Deep skin cleansing: peelings and scrubs at home

Cleansing your skin is one of the most important steps in skin care.  But unfortunately, just washing your face with a soft foam is not enough. Periodically, your skin needs a deeper cleansing or exfoliation. And to understand why, we need to delve a little into the natural processes that take place in our skin.

Natural skin exfoliation

Human skin is constantly renewing itself. Over the course of a few weeks, new cells form and move towards the top layer of skin, while dead cells, which look like flat keratinised scales, fall off. However, as we age, the exfoliation process slows down and the keratinised scales fall off more slowly. This can result in a number of problems. The top stratum corneum thickens to the point of hyperkeratinisation, the skin loses its natural glow as the top keratinised layer of skin loses its smoothness and is unable to reflect light beautifully, and the skin takes on an unhealthy hue. The keratinised scales can clog the sebaceous ducts, mixing with sebum and thus provoking the appearance of comedones and inflammation on the skin. Ingrown hairs may appear, as the dead particles get into the hair follicle and do not allow the hair to grow normally. The most common occurrence is flaking of the skin.

To help the dead particles to complete the natural process of exfoliation, and for new cells to break through and make the skin glow, cosmetology has come up with the exfoliation procedure. However, it is important that it is correct and non-traumatic. 

Types of exfoliation: mechanical or chemical

Mechanical exfoliation includes scrubs - in this case, dead particles are exfoliated through the physical action of abrasive particles. 

Chemical peels include acid and enzyme peels. They have different ways of affecting the skin and we will talk more about them below.

Scrubs for the face: features and precautions

Usually the first thing you start using for a deeper cleansing of the face besides washing products is a scrub. It seems safer than peeling, and it is easy enough to make a scrub at home: you need an emulsion or gel and abrasive particles that are mixed with it. You can buy everything you need to create the perfect scrub at Beurre. 

For gentle exfoliation of the facial skin, it is very important that the abrasive particles are smooth, without sharp corners. Among natural abrasives, you can use bamboo powder or rice crumbs, as well as jojoba or sunflower granules. They do not traumatise the skin, but gently exfoliate and kind of polish it.  

It is microtraumas - the greatest danger that can carry a scrub. Do not make scrubs for the face based on salt or sugar, coffee or ground shells, they have sharp particles that can cause micro-scratches and the skin will respond with redness or inflammation.

Scrubs are contraindicated for sensitive and dry skin, as well as skin with lesions and couperose. 

Acid peelings: their types and precautions

From the name it is clear that in the manufacture of acid peels, various cosmetic acids are used. In fact, acid peeling is a controlled chemical burn and trauma to the skin, and any trauma is a signal to repair and renewal, to synthesise new cells. And this is where it is very important not to do any harm. 

Acid peels with a competent approach - one of the most effective ways in the fight against: 

• skin aging, including photoaging
• pigmentation
• hyperkeratinisation
• uneven skin texture
• wrinkles of various depths
• dull complexion.

The most commonly used alpha-hydroxy acids (AHA) are fruit acids, glycolic acid, lactic acid, and beta-hydroxy acids (BHA) - salicylic acid. Ferulic acid, kojic acid, phytic acid and other acids are also applicable for peels, but they have narrower objectives: 

• ferulic acid - a powerful antioxidant
• azelaic acid - removes pigmentation and skin rashes.
• kojic acid - a powerful bleaching agent.
• phytic acid - a powerful antioxidant with a large molecule that does not penetrate into the deeper layers of the skin. Phytic peel is also called Hollywood peel because of its frequent use by stars.

According to the degree of impact on the skin, peels can be divided into:

• Superficial - the most gentle exfoliation, only the stratum corneum is involved. After it, the recovery process is much shorter
• Midline - the impact goes from the basal layer of the epidermis to the dermis. Skin damage is deeper, the recovery process is longer.
• deep - the impact on the deepest layers of the skin. This is a very aggressive intervention. It is mainly indicated at a later age from 50 years for skin with pronounced signs of ageing. This is a very effective and at the same time dangerous procedure. If it is done in violation of the technology, it can result in severe chemical burns, multiple pigment spots and even scars. 

ATTENTION: medium and especially deep peelings can only be performed in a cosmetology clinic. Only a professional dermatocosmetologist with a medical education can perform such a procedure. Do not risk your health in order to save money!

Chemical peeling at home

You can do superficial chemical peels at home, which do not require serious neutralization and deep knowledge.

Most often, home peels are based on AHA acids. This procedure is much easier to tolerate than professional peeling. Exfoliation ends in a few days. In addition to exfoliation and accelerating the division of new cells, AHA acids have a moisturizing, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant effect, they stimulate the production of collagen in the skin. In the Beurre store, you can buy a ready-made complex of AHA acids and use it to create a recipe for acid peeling. However, chemical peels can also be done on the basis of lactic, almond, glycolic and phytic acid.

In fact, you just need to dilute the concentrate of fruit acids or the selected acid with water and gel. A concentration of acids up to 10% is considered safe for home use. That is, if you bought Phytic acid, where the description states that the concentration of the main substance is 50%, this means that for a 10% phytic peeling, you need to add 20% phytic acid. Always pay attention to the content of the main substance of the acid if you buy a ready-made solution, not a powder. Powders often have a concentration of the main substance of 99-100%.

To create peelings, use preservatives and gelling agents that can work in an acidic environment. Of the thickeners, these can be Solagum AX, HEC, Xanthan gum, and of the preservatives, EUXYL K712 or EUXYL K903 are well suited. If the pH of the peeling is very low and you do not plan to store it for many months, Pentylene glycol can also be suitable as a preservative.

When preparing a peeling at home, it is very important to know the pH of your product. Therefore, if you do not have a pH meter, it is better to wait with the use of acids in home cosmetics. The safe pH level of home acid peels is considered to be 3.5 - 4.0. In this case, no special neutralizers are needed, it is enough to wash with plain water, you can use table alkaline water. But if you do not have the ability to control the acidity level of peels, it is better not to risk it and not to prepare them yourself at home. Remember that skin health is above all else.

Acid peels are usually used in a course. At this time, it is highly advisable to use post-peeling regenerating serums and moisturize the skin well. Prepare a serum based on soothing components such as D-panthenol, beta-glucan, Anonasense, hyaluronic acid and apply to the skin several times a day. Recovery will be faster. We shared a recipe for an immunomodulatory serum on our YouTube channel.

Daily use of peeling acids in care

Acids can also be used in the preparation of daily care recipes, of course in a much lower concentration. Light exfoliation, firstly, can prepare the skin for a more aggressive peeling procedure, and secondly, it will make the skin fresher between procedures.

Acid toners or toners or serum with ferulic acid will perfectly refresh the skin, remove some of the dead cells and start the skin regeneration processes, although not as quickly as peeling, but certainly less traumatic. Perhaps, after a course of acid toner, you will not need to peel.

Enzyme peeling at home

Enzyme peeling is considered more gentle than acid peeling. Enzymes or ferments, active biological substances capable of breaking down proteins, are used as active ingredients that enhance the exfoliation of dead skin particles.

The most common active ingredients for enzyme or enzymatic peeling are:

• Papain - an enzyme extracted from papaya fruits
• Bromelain - extracted from pineapple fruits
• Keratoline - a substance obtained by fermentation of bacillus sublitis. See the finished recipe here.
• Pap-ango enzyme - enzymes of mango and papaya
• Tropical Fruit Harvest - enzymes of mango and papaya.

Enzymes, unlike acids, act more delicately, they dissolve substances that hold dead skin flakes and promote gentle exfoliation without a traumatic effect. In addition, after enzyme peelings there is no peeling, and redness disappears from 15 minutes to several hours, depending on the type and sensitivity of the skin.

Enzyme peelings, unlike acid peelings, can be done all year round. This peeling is suitable even for sensitive skin and skin with rosacea. It can be done regularly once or twice a week.

Immediately after enzyme peeling, you can apply a moisturizing, anti-inflammatory or nourishing mask, it will penetrate the skin much better.

Enzyme peels have almost no effect on age spots, wrinkles and post-acne scars. However, they refresh well, tighten pores, smooth out the microrelief of the face and give the skin a glow. Another pleasant effect of enzyme peeling is the normalization of the sebaceous glands.

Peeling: precautions

Always test for sensitivity on your forearm and then on a small area of ​​your face.
Acid peels can only be done in the fall and winter, when solar activity is reduced. Otherwise, the risk of hyperpigmentation is very high.

• After using both acid and enzyme peels, be sure to use sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30
• Start with the minimum concentration and minimum application time, this applies to both enzyme and acid peels
• Be sure to listen to your sensations, do not tolerate severe burning, each skin is individual. For some, 2% fruit acids will cause redness and burning, while others will not feel even 15%. If you feel discomfort, immediately wash off the peeling with just water or table alkaline, it will neutralize the acid and stop its further effect on the skin
• Do not do peelings at home with a pH below 3.5
• Peelings cannot be done if there is mechanical damage to the skin: wounds or scratches
• Peeling is prohibited if there is active herpes, dermatitis, or during active exposure to the sun.