An introduction to skin care, Step Two

Step two in your skin care regimen is my favorite, it's extremley satisfying and makes my skin feel very smooth! It's ... -drum roll please - ... EXFOLIATION!!!! Although you only need to exfoliate your skin once a week, it is such a crucial step that quite a lot of people leave out. When you neglect to exfoliate, dead skin cells can build up on your face, clog pores and cause breakouts. Your expensive and exotic skin care products will loose full penetration potential, and your skin tone can look a dull and sallow.

By dedicating one morning out of the week to exfoliating right after you cleanse, you are relieving the surface of your face of dead skin cells, which in turn allows deeper cleansing of the pores because products are able to penetrate deeper into you skin. Your face will have a healthier, even skin tone because of the increase in circulation, and it helps encourage faster cell turnover. That means wrinkles, scars, and spots have a harder time of establishing themselves, and you'll have softer, smoother skin!

The most common type of exfoliant is a manually activated kind - or in other words, a face scrub. The scrub will contain a granular substance that feels rough or grainy to the touch. The granuals can be made out of anything, like sugar, ground pumice, seeds, even coffee grounds! Of course every scrub will have a different kind of texture when applied to the face. Some may be rougher than others. If you have a sensitive skin type, try to avoid hard scrubs like pumice, and maybe opt out for something that disolves, like sugar.

The second most common type of exfoliant is chemically activated. These products contain natural enzymes and alpha hydroxy acids such as pineapple and papaya. They cause a chemical reaction on the skin, which gently releases dead and dry skin cells. These products are not the same as a "chemical peel" - which is a more intense method of removing the top layer of skin which chemicals, which is always done by professionals. Always be sure to read the ingredient list, and follow directions carefully in any case.

There are more intense methods of removing the top layer of skin, such as chemical peels and micro-dermabrasion to help remove deep scars, wrinkles, and even freckles. These will undoubtedly include a trip to your local dermatologist, and could even end up costing a pretty penny. Either way, no matter what you choose to do, exfoliating is a crucial step towards healthy skin, and always be sure to choose a product suited for your skin type.