What is Over Exfoliation?
Exfoliation is one of the holy trinity of skincare cleansing, hydrating, and nourishing. It's part of the essential skincare routine that aims to clear out the build-up of dead skin cells in our pores. Exfoliation done correctly exposes the fresh new skin cells underneath by removing the barrier of dead skin cells cluttering the skin. When carried out properly, exfoliation could prevent acne breakout and give your skin that supple and radiant glow!
With no dead skin cells in the way, exfoliation prevents acne from forming and allows deeper absorption of your skincare products, so they can work more effectively and give you healthier skin. However, in the pursuit of maximizing skincare absorption, and reducing pore and skin imperfection, some of us may over-exfoliate and this is also not helping your skin find a good balance and healthy barrier.
Are You Over-Exfoliating Your Skin?
While regularly removing skin contaminants is good, overdoing it can irritate the skin. Over-exfoliation may cause redness and itchiness and worsen the skin condition. Exfoliating too frequently removes too many layers of your skin's natural defenses, which can cause harm to it. You don't want to strip the natural oil in your face more than necessary. Excessive exfoliation could also break your precious skin barrier, causing the skin to lose its resistance to external aggressions.
What Are the Signs of Over-Exfoliation?
Redness and Irritation
One of the initial symptoms of over-exfoliation is skin irritability. Your skin often turns a little red following exfoliation. However, if your skin is still red for several hours or days after exfoliating, it may be a sign that your skin is suffering irritability and will not get the healthy benefits you are looking for.
Flaking
Do you see your skin flakes? This typically indicates that over-exfoliation has compromised your skin's capacity to absorb or retain moisture. The results of your skincare routine will be significantly diminished when this occurs.
Tightness
Feel your skin tightened more than usual? It means that your face's natural oil is being stripped away from the over-exfoliation. Your skin will feel tight and dry, especially after cleansing. When you grin, it could occasionally seem like your skin is cracking. All skin types sometimes experience oil deficiency, which makes your skin feel tight. Over-exfoliating dry skin could make things worse.
How Not to Over Exfoliate?
Since skin strength varies from person to person, it turned out there is no standard boundary of exfoliation! You know you are over-exfoliating when the sign appears. The best is to keep your exfoliation routine by no more than three times a week. If you have sensitive skin, it's best to exfoliate once or twice a week, giving plenty of time for your skin to rest. Remember, less is more!
Knowing the proper way of exfoliation could help you avoid this mistake. Do your homework on any chemicals first, and then test a little bit of any chemical exfoliant on the inside of your arm or the nape of your neck to see how your skin reacts. Wait a few days to see whether you have an adverse reaction. Use lower-grade chemical exfoliation at first, applying them once or twice a week. Do comparable spot checks before increasing the frequency, volume, or potency.
MONO’s Soft Facial Peeling: Gentle & 100% Natural Exfoliator
MONO Skincare's Soft Peeling uses fine rice powder micro grains to polish the skin and vegan AHA from Citric Acid to remove dead skin cells. This peeling makes sure to shed off the dead skin cells without causing dryness and irritation. The AHA also works as a pH adjuster to ensure the peeling is not too acidic to disrupt your skin barrier. Allantoin works to heal the skin as it peels, stimulating the turnover of new skin cells, helping collagen synthesis, and keeping the skin moist.
It's best to exfoliate during your nighttime routine. Make sure to thoroughly rinse the peeling solution and any dead skin cells, then gently pat dry your face. Follow this with MONO's Intense Hydration Night Serum and Face Moisturiser to calm down the skin and help it retain moisture. Don't forget to apply your favorite sunscreen with high SPF protection the next morning!