Facial Exfoliants - How to Exfoliate

'Mechanical' Exfoliators

These are exfoliators based on granules being the active ingredient.

With most mechanical exfoliants, one simply applies a small amount of the chosen product to dampened skin and rolls the fingertips over the skin in circular motions, spreading and gently rubbing the exfoliant evenly over the skin’s surface. 30 seconds to 1 minute should be ample time to cover the entire face and neck. One may wish to concentrate a little more on acne and blackhead-prone areas such as the t-zone, however dry skin areas should be given adequate attention to effectively remove the dull, flaky skin cells and allow more moisture-filled, moisture absorbing cells to come to the surface.

If time is a factor, most mechanical exfoliating treatments can be easily carried out whilst you shower!

'Enzyme' Exfoliators

As they can often be quite acidic, fruit enzyme peels are best performed by a qualified esthetician who can assess and prepare your skin correctly for the treatment, as well as quickly identify any signs of irritation and act accordingly. There are some over-the-counter options however, in our opinion, these are probably not concentrated enough in enzymes to have any marked effect on the skin.

Generally, enzyme based exfoliants are applied to cleansed skin, then, rather than scrubbing, left in place for a set period of time and finally rinsed off. As enzyme masks can be on the acidic side, they are often followed with some type of neutralizing lotion.

'Alpha-Hydroxy Acid' Exfoliators

Due to safety concerns, we do not recommend the use of alpha-hydroxy acid exfoliating products.

How Often Should I Exfoliate?

The frequency of exfoliating treatments really depends upon personal preference, however for optimal skin condition, one should exfoliate at least once per week, but preferably every second day, or every day if the product is mild.

Oily or less sensitive skin types can exfoliate every day, or every second day. Sensitive skin types should generally limit treatments to once, maybe twice per week depending on how their skin responds to the product they are using.

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