Monday, October 22, 2007

How to treat damaged skin

Exfoliating removes a superficial layer of the stratum Corneum, the topmost portion of the epidermis, which serves as protective barrier for the skin. Once this layer is gone, skin becomes vulnerable to sunburn, wrinkles, sun spots and cancerous lesions. Both chemical and physical exfoliators can raise these risks, as can professional treatments like microderm abrasion and chemical peels, which penetrate deeper and remove even more skin cells.
Remedies: 1. Exfoliate at night so that while you sleep, skin has time to repair its barrier and replace the oils you’ve stripped away. 2. Be diligent about using sunscreen with an SPF of atleast 15 everyday, and stop exfoliating 48 hours before you head off on a sunny vacation. 3. After going microdermabriason or a chemical peel, avoid at-home exfoliators for 2 days, slather on the sunblock, and stay in the shade for 2 weeks.
Broken Capillaries
Harsh scrubs or even a too-rough wash cloth can cause microscopic tears in the skin and break blood vessel.
Remedies: 1. Using gentle pressure, apply facial scrub to wet skin with your hands or soft cotton pad. 2. Avoid scrubs that contain irregularly shaped particles such as fruit pits or crushed nut-shells, which can increase the risk of tearing. Instead, choose products made with fine synthetic grains.
Irritated, Itchy skin
Using two physical exfoliants together such as a scrub plus a facial puff or combining a physical one with a chemical one for example scrub followed by lotion with colic acid can remove too much the skin’s protective layer and increase sensitively.
Remedies: 1. Use either a physical exfoliators or a chemical one not both at the same time.
Breakouts
Over-exfoliating strips away beneficial oils, making the pores secrete more of them.
Remedy: 1. Use an over the counter treatment containing glycolic or salicylic acid or a scrub made specifically for acne-prone skin.
Post-waxing Damage
Some chemical exfoliators can weaken the bonds between cells, making it easier for wax to remove a deeper layer of skin.
Remedy: 1. Stop using product that contains AHA or retinoid atleast a week before the aesthecian aware of what’s in your skin-care regimen.

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