The Truth About Exfoliating

Some women do it, some women don't. Some dermatologists swear by it, and some say it's more harmful than helpful. Well, should we be exfoliating twice a week or not?

It's a difficult question to answer without looking at all of the facts. When your skin feels oily and you get that irritating residue feeling, using an exfoliating product is a great way to feel clean again and bring a clean glow back to your face. If you've been at the beach, deep in the woods, or just walking and feeling like you need to freshen up your face, using an exfoliating face wash can really perk you up and prepare you for the rest of the day. However, did you know that many of today's top dermatologists are saying that exfoliating often can harm your skin, rather than heal it? Let's take a look at the facts:

Today, many of the top exfoliating products you can buy for your skin contain a number of different ingredients that actually carry out the exfoliating process. Some of these, as in many imported or top quality products, have things like natural sands, salts, sugars, and wood and nut agents that can wash away that gunk and keep your face oil and blackhead free. Others products however, contain many types of pellets that are anything but natural, and are in fact made of plastic! When shopping for an exfoliating product for your skin, be sure to take a good look at the ingredients. If it has lots of words that begin with "poly" that couldn't possibly be natural, then they aren't! There's a good chance you're buying a product that's full of nothing but fragrance, glycerin, and plastic.

Not only can the plastics inside many exfoliating products be a deterrent to the consumer, but they can also further irritate sensitive or dried skin. As if that wasn't bad enough, there are even many dermatologists today that claim exfoliating your skin too often can do nothing but scratch away useable, healthy layers of skin as well as the dead layer. Many top skin doctors in their field are staying true to the fact that many of today's exfoliating products are far too harsh for your skin, and should be replaced with either completely natural processes, or by a simple wash cloth and soap!

Though exfoliating might be getting a bad rap from many dermatologists and product critics, it's still recommended by many skin doctors as a way to keep your skin oil, dirt, and acne free. Exfoliating also gets rid of that pesky layer of dead skin, and some of the good exfoliating products you can find are actually gentle enough to use almost every day. Many experts claim that exfoliating twice a week is the way to keep your skin healthy, clean, and vibrant.

When it comes down to it, it's up to the individual. If you love to exfoliate and it gives you the results you want and need, then how could I advise you to do otherwise? (Especially since I DO exfoliate twice a week at least.) Of course, when you decide how to keep your skin healthy, the decisions are always up to you. But I do advise everyone to use products with the most natural ingredients, and make sure it doesn't contain any plastics that will be floating around in our water and seeping into our soil for hundreds of years to come!

(Helpful sources at thevanya.com)