What About 2-in-1 Products That Cleanse and Exfoliate?
1. Cleansers that contain chemical exfoliants.
Chemical exfoliants work very effectively when left on the skin. However, cleansers are quickly rinsed off. Therefore, the amount of exfoliant that can penetrate your skin during cleansing is very limited.
Allowing the cleansing product to remain on your skin for a little longer may help. But this may seem counterintuitive, as the main point of a 2-in-1 product is to speed up your skincare routine.
2. Cleansers that contain physical exfoliants.
Exfoliating granules work just as effectively in a cleansing product as they do in a separate facial scrub. Alpha-H Micro Super Scrub combines gentle cleansing with biodegradable jojoba beads for added physical exfoliation.
The downside of scrub cleansers is their potential to cause irritation, particularly if you have acne, by rubbing impurities into skin. For this reason, we recommend using these products as part of a double-cleanse routine.
First, remove makeup and impurities with a mild, non-exfoliating cleansing oil or cream. Quickly follow this step with your choice of cleansing exfoliant.
Since you're still following two steps, you may prefer to simply use a separate cleanser and scrub. Ultimately, it's up to your personal product preferences.
How Often Should I Exfoliate My Face?
Not sure how often to exfoliate your face? We've all been there. Exfoliation can impart both positive and negative effects on your skin. Exfoliate too little, and results will be extremely gradual. Exfoliate too much, and you'll find yourself with dry, sensitive skin that's prone to reactivity. Here's how to find that sweet spot when it comes to exfoliation frequency. Knowing how often to exfoliate your face depends on two key points
As you have read, there are two types of exfoliants, physical and chemical. If you are using a physical exfoliation generally you can use it daily, or to be on the safer side, once every other day. If you're using a chemical exfoliant you need to be more careful. As chemical exfoliants remain on your skin longer and are active on a deeper level, we recommend only using them 2-3 times per week. If you're just starting out with a chemical exfoliant start with once a week and build up to see your skin's tolerance to exfoliation products.
Skin type will play a role in how often your skin will be able to handle exfoliation.
In general, dry/dehydrated and normal skin types fit nicely with the frequency of product use already discussed. Whereas for oily/combination and mature skin types, the frequency of using chemical exfoliants can be increased to say 3-4 times a week. However as we stated before start slowly and build up your exfoliation routine, so you can see how your skin reacts.
Should You Exfoliate Your Neck?
Before we round up our best exfoliation products we need to have a quick chat about neck exfoliation. Our poor necks often get forgotten during the skincare routine, but the skin on your neck is super important to look after. After all, what's the point of putting in so much effort on your face if the rest of your body's skin doesn't look the same? Neck exfoliators will help your skin absorb products better and appear brighter and firmer. So next time you're exfoliating your face, don't forget to exfoliate your neck!
But what neck exfoliator should I use?
You don’t want to use anything wildly harsh on your thin neck skin. A classic body scrub is too abrasive and could create microtears, particularly on more mature skin. There are a few different types of exfoliants you can use on the neck without damaging the skin. The best neck exfoliators are enzyme exfoliants, acid exfoliants, and physical exfoliants .Trying to get more bang for your buck? Buy an exfoliant you can use on your face and neck, or if you're a little bit bougie you can buy one for each.