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Skincare Exfoliation

Your skin is the largest organ of your body and it's always changing and replenishing itself. Your skin is always renewing itself, in other words pushing dead cells to the surface. These dead cells can sometimes result in a flaky appearance. They can also clog pores. Exfoliation can help with these problems.

Basically, to exfoliate your skin means to speed up the process of shedding the upper layers of dead skin cells. Sometimes people use the words "slough off." When you exfoliate skin, you're speeding up what is a natural process.

If you have acne, exfoliation can help make the skin look better. But be careful not to overdo it, as this can only increase the amount of oil that your skin produces. You can read more about acne and exfoliation

If you have aging skin, exfoliation can also help. Exfoliation for aging skin can also be done with less harsh substances, such as over the counter creams or lotions.

If you have dry skin, exfoliation can help to reduce the flakiness that sometimes happens. You can read more about dry skin exfoliants.

And for oily skin, exfoliation can also help to improve the texture, although it's important to not overdo exfoliation as this can make the skin produce even more oil. You can read more about oily skin exfoliants.

Exfoliation canalso help you get a better result if you are using a cream or lotion with self-tanning ingredients, or if you are goint to a salon for a spray-on tan.

You can exfoliate with a loofah sponge, or a brush. There are also exfoliating creams and lotions available. Some contain fine grains that do the exfoliation. There are also lotions that use a mild acid to peel the skin, such as alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) or salicylic acids (beta hydroxy acid or BHAs). Using such lotions is sometimes called micro dermabrasion. The lotions can also be known as chemical peels. Retinoids, such as Retin-A and Renova, can also cause the upper layers of dead skin to shed more quickly.

If you have any skin conditions, always talk to your doctor before starting any new procedure. It's also important to start slowly, testing any new procedure on a small patch of skin to make sure you're not overly sensitive.

How to exfoliate skin

If you are exfoliating the skin on your body, using a glove, sponge or loofah, you would first wet your skin. Then, gently rub the brush, sponge or loofah over the area of your body being exfoliated. Again, go gently so as not to overly irritate the skin. If you are exfoliating the skin on your face, there are special pads which are not as rough as a loofah.

If you are using a cream or lotion that contains exfoliating grains, you would also first wet your skin, then apply the exfoliating cream or lotion to the skin and rub with gently circular motions. Be very careful to avoid sensitive areas of the skin.

If you are using Renova, or a lotion containing alpha hydroxy acid or salicylic acid, follow the directions on the bottle. In general, you would first gently clean your skin, and then apply the lotion.

After exfoliating, rinse the skin, and then apply a good moisturizer. If you are exfoliating the skin on your face, make sure you use a product designed for facial tissue.

It's important to avoid over exfoliating the skin, as this can cause it to dry out, or become red and irritated. Remember too that after exfoliating your skin - especially if you use a product with tretinoin or AHAs - you may become more vulnerable to sunburn, so make sure you use sun protection such as suncreen or sun protective clothing.

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Updated May 2008

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