The Dos and Don’ts of Using a Physical Exfoliant

So how is a physical exfoliant used? An exfoliant is used almost the same way as a cleanser, by wetting your skin before gently rubbing your skin with the exfoliant in circular motion, taking precaution not to be too overzealous.

Scrubbing too hard or too frequently will not do your skin any good contrary to what most people believe – it will only cause your face to be scrubbed raw. There are many cases of women (or men) getting red and irritated skin because of this.

Make this your mantra: too much of a good thing is bad for you. This applies very well for scrubs and polishes.

The eye area should be avoided while exfoliating. After that, the face is rinsed with preferably warm water and a moisturizer should be applied especially if a pulling sensation is felt on the skin.

The general rule is to use a body exfoliant for the body only, and not the face as usually body exfoliants are harsher, consisting of larger and sharper particles that might injure your cells.

A note to mention on the frequency of using a scrub – it should not be used as an everyday routine. Although scrubs serve to remove dead cells that give you a dry and dull look, your body system puts the dead cells at the surface of your skin for a reason – to protect the delicate living cells below.

Exfoliating done in moderation will reveal beautiful, softer and more radiant skin, and the best frequency to do this is once in every two weeks. This is about the period the cells on your skin take to turn over.

However, tolerance level to scrubbing differs among individuals, and it is best you work your way to a more frequent exfoliating if you desire. After a while of using scrubs, you might realize that more frequent scrubbing will not improve your complexion any further because there are no dead cells left on your skin’s surface. This is a cue for you to give your skin a break and let it heal some before you scrub it again.

Another myth to avoid is that scrubbing frequently and too excessively will clean your pores, reduce your skin’s oiliness, decrease your acne and give you a permanent healthy glow. It is even more of a folly to believe that exfoliants can physically remove blackheads, whiteheads or worse, pimples – it does not. In fact, it may cause your skin to break out especially if pimples or blackheads or scraped and not extracted properly, so for people with this skin condition, more precaution should be practiced while using exfoliants – choose them well and make sure your products are suitable for your skin type.

Here's a video of chemical/ physical exfoliating:


Facial Care: How To Exfoliate Your Face