Here's What a Beauty Expert Wants You to Know About Exfoliation

We've all come across the term 'exfoliation', in the realm of beauty and skincare. But what is it really? 

Exfoliation can simply be described as the process of getting rid of dead skin cells through the application of a granular substance, or the utilisation of an exfoliating tool. "When we’re young, our skin naturally sheds immense amounts of dead skin every single day. This shedding process can slow down and practically stop due to years of sun exposure, dry skin, oily skin, menopause and other beauty woes. Consequently, this may cause a build-up of dead skin—on and below the surface of the skin—as well as inside the pore lining; resulting in dull, dry or flaky skin, clogged and enlarged pores, white bumps, magnified fine lines, rough texture, loss of firmness, and an uneven skin tone," informs skincare expert Paula Begoun. 

Thereby, by adding a gentle leave-on exfoliant to your skincare routine, you set everything in balance—aiding your skin to behave like it did when you were younger. While the results may not entirely be apparent at first, the appearance of your skin will certainly improve overnight. 

However, the problem arises when one confuses exfoliation with applying harsh, rough scrubs and cleansing brushes to their skin. "This ends up doing more damage than any good. Even the best of scrubs and cleansing brushes—ones which are gentle and don’t necessarily tear the skin—can clean only the very surface of your skin, unable to access the layers beneath," she explains. It's important to keep in mind that cleansing isn’t the same as exfoliating. Healthy skin-cell turnover takes place in the deeper layers of your skin. Hence, healthy skincare requires one to reach those lower layers, which scrubs and cleansing brushes aren’t often able to achieve.

So how does one reach the deeper layers of the skin without causing irritation or tearing at the surface?

Well, this is where you must turn to well-formulated AHAs/Alpha hydroxy acids (primarily glycolic acid and lactic acid) and BHA/Beta hydroxy acid (only salicylic acid) leave-on exfoliants. "AHAs and BHA not only gently exfoliate your skin but also maximise hydration, as well as reinforce, strengthen and soften the skin," states Paula. Almost everyone can benefit from the daily use of a well-formulated leave-on AHA or BHA exfoliant. A gentle leave-on exfoliant helps the turnover (shedding) of dead layers of skin when it can’t do it naturally on its own any longer.

According to Paula, this completely non-abrasive way to exfoliate the skin not only provides the above mentioned benefits, but also improves visible signs of ageing, uneven skin tone, dullness and unwanted breakouts, dramatically reduces clogged pores and pore size and also fades red and brown post-acne marks.

Last but not the least, don’t let the ‘acid’ in the name of these exfoliating ingredients scare you, especially considering that the surface of our skin is naturally acidic!