Exfoliation offers a wide range of benefits for all skin types. According to famed Beverly Hills esthetician Sonya Dakar, exfoliation helps remove buildup in pores that contribute to breakouts, enhances skin texture and glow, reduces the appearance of wrinkles, and delivers the perfect canvas for absorbing your skincare products.

So, we know that exfoliation helps improve the look and feel of your skin, but how often should you be doing it?

Can You Exfoliate Too Much?

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Celebrity skin expert Jamie Sherrill says too much scrubbing “can cause inflammation” and “damage your skin’s natural lipid barrier.” How can you tell you’ve been overdoing it? Sherrill points to three outcomes: your forehead becomes shiny, your skin feels puffy and swollen, and you become more prone to acne breakouts.

The Right Amount of Exfoliation

Although you should cleanse your skin at least twice daily, exfoliation should not be done as frequently. To achieve the best results, dermatologists and estheticians recommend limiting exfoliation to two to three times a week. Any more than that and you’ll get the results described above— shiny, swollen, acne-prone skin. Any less and your skin will look dull and dry because you aren’t removing dead skin cells quickly enough. This guideline works especially for oily, normal, dry, or combo skin types. If you have hypersensitive skin, however, stick to once or twice per week so as not to cause redness or irritation.

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If you’re new to exfoliation or find that your current routine isn’t delivering the desired results, visit with an esthetician in your area who can help you choose the products that best suit your skin type.

 

Header photo by Mitchell Orr on Unsplash.