Radiant Skin

Radiant Skin

For years women have been exhorted to pamper their skin with mild mannered potions to keep it looking young. Now, dermatologists are advising the same species to excavate their fresh faced inner 20year old by peeling, scraping, or scouring off the top layer of cell with scrubs, alphahydroxy acids, even razors. Exfoliation isn’t just a fad anymore; it’s a full scale obsession.


Cosmetic counters are crowded with products that promise to deliver dramatic ant wrinkle and firming benefits as they slough and smooth. You need them, the slogans insist. But do you? Is it not enough to brush, floss, moisturize, exercise, hydrate and meditate? Must a self respecting woman also exfoliate?


Actually, no. your skin exfoliates naturally over a period of weeks or months. You don’t have to help the process along if you don’t want to. As skin sins go, failing to scrub or slather isn’t nearly as serious as going for a walk on a bright day without sunscreen. Still exfoliation as part of your skin care routine does make sense. Let’s get down to basics.


Why should I exfoliate? Sloughing away dead cells and other debris maintains the look and texture of your skin as you get older. Every few weeks the top layer of skin regenerates completely. As new cells travel up from the dermis to the surfaces of the epidermis, then gradually harden, die, and fall off. In your twenties the dead cells stick around for about three weeks, this steady turnover helps keep skin looking plump, smooth and healthy.


With age and sun damage, however the process slows, and worn out cells may overstay their welcome by an additional 20 days or more. Not only does this gunk make your complexion look dull, dry and weather beaten, it also prevents moisturizers from penetrating deeply enough to do their job. Women with oily skin may end up with black heads and enlarged pores because of dead cells plug the openings, preventing oil from flowing out. By exfoliating, therefore, you can enhance the effectiveness of other products and help your skin look and feel more lustrous.


What’s the best way to do it?

Rough sponges and loofahs do a decent job of scraping off dead cells. They made skin feel instantly smoother and cleaner a satisfying sensation exfoliating chemicals can’t match. And so long as you don’t use steel wool or a vessel scrubber, they won’t rub you raw. But be careful if you have skin problems. If you have pimples, it will be like running sandpaper over them.


Although facial scrubs may seem more sophisticated than sponges they’re no more (or less) effective, dermatologist’s say. When choosing a scrub, pay attention to the size of the granules; a fine, gritty texture is what you want. Wholesome-sounding ingredients like crushed apricot pits can have jagged edges; man-made grains are generally smaller, rounder and more gentle.