Why Exfoliating is So Important for Proper Skin Care

The philosophy of beauty has been recognized within many different cultures throughout history. Here at Elphia Beauty we found great inspiration in Cleopatra and the Ancient Egyptians. Although her exact beauty routines are not officially known, it is said she had many beauty practices, including being the first to use exfoliation as a beauty enhancing method. Enthused by the eternal stories of her beauty, we decided to launch our very first product, the Luxe Exfoliating Gel, in tradition with Cleopatra’s skin care routine.

We are writing this blog in an effort to explain what we learned in our product development journey and why we decided to make an exfoliator our signature product.

First, we needed to find out exactly what “exfoliating” is, and here is what we found out.

Exfoliation is the process of removing dead skin cells from the outermost layer of your body. Why is it important to remove dead skin? Well, there is a whole laundry list of reasons but the top ones that we have found are:

• they can clog your pores which can cause several issues such as an increase in fine lines, wrinkles, age spots and acne.
• by removing them, you can actually stimulate your body to produce new, healthy cells to replace the ones lost
• exfoliation opens the way for conditioning and moisturizing products to penetrate deeper and increasing their effectiveness

Next, we researched what different types of exfoliation there are. With so many products on the market, this can be a very confusing process. To simplify things, we decided to break it down into the two main categories that we found, mechanical  and chemical. Mechanical exfoliation is the physical process of scraping dead cells from your outer-most layer of skin. Mechanical exfoliating products usually contain either crystals, natural beads or small fine granules. Chemical exfoliators work to either break down the bonds holding the dead skin cells together or some even dissolve the dead cells all together. Chemical exfoliating products use either alpha-hydroxy acids (AHA’s), beta-hydroxy acids (BHA’s), enzymes or a combination of them together.

Now that we knew the types, we had to choose which one we would use for our formula. We ended up choosing a unique blend of AHA’s as they are powerful in function, yet gentle enough to be used on all skin types. This quality of being a good product for a diverse amount of people coupled with the fact AHA’s are a water-soluble ingredient, made it our clear choice. So we searched the world for the finest components, making sure to adhere to our commitment to being a cruelty free and vegan friendly brand.

In our extensive research, we found a great many benefits from exfoliating. Did you know as you age, your natural skin reproduction cycle slows down? When this happens, dead cells build up making the appearance of your skin look dull and dry. AHA’s work to dissolve the bonds holding those dead cells together and remove them, leaving you with a newer, brighter and younger looking appearance. There are reports that it also helps stimulate your body’s collagen synthesis as well.

Some of the additional benefits that were reported included:

• increase in cell turnover and reduction of cell build-up
• unclogging and minimizing pores
• control of excess oil
• acne prevention
• balancing and improving your skin texture

We also found out that dead skin acts as a barrier for repair and hydration products. Exfoliating regularly helps your serums and moisturizers penetrate deeper into your skin, thus making them work more effectively at providing nourishment.

Now that you know all about the types of exfoliation and the benefits of it, the next question is how often you should do it? The answer to that depends on what type of exfoliation you are doing. Most dermatologists recommend once per week for mechanical exfoliation where the frequency of chemical exfoliation is dependent upon the strength of the AHA’s, BHA’s or enzymes present in the product.  When we developed our formula, we worked to create a gentle product, that could be used on a regular basis. Many of our customers use the Luxe Exfoliating Gel on a daily basis and see tremendous results. Some people choose to use it only 2-3 times a week. Your complexion and skin type play a huge factor in deciding how often you need to exfoliate. Test it out and see what works best for you!