairs from the root, causing them to grow back in weaker and sometimes unable to grow back in by piercing the skin causing a red spot, sometimes puss filled, to form around the area or hair follicle. This is known as an ingrowing hair, and yes these little buggers can sometimes be quite painful – exfoliating the area will remove the dead skin and allow the hair to break through the skin
GENERAL HEALTH & WELL BEING: When exfoliating the body you are increasing blood flow and the lymphatic system which is very beneficial for the body because it encourages the growth of new skin cells, breaks down fatty tissues, as well as breaking down and draining toxins from the skin. After exfoliation your skin is left feeling smooth looks beautifully soft and amazing and will be ready to apply your favorite moisturizer
SUN TANNING: Exfoliation is an important part of sun tanning because it removes the dead skin cells from the body and ideal as a pre-holiday skin boost. The sun will be affecting the new cells, which will help your tan last longer and looking more even. Be sure to keep your skin safely protected, moisturized and hydrated while tanning and make sure to keep hydrated by drinking plenty of water.
FAKE TANNING: A good tanning regime, whether you are using cream tanners or spray tanners, should start with exfoliation because it aids in the removal of the dead skin cells and will provide a smooth, even surface area for the product of your choosing and helps the tan to last longer, look more amazing and even.
TYPES OF EXFOLIANTS
There are two main types of exfoliants, chemical and mechanical or physical.
CHEMICAL EXFOLIANTS – these are either an acid- or enzyme-based formula such as alpha-hydroxy acid (AHA) such as glycolic acid or beta-hydroxy acid (BHA) such as salicylic acid.
MECHANICAL OR PHYSICAL EXFOLIANTS – these types of exfoliants use beads or an abrasive-style substance to literally help buff away dead skin cells and impurities. Some people prefer this style of scrubs because you can “feel” them working on your skin.
A great website that I had ran across while researching different exfoliants, types and benefits is a webpage called Herbal Dynamic Beauty, they have an article that goes further in-depth about chemical and mechanical or physical exfoliants. The blog that I read and will be sharing the link to is called “Chemical vs Mechanical: Types & Benefits of Exfoliation for the Skin”, the post goes into detail about the difference between AHA and BHA, the benefactors of the exfoliants, what the difference between mechanical/physical exfoliants and chemical exfoliants are, as well as what should NOT be used on the skin. They also have a skincare line that is suitable for both face and body.
https://www.herbaldynamicsbeauty.com/blogs/herbal-dynamics-beauty/the-benefits-of-exfoliation-for-the-skin
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