There are a slew of home remedies that you have either found online or were suggested by a friend or family member to get rid of your acne.
These remedies are tempting because they are low-cost and most are common items you have at home. Some of these methods have been marketed to make us believe that there could be no harm to these methods to clear your skin.
Here is the list of things that you should NEVER put on your face 🙈
Toothpaste : Many of you have tried applying a bit of toothpaste to your breakouts as spot treatment, but it just dries out your skin which can cause more breakouts. JUST SAY NO to toothpaste!
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS): This detergent, commonly found in face cleansers, will dry out your skin to the extreme. It will damage the moisture barrier of your skin which is trying to keep the moisture in and keep outside gunk out.
Essential Oils: Essential oils have been marketed to be the magic cure for all things imaginable, but studies ] have shown that essential oils can kill living cells in your skin. This is NOT GOOD especially if you have acne-prone skin. Clean Beauty, a popular brand that creates skin-care products with non-toxic ingredients, loves putting essential oils in their products. Make sure you look out for essential oils in the ingredient list!
Baking Soda: This item is commonly suggested as a home-remedy for acne, however, it is too alkaline and will dry out your skin. Remember, you want to use skin-care methods that are close to your skin’s pH which is 5.5.
Apple Cider Vinegar: Don’t use apple cider vinegar unless you have VERY oily skin (meaning you are blotting off oil every hour or two). Due to the acidity, you don’t want to put apple cider vinegar directly on your skin. Instead, you can put about a teaspoon of ACV in a quarter or half cup of green tea and spray it on (again, only for extremely oily skin).
Lemon: Just like apple cider vinegar, lemon juice is too acidic. Save your lemons for making lemonade!
Clay: Clay draws out moisture and will dehydrate the skin. As with many of these items listed here, it will damage the moisture barrier of the skin which will not help your acne-prone skin.
Masks: Masks are a trending fad that many of us have positive associations with, such as feeling calmed and relaxed after a mini-spa mask treatment. Masks can hydrate the skin temporarily, but they can WREAK HAVOC on sensitive skin. They tend to include extra ingredients like fragrances and dyes that will do your skin no favors.
Soap: It is tempting to lather soap on your face while you are showering, but any kind of soap is too alkaline, and like many of the items listed here, will dehydrate your skin. This includes castile soap.
Oil Cleansing: There are many brands that market oil cleansing products specifically for acne, but if you are trying to get rid of acne, oil cleansing is not the best method for you. There will be a whole blog post on why oil cleansing won’t work for acne...coming soon!
Menthol: If you see menthol in the first 5 ingredients of your cleanser, immediately throw it away! Menthol will dry out your skin though cleansers with menthol as the last ingredient may be okay to use.
Alcohol: Similar to menthol, if alcohol is one of the top 5 ingredients in your cleanser, then STOP using it. Alcohol will also dry your skin and remember you want to keep your skin hydrated.
If you love what you read about skin care for acne, and want to know my EXACT routine and all the products I recommend for every skin type, I invite you to check out my Acne Skin Care Guides. They can make all the difference in the health of your skin. Learn more here!
